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≡ USATF NATIONALS ≡
There were some things that were expected on Saturday at the USA Track & Field Championships in Eugene, Oregon. Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone winning the women’s 400, yes. Olympic 100 hurdles champ Masai Russell and two-time World Champion Chase Jackson in the women’s shot, yes.
But Jonah Koech in the men’s 1,500? NO!
The 1,500 m heats were astonishingly fast, and Olympic bronzer Yared Nuguse and Paris fifth-placer Hobbs Kessler were at the front off the gun, passing 400 m in 56.23. Nuguse passed 800 m in 1:54.59, a little slower, and stayed in front through 1,200 m in 2:50.53.
Olympic champ Cole Hocker moved into third around the turn, but then new sensation Koech got into the mix, trailing Hocker for third into the backstraight. Nuguse and Kessler were still 1-2 into the final turn, but ex-North Carolina star Ethan Strand was running hard on the outside and got to the lead with 100 m to go.
Koech was right behind with Hocker chasing both down the straight. Koech passed Strand in the final 5 m and won in a shocking upset in a lifetime best of 3:30.17! Strand was second in 3:30.25, also a lifetime best. Hocker got third in 3:30.37, with Kessler at 3:33.12 and Nuguse a stunning fifth in 3:31.34. Koech ran his last 400 m in 52.91 and Strand in 53.07, and that was the difference.
Unbelievable does not even begin to describe this outcome. Koech, who transferred allegiance to the U.S. in 2021 from Kenya, now ranks no. 7 all-time U.S. and Strand, 22, is no. 8.
However, the big stars did shine elsewhere:
● Women/400 m: McLaughlin-Levrone was the star attraction, in lane five, with good conditions at 1:03 p.m., in 78 F and sunny skies. She was off strongly, making up the stagger on Bella Whittaker to her outside. Around the turn, McLaughlin-Levrone was all in charge and ran to the line in 48.90. Whittaker was undaunted, and was a strong second in 49.59, with Georgia star Aaliyah Butler coming on in the final 50 m in lane nine to get third in 49.91, ahead of Lynna Irby-Jackson (50.06).
Alexis Holmes (50.33) and Britton Wilson (50.88) finished 5-6 and will probably be in the relay pool for Tokyo.
● Women/100 m hurdles: The semifinals were hot, with Olympic fifth-placer Grace Stark winning the first race in 12.34 (+0.6), and Olympic champ and world leader Russell even faster in race two in 12.25 (+1.5). Olympic Trials fifth-placer Tonea Marshall got the third win in 12.46, just ahead of Olympic finalist Alaysha Johnson (12.47: +0.4).
The final was about 95 minutes later, with Russell getting out well and taking the race in hand, never giving anyone a chance, finishing in 12.22 (+0.7). Stark figured to be second and she was in 12.31, with Johnson just edging former world-record holder Keni Harrison for third at the line, 12.36 to 12.37.
That’s the no. 7 performance in history for Russell; she’s the only one with more than one of the top seven.
● Women/Shot Put: Two-time World Champion and American Record-setter Jackson bombed the field early, measuring 20.84 m (68-4 1/2) in the first round, the no. 3 throw in U.S. history, all by her this year! No one could touch her and her 20.56 m (67-5 1/2) in the second round is the no. 9 throw in American history.
Maggie Ewen was the only one within a meter, at 19.94 m (65-5) in round two; Jessica Ramsey was third at 19.56 m (64-2 1/4), and all three have the Worlds qualifying standard.
There was a mix of expected winners and surprises in the rest of Saturday’s finals:
● Men/400 m: Jacory Patterson, the 2025 World Indoor bronze winner, wanted this race and he ran hard from the start, making up ground on the field and then taking the lead for good on the turn. He was unchallenged on the straight and won in 44.16. Veteran Vernon Norwood was hanging on to second into the straight, but World Indoor champ Chris Bailey was moving hard in lane nine, as was Khaleb McRae in lane two. Both passed Norwood, and Bailey timed 44.43 for second, McRae hit 44.45 and Norwood was fourth in 44.47.
Jenoah Mckiver (45.16) and 2023 U.S. champ Bryce Deadmon (45.39) went 5-6 and into the relay pool for the World Championships.
● Men/Steeple: BYU’s NCAA champ James Corrigan led early, but Olympic silver winner Kenneth Rooks had the lead by 2,000 m. Fellow Olympian Benard Keter was second with Daniel Michalski third at the bell, but Rooks kept the pressure on.
Rooks and Michalski were 1-2 into the final straight and Rooks got there for his third straight U.S. crown in 8:26.58. Michalski was second in 8:26.77, then Keter in 8:29.00. Matthew Wilkinson, the top American on time in 2025, was fourth in 8:29.32; neither Michalski or Keter have the Worlds standard.
● Men/20 km Walk: Held in the early morning, Nick Christie, the national champion in 2018-19-21-22-23-24, won again, leading from the start and finishing in 1:24:56.2, his fifth-fastest time ever. Emmanuel Corvera was second, just ahead of Jordan Crawford, 1:27:59.2 to 1:28:02.6.
● Men/Vault: Five were alive after 5.72 m (18-9 1/4), with two-time World Champion Sam Kendricks, 2020 U.S. indoor champ Matt Ludwig and Austin Miller all perfect with three clearances each.
But only Miller could clear 5.82 m (19-1) and he ended up the winner and on his first U.S. national team! Kendricks go second and Ludwig third. Miller went on to a lifetime best of 5.92 m (19-5) and got that on his third try to wrap up his first American national championship.
● Men/Discus: Two-time Olympian – and two-time USATF champion – Sam Mattis got the early lead at 64.82 m (212-8) in round two, but was passed by 2018 winner Reggie Jagers in round three at 66.85 m (219-4).
And that was enough for Jagers to win, with Mattis improving to 65.56 m (215-1) in the fifth round, but he could get no closer. Marcus Gustaveson moved up to third on his final throw of 64.51 m (211-7) and is on the way to Tokyo.
● Women/1,500 m: It was warm for the final, at 80 F, with Nikki Hiltz the winner of the 2023 and 2024 national titles, the favorite. It started slow, at 67.88 for 400 m and slower at 2:15.90 m at 800 m. Finally, 2022 national champ Sinclaire Johnson took the lead at the bell, with Emily Mackay close, then Hiltz moving up to challenge with 200 m to go.
Johnson led into the straight, with Hiltz on the shoulder and Hiltz had too much speed and won in 4:03.15, with a 58.67 last lap. Johnson second in 4:03.77 and Mackay got third in 4:04.38 and is on the team; Heather MacLean was fourth in 4:05.60. It’s a strong team: the top three are all in the world top 14 right now.
● Women/Steeple: Former NCAA champ Courtney Wayment had the early lead, with North Carolina State’s NCAA third-placer Angelina Napoleon and a half-dozen others all close with four laps to go. Napoleon was in front with three laps left, and with two laps left, but then NCAA runner-up Lexy Halladay-Lowry took off and had a 5 m lead at the bell.
Only Napoleon was in contact and they ran to the line 1-2, in 9:09.14 and 9:10.96. Kaylee Mitchell was third off the final water jump and held off a late charge from 2023 national champ by Krissy Gear for third, 9:11.36 and 9:11.64.
● Women/20 km Walk: Lauren Harris, the 2025 USATF Indoor 3,000 m Walk champ, won her first U.S. 20 km national title, taking control right away and crossing in 1:31:23.7, ahead of nine-time champion in the event, Maria Michta-Coffey (1:39:58.6). Katie Burnett was alone in third in 1:40:35.2.
● Women/Triple Jump: Olympic bronze medalist Jasmine Moore missed making the U.S. long jump team and came out determined, reaching 14.29 m (46-10 3/4) in the first round. NCAA runner-up Agur Dwol jumped 13.76 m (45-1 3/4) in round two to move up to second, and stayed there.
Moore had it won and then exploded in round six, reaching 14.68 m (48-2), moving to no. 3 in the world in 2025! All six of her jumps would have won the event.
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In the qualifying, the men’s 110 m hurdles featured six of the world’s top 10, which did not include reigning World Champion Grant Holloway, who is 0-4 in finals in 2025! World leader Cordell Tinch took heat one in 13.34 (+0.1), ahead of Connor Schulman (13.46) with NCAA winner Ja’Kobe Tharp advancing to the semis in fourth (13.58).
World no. 3 Dylan Beard continued his career year with a 13.13 win in heat two (+0.8), ahead of Paris Olympian Freddie Crittenden (13.46). Holloway headlined heat three, and delivered with a 13.15 win (-0.4) over world no. 8 Jamal Britt (13.25). Trey Cunningham, the 2022 Worlds runner-up, won heat four in 13.10 (+1.3) – fastest of the day – ahead of Texas’ Kendrick Smallwood (13.35). Olympic silver winner Daniel Roberts was scheduled for heat four, but did not start.
Ex-NCAA champion Caleb Dean took the lead over hurdle eight in semi one of the men’s 400 m hurdles and dueled with another NCAA winner, Chris Robinson, both in 47.76, now equal-6th in the world for 2025. Trevor Bassitt, the 2022 Worlds bronze winner, clobbered two hurdles in semi two and finished seventh; Aldrich Bailey passed CJ Allen on the run-in to win in 49.00 to 49.04.
Olympic champ Rai Benjamin was in lane seven in semi three, and went to the lead right away, and essentially loafed the straightaway to win in 47.45. Amazing. Texas’ Kody Blackwood was a distant second in 49.12.
In the women’s 400 m hurdles, Olympic fourth-placer Jasmine Jones was the runaway heat one winner in 54.36, and the same for Olympic runner-up Anna Cockrell, in 53.97. Rio 2016 Olympic champ Dalilah Muhammad, who said she will retire at the end of the season, featured in heat three, and she ran down both women ahead of her by the fourth hurdle and stormed to an easy win in 53.80, fastest of the day. Those three were more than a second-and-a-half faster than the rest of the field.
Sunday’s program begins with the women’s discus and vault at noon and the men’s 200 m semis at 12:05 p.m. NBC and Peacock have broadcast coverage from 1-3 p.m. Pacific (4-6 p.m. Eastern).
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