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≡ USATF NATIONALS ≡
Sunday’s final day of the USATF National Championships brought nice, 82 F conditions to Icahn Stadium on Randall’s Island, with about 3,000 spectators in the 5,000-capacity venue, and plenty of last-second heroics and some real surprises. Here’s what happened:
● Men/200 m: Superstar 100 m winner (and defending champ) Noah Lyles was in lane six, and had an ordinary start, then pulled up with 95 m left and walked in last in 50.88. Everyone else kept going and ex-USC star Garrett Kaalund flew down the straight in lane eight and won cleanly in 20.04 (wind: +1.5 m/s). Brandon Hicklin was second in 20.29, just ahead of Max Thomas (also 20.29).
Stunner. Lyles told NBC’s Lewis Johnson, “I just felt the grabbing sensation” as he came into the straight and it was “time to stop.” He said he would get some massage and electrolytes and thought he would be fine.
● Men/800 m: All eyes on star 17-year-old Cooper Lutkenhaus, but Sean Dolan had the lead at the bell (52.07) with Lutkenhaus third. Lutkenhaus moved up on the backstraight and had the lead with 200 to go, being chased by Paris Olympian Hobbs Kessler. But Lutkenhaus ran away fan away from everyone and won in 1:43.48 for his first outdoor title. Wes Ferguson, third at the USATF Indoors in 2025, passed Kessler for second, 1:44.55 to 1:45.00.
Lutkenhaus, who won the USATF Indoor title and the World Indoors, said he will shut it down for the season and finish high school! A great end to a storybook season.
● Men/5,000 m: Sean McGorty led a tightly-bunched, slow pack with four laps to go, then Oklahoma State’s Ryan Schoppe took over with 1,200 m left. The pace increased with Anthony Camerieri second and 2024 U.S. Cross Country champ Cooper Teare third.
At the bell, Schoppe and Teare were 1-2, but then Kasey Knevelbaard rolled to the lead around the final turn, but chased by five more. In the straight, Vince Ciattei moved up and got to the lead and won the final sprint to get his first national track title, in 13:46.75, with a 54.36 final lap. Teare got second in 13:46.88 and Sam Prakel was third in 13:46.93. Schoppe faded to seventh in 13:49.63.
● Men/110 m hurdles: The heats started the program, with Sanford’s NCAA-fifth placer Bradley Franklin getting a lifetime best of 13.04 (+1.4), with Eric Edwards second in 13.24. NCAA runner-up Kendrick Smallwood led heat two, winning in 13.15 (-0.5) over Jamar Marshall (13.21). World Champion Cordell Tinch was in lane four in heat three, and won easily ion 13.12 (0.0) ahead of Malachi Snow (13.32). World-record setter Ja’Kobe Tharp did not enter and world no. 2 Jamal Britt did enter, but withdrew. Freddie Crittenden, 31, the Paris Olympian and 2023 Worlds fourth-placer, was seventh in 15.38 in what he said was his last meet; He had a best of 12.93 from 2024.
Smallwood, Franklin and Tinch were in 4-5-6 for the final, and Franklin was out well with Tinch chasing. Franklin was in the lead over hurdle 10 but on the run-in, it was Tinch leaning hard to win – 12.993 to 12.997 – with both given 13.00 (+0.5). Foot speed made the difference and Tinch got his first national title. Meanwhile, Franklin got two lifetime bests in a single day, lowering his PR from 13.19 to 13.00! Smallwood was third in 13.11.
● Men/400 m hurdles: Chris Robinson, the 2023 NCAA champ, took the lead on the backstraight and despite almost catching the last hurdle, rolled to the line in 47.61, a lifetime best, and no. 8 on the world list for 2026. He was challenged by CJ Allen on the final turn, but he faded and James Smith II got a personal record 48.53 to finish second and ex-NCAA champ Caleb Dean moved up from fourth into the turn to take third (48.66).
It’s been a good year for Robinson, who also won a World Indoor 4×400 m relay gold in March!
● Men/Vault: Five men cleared 5.72 m (18-9 1/4), but only Tokyo Olympic silver winner Chris Nilsen got over 5.82 m (19-1) on the first attempt, joined by two-time World Champion Sam Kendricks. Zach Bradford ended up third at 5.72, on misses.
Up to 5.92 m (19-5), but neither could clear and Nilsen got the win, his fourth U.S. outdoor gold.
● Men/Shot: Jordan Geist, the World Indoor silver medalist, took the lead right away at 21.97 m (72-1) and extended to 22.31 m (73-2 1/2). Tripp Piperi moved from fourth to second in round three to 21.80 m (71-6 1/4).
Piperi got close at 21.91 m (71-10 3/4) in round six, but Geist sent the winning throw out to 22.32 m (73-2 3/4) to win his first U.S. gold. Payton Otterdahl got third at 21.65 m (71-0 1/2) and two-time World Champion Joe Kovacs was fourth at 21.36 m (70-1) in round five.
● Women/200 m: Defending champion Melissa Jefferson-Wooden was out like a shot from lane six and ran away from everyone in 21.69 (+1.0), a seasonal best and no. 3 in the world for 2026. Cambrea Sturgis was well behind, but was second at 22.22, then Camryn Dickson at 22.58. Impressive.
It’s Jefferson-Wooden’s second-fastest ever, just 0.01 off her 2025 best of 21.68. It’s also the equal-7th performance all-time in U.S. history, tied with the great Allyson Felix from 2012.
● Women/800 m: Defending champion Roisin Willis was in front from 200 m on and took the bell ahead of 1,500 m runner-up Addy Wiley. Wiley made her move with 200 m to go and Meghan Hunter passed Willis as well. Out of fourth came 2023 and 2024 winner Nia Akins on the final straight and won going away in 1:59.25, moving from the rail to lane two for the win. Wiley got another second, in 1:59.40, then Hunter 1:59.67 and Willis at 1:59.68. It was Akins’ first race under 2:00 this season, and her third outdoor title.
● Women/5,000 m: Former NCAA champ Parker Valby and defending champ Shelby Houlihan led the field early, with U.S. Indoor 3,000 m third-placer Margot Appleton and 10,000 m winner Shelby Vaught right behind. Six were in contact with five laps to go, and five with two laps to go, with Valby and Houlihan at the front. Emily Mackay moved up into third and at the bell, those three had separated, with Houlihan taking the bell with Mackay second.
Mackay got to the lead with 150 m to go and ran away to the finish in 14:55.82 for her first U.S. outdoor title, with a 61.90 last lap. Houlihan was a clear second in 14:57.88, then Valby in 15:06.25. Mackay won her first U.S. title indoors this season in the 3,000 m, and won after finishing third in the finish sprint in the 1,500 m on Saturday.
● Women/400 m hurdles: Paris Olympic silver winner Anna Cockrell and Rio 2016 gold medalist (and defending champ) Dalilah Muhammad were in lanes six and five and Cockrell was away hard and had a 3 m lead after the eighth hurdle. She won easily in 52.94, with Muhammad hopping over the seventh hurdle and falling way back. It’s Cockrell’s first national championship, with Deonca Bookman second with a lifetime best in 53.95 and three-time national champ Shamier Little third in 54.37. Muhammad was ninth in 57.27.
● Women/High Jump: Only four cleared 1.89 m (6-2 1/4), with seven-time U.S. outdoor champ Vashti Cunningham into the lead on her second jump of the meet. At 1.92 m (6-3 1/4), Cunningham was over on her second try, as was Charity Hufnagel, the 2026 U.S. Indoor winner. No one else got over and Sanaa Barnes was third at 1.89 m and UCLA’s Valentina Fakrogha fourth.
The bar went to 1.95 m (6-4 3/4), but neither could clear and Cunningham won on misses for her eighth outdoor title to go with nine indoor championships!
● Women/Long Jump: Olympic champ Tara Davis-Woodhall took over in round one at 6.88 m (22-7), ahead of Monae Nichols, the 2024 World Indoor runner-up, at 6.80 m (22-3 3/4). Nichols then took over in round two, at 6.92 m (22-8 1/2), with Davis-Woodhall improving to 6.90 m (22-7 3/4), but both were passed by NCAA champ Alyssa Jones, who launched to 6.96 m (22-10) and took the lead.
But Davis-Woodhall was not going to sit back and she exploded in the sixth round, reaching 7.16 m (23-6) to take the lead! Nichols and Jones had the final jumps, but both fouled and Davis-Woodhall pulled out the victory for her fourth straight USATF title.
● Women/Discus: Looking for an eighth straight national title, Olympic and World Champion Valarie Sion got going right away with a 66.54 m (218-4) leader in round one and improved to 68.43 m (224-6) in round three. Cierra Jackson, no. 2 in the world in 2026 and who beat Sion at the London Diamond League, moved up to second at 64.25 m (210-9) in round four, but was immediately passed by Erika Beistle, who moved back into second at 65.29 m (214-2).
Meanwhile, Sion blew up in round four, out to 69.54 m (228-2) and Jackson re-took second at 67.40 m (221-1) in round five. That’s how it ended with Sion extending her streak of winning every U.S. nationals since 2018.
Four men and eight women repeated as champions from 2026, in the first meet in New York since 1991. The next Nationals will have more on the line, with berths for the 2027 Worlds to be settled.
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