★ The Sports Examiner: Chronicling the key competitive, economic and political forces shaping elite sport and the Olympic Movement.★
★ To get the daily Sports Examiner Recap by e-mail: sign up here! ★
≡ USATF NATIONALS ≡
The USA Track & Field National Championships will finally take place beginning on 31 July and continuing on 1-2-3 August in Eugene, Oregon, with the fields finally starting to take shape.
It’s a historic meet on multiple levels, with the dates pushed back due to the 13-21 September dates for the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo (JPN), and the correspondingly late World Athletics “national championships” windows of 2-3 August and 23-24 August:
● The August dates make 2025 the latest men’s nationals since 1930, held in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania from 22-25 August.
● Also, the latest women’s nationals since 1968, held from 14-18 August in Aurora, Colorado.
● For the first time, the U.S. Para Athletics Championships will be held in conjunction with the USATF Nationals, on 31 July and 1-2 August.
USATF has posted the entries for the meet and declarations to run are due by the end of the day – 11:59 p.m. Pacific time – on Thursday (24th), but most of the main competitors are in.
American stars won eight individual events at the 2023 World Athletics Championships in Budapest (HUN) and have an automatic entry into the 2025 Worlds; winners of seven of the eight have declared to compete in Eugene:
● Noah Lyles: men’s 100 and 200 m
● Grant Holloway: men’s 110 m hurdles
● Sha’Carri Richardson: women’s 100 m
● Katie Moon: women’s vault
● Chase Jackson: women’s shot
● Lagi Tausaga: women’s discus
Only men’s shot star Ryan Crouser is not entered; he has been nursing injuries since the spring; in fact, he hasn’t competed at all in 2025 and was last seen at the Van Damme Memorial in Brussels (BEL) last September.
The U.S. also had 11 individual Paris Olympic gold medalists in 2024 and nine of them are declared to compete in Eugene:
● Noah Lyles: men’s 100 m
● Cole Hocker: men’s 1,500 m (also 5,000 m)
● Grant Holloway: men’s 110 m hurdles
● Rai Benjamin: men’s 400 m hurdles
● Gabby Thomas: women’s 200 m (also 100 m)
● Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone: women’s 400 m (no 400 m hurdles)
● Masai Russell: women’s 100 m hurdles
● Tara Davis-Woodhall: women’s long jump
● Valarie Allman: women’s discus
Not competing are Quincy Hall (men’s 400 m) and Crouser, both apparently dealing with injuries. Olympic champs get no extra consideration from World Athletics and have to try to make the U.S. team like everyone else.
There is one other wild-card door into the 2025 Worlds: that’s to win the 2025 Diamond League, which continues through the end of August, with four meets in 12 days in Poland (Chorzow), Switzerland (Lausanne), Belgium (Brussels) and back to Switzerland for the finals in Zurich.
The U.S. has been good on the circuit so far, with 10 athletes leading or tied in their events in the race to qualify for Zurich, where the winner will be the Diamond League winner. So far, the U.S. event qualifying leaders include Chris Bailey (men’s 400 m), Cordell Tinch (men’s 100 m hurdles), Benjamin (men’s 400 m hurdles), and Joe Kovacs (men’s shot), plus Anavia Battle (women’s 200 m), Addy Wiley (women’s 800 m), Grace Stark (women’s 100 m hurdles), Moon (women’s vault), Jackson (women’s shot) and Allman (women’s discus).
The USATF Nationals will be shown on NBC and its streaming network Peacock. More details as the meet gets closer.
¶
★ Receive our exclusive, weekday TSX Recap by e-mail by clicking here.
★ Sign up a friend to receive the TSX Recap by clicking here.
★ Please consider a donation here to keep this site going.
For our updated, 699-event International Sports Calendar for 2025, 2026 and beyond, by date and by sport, click here!
