Running News Daily

Some rivalries create champions. Others change an entire sport.

For Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone and Dalilah Muhammad, their extraordinary rivalry did both.

As Muhammad took the final 400m hurdles race of her remarkable career at the World Athletics Ultimate Championship Budapest 26, McLaughlin-Levrone paid tribute to the woman who helped push her to another level — not only as a competitor, but as one of the athletes who helped redefine what was possible in the event.

“Dalilah, you truly did just change the game for all of us.”

Those words carry particular weight because few athletes understand Muhammad’s impact better than McLaughlin-Levrone.

Their rivalry became one of the defining stories of modern women’s athletics. In 2019, Muhammad broke a world record that had stood for almost 16 years, clocking 52.20 seconds at the US Championships. Later that year, she lowered it again to 52.16 while winning the world title in Doha, with McLaughlin-Levrone finishing second in 52.23.

But Sydney was not content to simply chase Muhammad.

She kept coming.

At the Tokyo Olympics, McLaughlin-Levrone broke the world record with 51.46 seconds to win gold, while Muhammad followed closely in 51.58. Their performances demonstrated how dramatically the event had evolved in just a few years.

McLaughlin-Levrone continued to push the limits, eventually taking the world record down to 50.68 seconds in 2022 before producing an astonishing 50.37 at the Paris 2024 Olympics.

Yet behind those numbers was something more meaningful than a succession of records.

There was respect.

Muhammad had established a standard that forced McLaughlin-Levrone to chase something greater, while McLaughlin-Levrone’s rise helped create another level of competition for everyone following them.

That is the essence of “iron sharpens iron.”

One athlete pushes.

The other responds.

And the sport moves forward.

Their relationship also extended beyond individual competition. They represented the United States together and shared Olympic success as teammates, including the American women’s 4x400m relay gold medal at Tokyo 2020.

Now, years after their most memorable battles, Muhammad has taken her final bow.

At the inaugural World Athletics Ultimate Championship in Budapest, the former Olympic champion and world record-holder finished fourth in 53.11 seconds, just 0.02 behind fellow American Anna Cockrell.

Jasmine Jones won the title in a season-best 52.45 seconds, with Emma Zapletalová taking second in 52.68 and Cockrell finishing third in 53.09.

For Jones, the victory represented the biggest breakthrough of her career. After finishing fourth at the Paris 2024 Olympics and claiming silver at the 2025 World Championships, she finally reached the top of a major international podium.

And there was something particularly fitting about Muhammad sharing her final race with an athlete from a younger generation.

The baton was not literally being passed, but the symbolism was impossible to miss.

Muhammad helped establish a new standard.

McLaughlin-Levrone took that standard even higher.

And now athletes such as Jones are beginning to write their own stories in an event transformed by those who came before them.

For Muhammad, the legacy goes far beyond medals and world records. She became one of the defining figures in the history of the women’s 400m hurdles, helping elevate the event through years of extraordinary competition.

That is why McLaughlin-Levrone’s tribute feels so much bigger than a farewell.

“Thank you for pushing me and so many others to be better. A true competitor in every sense of the word!!”

There was a time when Sydney was chasing Dalilah.

Then Sydney became the athlete everyone else had to chase.

But their story was never simply about one athlete replacing another. It was about competition creating excellence — about two extraordinary athletes raising the standard until the impossible began to look achievable.

Muhammad pushed the door open.

McLaughlin-Levrone ran through it.

And now a new generation is stepping forward.

As Muhammad leaves the track for the final time, the records will remain in the history books and the medals will become part of her remarkable legacy. But perhaps her greatest contribution will be found in the athletes she inspired, challenged and helped make better.

One pushed.

One answered.

Both changed the game.

That is what iron sharpens iron truly means.

And for one unforgettable era, Dalilah Muhammad and Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone showed the world exactly what happens when two great competitors refuse to let each other settle for ordinary.

Sydney McLaughlin has broken the world 400m hurdles record for the fourth time of her career, obliterating her previous best with 50.68 to win her first world title in the event at the World Athletics Championships Oregon22 on Friday (22).

In another epic race in front of a passionate home crowd, the 22-year-old Olympic champion raised the bar yet again. Behind her, Netherlands’ Olympic bronze medallist Femke Bol secured silver in 52.27, while USA’s former world record-holder Dalilah Muhammad clocked 53.13 for bronze.

It is the third world record that McLaughlin has set at Hayward Field. Her first came at the 2021 US Olympic Trials, when she clocked 51.90 to improve on the 52.16 global mark that Muhammad had set when winning the 2019 world title ahead of her compatriot.

Just over a month later, McLaughlin ran 51.46 to win the Olympic title in Tokyo, and she broke the record for a third time at this year’s US Championships in Eugene on 25 June, clocking 51.41.

(Third photo of Sydney taken at USATF Championships. Photo by Jivko)  

A team of 151 athletes will represent the USA on home soil at the World Athletics Championships Oregon22 on July 15-24.

Multiple global champions and world record-holders feature in the squad as Eugene’s Hayward Field gets ready to welcome the world for the first-ever outdoor World Athletics Championships to be hosted in the USA.

World record-holder and Olympic champion Sydney McLaughlin will take on the former world record-holder and reigning world champion Dalilah Muhammad as they look to further cement the US women’s global dominance in the 400m hurdles final on July 22.

In the men’s shot put on July 17, world record-holder and Olympic champion Ryan Crouser will go after the one title that has so far eluded him – that of world champion – and will take on two-time world champion Joe Kovacs.

Such is the strength of the women’s 800m squad of Athing Mu, Ajee Wilson and Raevyn Rogers, as well as the men’s 200m team of Noah Lyles, Erriyon Knighton, Fred Kerley and Kenny Bednarek, that athletes will be aiming for USA medal sweeps.

Returning to defend the titles they won in Doha in 2019 are Nia Ali (women's 100m hurdles), Donavan Brazier (men's 800m), Christian Coleman (men's 100m), Grant Holloway (men's 110m hurdles), Kovacs (men's shot put), Lyles (men's 200m), Muhammad (women's 400m hurdles), DeAnna Price (women's hammer) and Christian Taylor (men's triple jump).

Making her 10th World Championships appearance will be Allyson Felix, who has 18 world medals, including 13 golds, to her name and will be in the mixed 4x400m pool.

“I couldn’t be prouder to lead this amazing team for this once-in-a-lifetime event,” said USATF CEO Max Siegel. “We have been given the unique opportunity to impact the track and field landscape in the US, and we’ve put our best team forward.”

USA team for Oregon

Women

100m: Aleia Hobbs, Melissa Jefferson, Twanisha Terry

200m: Tamara Clark, Jenna Prandini, Abby Steiner

400m: Talitha Diggs, Kendall Ellis, Lynna Irby

800m: Athing Mu, Raevyn Rogers, Ajee Wilson

1500m: Sinclaire Johnson, Cory McGee, Elle St. Pierre

5000m: Elise Cranny, Emily Infeld, Karissa Schweizer

10,000m: Alicia Monson, Natosha Rogers, Karissa Schweizer

Marathon: Emma Bates, Keira D’Amato, Sara Hall

3000m steeplechase: Emma Coburn, Courtney Frerichs, Courtney Wayment

100m hurdles: Nia Ali, Alia Armstrong, Keni Harrison, Alaysha Johnson

400m hurdles: Shamier Little, Sydney McLaughlin, Dalilah Muhammad, Britton Wilson

Heptathlon: Michelle Atherley, Anna Hall, Kendell Williams, Ashtin Zamzow-Mahler

High jump: Vashti Cunningham, Rachel Glenn, Rachel McCoy

Pole vault: Gabriela Leon, Sandi Morris, Katie Nageotte

Long jump: Quanesha Burks, Tiffany Flynn, Jasmine Moore

Triple jump: Tori Franklin, Jasmine Moore, Keturah Orji

Shot put: Adelaide Aquilla, Chase Ealey, Maggie Ewen, Jessica Woodard

Discus: Valarie Allman, Rachel Dincoff, Veronica Fraley, Laulauga Tausaga-Collins

Hammer: Brooke Andersen, Annette Echikunwoke, Janee Kassanavoid, DeAnna Price

Javelin: Ariana Ince, Maggie Malone, Kara Winger

20km race walk: Robyn Stevens, Miranda Melville

35km race walk: Stephanie Casey, Miranda Melville, Maria Michta-Coffey

4x100m: Celera Barnes, Tamari Davis, Gabby Thomas (plus athletes named in individual sprints)

4x400m: Wadeline Jonathas, Jaide Stepter, Kaylin Whitney (plus athletes named in individual sprints) 

Men

100m: Marvin Bracy, Trayvon Bromell, Christian Coleman, Fred Kerley

200m: Kenny Bednarek, Fred Kerley, Erriyon Knighton, Noah Lyles

400m: Champion Allison, Michael Cherry, Michael Norman, Randolph Ross

800m: Donavan Brazier, Bryce Hoppel, Jonah Koech, Brandon Miller

1500m: Johnny Gregorek, Cooper Teare, Josh Thompson

5000m: Grant Fisher, Woody Kincaid, Abdihamid Nur

10,000m: Grant Fisher, Joe Klecker, Sean McGorty 

Marathon: Elkanah Kibet, Colin Mickow, Galen Rupp

3000m steeplechase: Hillary Bor, Evan Jager, Benard Keter

110m hurdles: Devon Allen, Trey Cunningham, Grant Holloway, Daniel Roberts

400m hurdles: Trevor Bassitt, Rai Benjamin, Khallifah Rosser

Decathlon: Steven Bastien, Kyle Garland, Zach ZiemekHigh jump: Darius Carbin, JuVaughn Harrison, Shelby McEwen

Pole vault: Andrew Irwin, Chris Nilsen, Luke WinderLong jump: Marquis Dendy, Steffin McCarter, Will Williams

Triple jump: Chris Benard, Will Claye, Donald Scott, Christian Taylor

Shot put: Josh Awotunde, Ryan Crouser, Joe Kovacs, Tripp Piperi Discus: Andrew Evans, Sam Mattis, Brian Williams

Hammer: Daniel Haugh, Rudy Winkler, Alex Young

Javelin: Ethan Dabbs, Tim Glover, Curtis Thompson

20km race walk: Nick Christie, Dan Nehnevaj

35km race walk: Nick Christie 

4x100m: Kyree King, Josephus Lyles, Elijah Hall-Thompson (plus athletes named in individual sprints)

4x400m: Bryce Deadmon, Vernon Norwood, Elija Godwin (plus athletes named in individual sprints)

Mixed

4x400m: Allyson Felix, Kennedy Simon, Ismail Turner, Noah Williams (plus athletes named in individual sprints).

Rio Olympic 400m hurdles champion Dalilah Muhammad will miss this week’s USA Track and Field Outdoor Championships due to a hamstring injury.

She received a waiver from USATF to accept her bye into July’s world championships as a defending world champion. Usually, reigning world and Diamond League season champions with byes into worlds still have to compete in at least one round of nationals.

Muhammad, who took silver to Sydney McLaughlin in Tokyo in the second-fastest time in history, last raced May 21 and withdrew before a planned race June 12. She and McLaughlin last went head-to-head in Tokyo.

McLaughlin is entered at USATF Outdoors, where a top-three finish will clinch a spot at worlds. At the last worlds in 2019, McLaughlin took silver behind Muhammad.

Dozens of medal winners from the recent Tokyo Olympic Games will be back in action at the Wanda Diamond League meeting in Eugene when Hayward Field hosts the Prefontaine Classic on August 21.

Based on the announcements made so far by the meeting organizers, five events will feature a full set of Olympic medalists from Tokyo.

Double Olympic champion Sifan Hassan headlines the women’s 5000m field and she’ll take on two-time world champion Hellen Obiri and world indoor 1500m record-holder Gudaf Tsegay, the silver and bronze medalists in Tokyo over 5000m.

All three medalists from the men’s 5000m will also be in action as Uganda’s Joshua Cheptegei, Canada’s Moh Ahmed and USA’s Paul Chelimo clash over two miles.

Teenage stars Athing Mu and Keely Hodgkinson, the top two finishers in the 800m in Tokyo, will be back in action over two laps, along with world and Olympic bronze medallist Raevyn Rogers, world champion Halimah Nakaayi, Britain’s Jemma Reekie, Jamaica’s Natoya Goule and USA’s Ajee Wilson and Kate Grace.

World record-holder and two-time Olympic champion Ryan Crouser will look to maintain his winning streak in the shot put when he takes on world champion Joe Kovacs and 2017 world champion Tom Walsh. Brazil’s Darlan Romani and US duo Darrell Hill and Payton Otterdahl are also in the line-up.

Jamaican sprint stars Elaine Thompson-Herah, Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce and Shericka Jackson – who filled the 100m podium in Tokyo – will face USA’s Sha’Carri Richardson and Marie-Josee Ta Lou of the Ivory Coast.

The men’s 100m, meanwhile, features Olympic silver and bronze medalists Andre De Grasse and Fred kerley, along with world indoor bronze medallist Ronnie Baker, 400m specialist Michael Norman and African record-holder Akani Simbine.

Two-time Olympic champion Faith Kipyegon will once again line up against Olympic silver medallist Laura Muir and Canadian record-holder Gabriela DeBues-Stafford, while world champion Timothy Cheruiyot will clash with Olympic champion Jakob Ingebrigtsen in the men’s Bowerman mile.

In the women’s steeplechase, world champion Beatrice Chepkoech takes on world leader Norah Jeruto Tanui, Olympic silver medalist Courtney Frerichs and 2017 world champion Emma Coburn.

Other global stars confirmed so far include world 400m hurdles champion Dalilah Muhammad, Olympic triple jump champion Pedro Pablo Pichardo and world indoor triple jump record-holder Hugues Fabrice Zango.

The Tokyo Olympics may be over, but the track & field season most definitely is not. We’ve still got five Diamond Leagues to go, including the final in Zurich on September 8-9. And while Tokyo produced a number of amazing races, there were a few that we didn’t get to see. Here are the four races that still need to happen in 2021. Diamond League meet directors, pay attention (and have your checkbook handy…these races won’t be cheap to organize).

Women’s 100 meters: Elaine Thompson-Herah vs. Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce vs. Sha’Carri Richardson

Of the six fastest women in history, three of them have run their personal bests this year: Thompson-Herah (10.61 in Tokyo), Fraser-Pryce (10.63 in Kingston), and Richardson (10.72 in Miramar). But we didn’t get to see the three of them in the same race at the Olympics because of Richardson’s positive test for marijuana at the US Olympic Trials.

There may be a bit of a rivalry brewing as well. Remember, after Fraser-Pryce ran 10.63 back in June, Richardson essentially took credit for pushing Fraser-Pryce to a pb (even though Richardson was not even in the race).

And when the Jamaicans were asked about Richardson following the Olympic final, they did not want to talk about her (though to be fair…they had just won Olympic gold and silver). But any mention of even the word marijuana quickly resulted in realizing they didn’t want to talk about Sha’Carri at all.

Chances that it happens: It’s already happening! The Pre Classic has announced its women’s 100m field and all three are entered.

Men’s 400: Karsten Warholm vs. Rai Benjamin vs. Steven Gardiner

Karsten Warholm’s mesmerizing 45.94 world record in the 400 hurdles generated a number of questions. One of the natural ones: how fast could he run without the hurdles? Warholm’s personal best in the flat 400 is 44.87, but that dates back to 2017, when his hurdles pb was 48.22. He’s over two seconds faster now in the hurdles, so it’s not unreasonable to think he’s in 43-second shape right now. Benjamin’s pb is 44.31 from 2019.

So let’s throw Warholm and Benjamin in against the Bahamas’ Steven Gardiner, who just ran 43.85 to win the flat 400 in Tokyo, and see how they really stack up.

Chances that it happens: 25%. Warholm has already committed to run the flat 400 in Lausanne on August 26. That’s a great start, but getting Benjamin and Gardiner as well could prove tricky.

Women’s 400: The “Dream Team” vs. Shaunae Miller-Uibo

It was a running joke for most of the 2021 season: America’s best 400-meter runners don’t even run the 400. I mean, just look at the “Dream Team” the US trotted out for its dominant victory in the 4×400 relay: Sydney McLaughlin, Allyson Felix, Dalilah Muhammad, Athing Mu. Only one of those women ran the open 400 in Tokyo.

As incredible as Felix was at the Olympics, taking bronze in the 400 in 49.46, she only had the third-fastest split on that relay (49.38), with Muhammad going 48.94 and Mu a ridiculous 48.32. What could be better than seeing all four Dream Teamers race each other head to head?

Well, how about throwing the two-time Olympic 400 champ into the mix in Shaunae Miller-Uibo? Assuming that field doesn’t collapse from the weight of its collective gold medals (all five of the women have won individual Olympic gold; their combined total is 15 career Olympic golds including relays), the race would be more stacked than the Olympic final we just witnessed.

Chances that it happens: 10%. This one seems like a pipe dream. With the Americans as the major draw, the Pre Classic would be the natural venue for this, but there are two problems. First, there is no women’s 400 at Pre this year (though it’s not too late to add one!). And second, the five athletes above are represented by four different shoe brands. It’s not as if Nike could just magically compel them all to run Pre.

Men’s 5,000: Jakob Ingebrigtsen vs. Joshua Cheptegei vs. Selemon Barega

We already saw Ingebrigtsen vs. Cheptegei in Florence in June, and it was no contest, with Ingebrigtsen pulling away to a world-leading 12:48 as Cheptegei faded late. But Cheptegei revealed in Tokyo that he has been battling a heel injury this year, and while he’s not completely over it, it’s definitely more manageable now (as evidenced by his gold and silver in Tokyo) than it was two months ago in Florence.

Then there’s Barega, who used a sick close (2:24 last 1k, 53 last lap) to win 10k gold but did not run the 5k in Tokyo. Let’s settle the title of best distance runner in the world and pit the Olympic 1500, 5k, and 10k champs together in a 5k on the circuit.

Chances that it happens: 30%. I could see Cheptegei and Barega racing each other in a 5,000 at the Diamond League final (or even the 2-mile at Pre). Getting Ingebrigtsen to join them could be more difficult, however. He’s running the Bowerman Mile at Pre and may opt for the 1500 at the DL final.

Sydney McLaughlin broke her world record Wednesday and won the Olympic 400-meter hurdles gold, finishing in 51.46 seconds in yet another close victory over U.S. teammate Dalilah Muhammad.

McLaughlin came from behind after the last hurdle to top the defending Olympic champion. Muhammad's time of of 51.58 also beat McLaughlin's old record of 51.9, set at Olympic trials last month.

Femke Bol of the Netherlands finished third.

For McLaughlin, it was a muted celebration. She sat on the ground, gave a serious look toward the scoreboard, got up and sanitized her hands, then accepted a congratulatory hug from Muhammad.

Amazing as it was, this world record didn't really surprise anyone.

McLaughlin and Muhammad have been trading the record, and the wins, for two years. Muhammad first broke the mark at U.S. Nationals in 2019, then lowered it again. to 52.16, at the world championships in Doha.

McLaughlin broke that record earlier this summer at Olympic trials, running her 51.90 to become the first woman to crack 52 seconds.

It felt inevitable that the mark would go down again on a fast track in perfect, hot-and-humid running conditions in Tokyo.

The day before, Karsten Warholm crushed his old world record, finishing the men’s race in 45.94, and runner-up Rai Benjamin’s 46.17 also beat the old mark.

It was a lot to live up to for the women, whose race was even more eagerly anticipated. They lived up to the hype.

Given its unique demands on technique, endurance, and speed, many consider the 400m hurdles one of the most challenging track and field events. After exploding out of the starting blocks, athletes must sprint 400m while propelling themselves up and over 10 hurdles positioned evenly around the track.

At 21 years old, Sydney McLaughlin is already the fastest woman in the history of the event as she begins her Olympic campaign on Saturday morning in Tokyo.

McLaughlin earned the world record at the US Olympic trials in Eugene, Oregon in June. Blazing hot temperatures (topping off at nearly 110 degrees Fahrenheit) resulted in a five-hour delay to one of the most anticipated races of the meet, where McLaughlin faced 2016 Olympic champion Dalilah Muhammad, the previous record-holder. But the wait was worth it for McLaughlin. She crossed the finish line in 51.90 seconds, bettering Muhammad’s record (set at the 2019 World Championships) by 0.26 seconds. Realizing her momentous accomplishment, McLaughlin’s mouth gaped as she crouched on her knees.

“I felt immediate excitement and overall gratefulness,” she said. “I owe it all to God, my family and my team. I’m still in disbelief, but it’s truly just faith, trusting the process, and seeing my hard work along with the gift of God being put into action.”

McLaughlin, who also holds numerous age group world records and was a two-time recipient of the Gatorade’s National Female Athlete of the Year award, will now attempt to secure another title: Olympic gold medalist. She will have the opportunity to do so in a rematch with Muhammad scheduled for 4 August. It’s a race both athletes are eagerly awaiting.

After congratulating McLaughlin on her record-breaking win, Muhammad said: “It’s going to be a battle in Tokyo for sure.”

The Tokyo Games mark McLaughlin’s second Olympic appearance. In 2016, at 16 years old, she became the youngest athlete to make the US Track and Field Olympic team since 1972.

“It’s an honor in and of itself to be able to go to the Olympics for a second time. I am so excited and grateful, and I’m definitely going to continue to focus on training and being the best I can be,” said McLaughlin, who comes from an athletic family. Her mother ran in high school, her father was a semi-finalist at the 1984 Olympic trials in the 400m, and her brother, Taylor, finished second at the 2016 Under-20 World Championships in the 400m hurdles.

In Rio de Janeiro, McLaughlin’s Olympic journey stopped in the semi-finals, where she placed fifth. This year, she is five years older, stronger and wiser, and the pandemic helped her gain a renewed focus.

“Those first couple of months being stuck in the house, I was like, ‘Who am I doing this for?’” she said.

Her outlook shifted, however, as she became more involved in her faith.

“My goals are different now,” she said. “A lot of my life was trying to prove something, which is an endless cycle that will never fulfill you. My gifts are not to glorify myself. When I stand on the podium, I give the glory to God.”

Even with this newfound meaning, training in Los Angeles during the pandemic presented its own challenges. When the city shut down, McLaughlin was forced to get creative with her workouts, which meant sneaking onto tracks and running on highway medians. She also traveled with her team to Arizona to get a month’s worth of consistent training. Despite this unconventional approach, the delayed Olympic games worked in her favor.

“The extra time for me was a blessing,” McLaughlin said.

The additional year enabled McLaughlin to make key changes, including switching to coach Bobby Kersee, the husband and former coach of Olympic gold medalist Jackie Joyner-Kersee. Kersee also trained McLaughlin’s previous coach, Olympic gold medalist Joanna Hayes, and Florence Griffith Joyner, who holds world records in the 200m and 100m races and is touted as the fastest woman of all time.

The network’s Olympics production team is peaking at the right time—thanks, in part, to Betsy Riley, its first female producer.

Track and field reporter Lewis Johnson is live on NBC during the third day of the Olympic Track Trials in Eugene, Oregon—and he’s perched on the steeplechase barrier in front of the water jump.

He explains the origins of the event, from the 1800s in England. Graphics flash on the screen, showing the specifics of the modern-day version of the steeplechase, 28 barriers over a 1.86-mile race. Johnson describes how the barriers don’t move as he tries, unsuccessfully, to hip check the one he was just sitting on.

Then the segment takes a whimsical turn. He walks around to the water side of the jump, kicks off a pair of green Nikes, and wades in. “Oh, that feels so good, Diff,” he says, talking to Leigh Diffey, the lead announcer at the Trials.

As Johnson gets to the deepest portion of the pit, the water is lapping at the bottom of his khaki shorts. He sits down at the edge. “Throw me a towel, man,” he says, before the broadcast cuts to the 17 women lined up at the start of the first heat of the women’s steeplechase.

It’s effective television: In one minute and 17 seconds, the segment has entertained and informed viewers—those who might not know the first thing about one of track’s quirkiest events as well as those who understand the basics of steeple but have never gotten close.

The idea for the segment? That came from the Trials producer, Betsy Riley.

Riley has implemented dozens of changes to NBC’s track broadcasts. Some are obvious improvements, like bringing on two-time Olympian Kara Goucher as a commentator, or using double boxes to keep a camera focused on track action during commercials. Others are behind-the-scenes, out of sight of viewers, but which contribute to better coverage.

The result is that long-suffering track fans, who for decades from their recliners have made a secondary sport of complaining about the way track is aired, suddenly find themselves with little to carp about. In fact, anecdotally at least, they’re happy to tune in, whether it’s on their TVs or phones or tablets, and watch running and field events.

That’s largely because Riley is one of them, a true believer and competitor with a lifelong love of track and field.

A pair of firsts

Riley will make TV history this month when she becomes the first woman to produce track and field at an Olympics for NBC. Network brass plan their coverage of the summer Games around swimming, gymnastics, and track—these three disciplines are the “tentpoles” that anchor the coverage—and in fact, Riley is the first woman to produce any of the sports for NBC at the Games.

“We’re so proud of her,” said Molly Solomon, who is the executive producer for the summer Games, also a first for a woman at NBC. “The fact that she’s producing an ‘A’ venue, track and field, at the Olympics, one of the big three. It’s a huge accomplishment.”

But Riley brushes this aside. While other people are making a big deal out of it, she is not, deflecting attention to the great role models she’s had at NBC, including Solomon, and the team of experts she has around her.

A pair of firsts

Riley will make TV history this month when she becomes the first woman to produce track and field at an Olympics for NBC. Network brass plan their coverage of the summer Games around swimming, gymnastics, and track—these three disciplines are the “tentpoles” that anchor the coverage—and in fact, Riley is the first woman to produce any of the sports for NBC at the Games.

“We’re so proud of her,” said Molly Solomon, who is the executive producer for the summer Games, also a first for a woman at NBC. “The fact that she’s producing an ‘A’ venue, track and field, at the Olympics, one of the big three. It’s a huge accomplishment.”

But Riley brushes this aside. While other people are making a big deal out of it, she is not, deflecting attention to the great role models she’s had at NBC, including Solomon, and the team of experts she has around her.

From there, she raised her hand for anything, filling any role, on coverage of surfing, golf, horse racing, college football, college basketball. And always the Olympics and Olympic sports. These days, she’s also Michele Tafoya’s sideline producer on Sunday Night Football.

Amid the long hours that TV requires, Riley met her husband and got married, and they have two children, ages 4 and 1 1/2. In a year when talk of mothers and motherhood has dominated track and field, Riley has her own story to rival them all.

It was 2017, she was 35 weeks pregnant, and she had just finished producing the Prefontaine Classic, a Diamond League track meet in Eugene. On her flight home to Baltimore, somewhere over the Midwest, her water broke. When the plane landed, she took a cab straight to the hospital, and met her husband there. A few hours later, they welcomed a son—who had jumped the gun by more than a month.

Infinite possibilities

Track and field is among the most complex sports to broadcast, and Riley strives to replicate for viewers at home an experience that would be similar to what happens when spectators are watching live, in the stadium. They can choose to watch running on the track or look to the infield for one or more field events happening simultaneously. How do you get that same sense of the action on screen?

On June 26, the penultimate day of Trials competition, Riley sits in the cramped NBC production truck, staring at 30 different screens displaying various camera angles. On her headset she hears the voices of seven on-air commentators. Riley has field events producer Scott Karpen a few feet to her left and director Charlie Dammeyer inches to her right, so close you could barely hold a discus between them. A countdown until the live show begins. Four minutes. Two minutes.

Into her headset, Riley says in a low voice, “Have a great one, everyone.”

From there, Riley is making constant decisions for the next two hours from an infinite combination of elements: which replays to show, when to air a graphic, when to go to a field events package on the women’s hammer throw that happened earlier in the evening, how much time to devote to Sydney McLaughlin walking toward the track while leaving Diffey enough time to voice the element.

Riley, Dammeyer, and Karpen trust one another completely, which makes Riley’s job easier as she decides which family members and coaches to show, when to go to live interviews with happy athletes who just made the Olympic team (and what to do when one lets an expletive slip, as Elle Purrier St. Pierre did after winning the 1500 meters). Karpen describes the role of producer as “the ultimate multitasking job.”

Her background helped make Riley great, observers say, because she grew up in sports television, filling every position, from the entry level production associate calling graphics to working in the videotape area to being in charge of the tape area. She’s been in the front of the truck as the associate director who assists the director and producer in timing.

“If you do those jobs, when you are promoted to producer, you understand what everyone is doing,” Solomon said. “You understand what they need from their leader. You can synthesize all of it. It’s an amazing skill, but you can have six voices in your headset and hear the right ones at the right time. It’s orchestrated chaos.”

A different person might be ruffled by the pressure, but Riley’s steady demeanor is one of her hallmarks.

“I always admire her measured style in the heat of battle,” Solomon said. “She’s very calm, cool, and collected, but she knows what she wants, and she’s direct. That’s what makes great producers—to have a clear head in the middle of the chaos and be able to communicate to the team and lead the team.”

Riley says her faith in the people around her makes it easy. “Our team is incredible,” she said. “It doesn’t happen without every single person contributing, sharing ideas and then pulling in the same direction when we’re on air. In any successful broadcast, you have great teamwork.”

But she has trouble explaining what is going on in her brain during broadcasts, synthesizing all the camera angles and voices, making scores of journalistic decisions every minute. All she can say is that she’s constantly evaluating: What’s the most important right now?

Building team chemistry

None of it happens by accident. Every live broadcast is the result of months of brainstorming, testing, planning, and coaching.

“People at home see the ultimate product,” Karpen explains. “They don’t see the months and years and hours of thought and time she’s put into this. Nothing happens overnight. It’s because Betsy was somewhere in the world thinking, ‘How can we get better?’ And pushing people to think about this. It’s not show up and let’s make TV. This is hours and years to get to that one moment.”

Riley is known for listening at meetings, soliciting input from anyone who wants to contribute, giving serious consideration to all ideas.

“One thing I absolutely respect about her is that nothing is a bad idea,” Dammeyer said. “Ideas come from everywhere. She’s asking everyone, ‘What do you think?’ Everyone has a seat at the table, from Ato [Boldon] to Leigh to the graphics production assistant. Everybody’s voice counts.”

When Goucher first started doing on-air commentary for NBC this spring, Riley gave her extra coaching sessions, telling her what she was doing well and what she needed to improve. On the live broadcast, Riley is in Goucher’s ear.

Goucher remembers watching Abbey Cooper pull away in the early laps of the first round of the women’s 5,000 meters, trying to get the Olympic standard on her own in the Eugene heat. “I was like, ‘This is crazy.’ Betsy was in my ear. ‘Why is this hard? Tell the audience why this is hard.’ She gives me little cues.”

Goucher has been one of the revelations of the track season—a hit with viewers for the passion she brings and the insights she shares, gleaned from her own career as an athlete. But nothing motivates her as much as her producer’s live coaching. “If I do something that she likes, she says, ‘Well done.’ She’ll give you a little feedback as you’re going, which I find super helpful.”

Which isn’t to say that it’s always roses. Boldon has been working NBC broadcasts for 14 years. In 2019, around the time of the Prefontaine Classic, he and the other commentators and members of the production team were summoned to a meeting.

“You know how when a team is playing really badly and you have a players-only meeting?” he said. “Right. We had one of those. The chemistry wasn’t right, the flow wasn’t right. It was watching a team of really good players play badly because they can’t play with each other.”

In Boldon’s telling, Riley led the meeting and didn’t mince words with her assessment of what needed to improve. The message? “Swimming and gymnastics get the baton and we have to bring it home for NBC,” Boldon said. “Everyone in that room was as serious as a heart attack. She came with receipts. She came with video—she had put together a whole package. ‘Look at this. What’s wrong with this? Can we do better here?’”

It was a turning point. “I think the broadcast we did from the Eugene Trials was the best Trials broadcast I’ve ever been a part of,” he said.

A network’s core values

NBC coverage—no matter who the producer is—focuses on two things, according to Riley. First, getting the sport right. And second, storytelling.

“Sometimes people think of storytelling as a soft human interest story, and that’s possible, but it’s also storytelling about the race itself and the athletic event itself,” Riley said. “Storytelling is part of everything we do at the Olympics.”

Donavan Brazier in a feature about fly fishing before the men’s 800 final? That’s storytelling. Lewis Johnson wading into the water jump pit? Also storytelling. But most important is the race itself. Replays that show Dalilah Muhammad getting out to a fast start in the women’s 400-meter hurdles, or Cole Hocker’s kick to win the men’s 1500 meters are, at their core, about storytelling.

The goal of every sports broadcast is to make the viewer care about who they’re watching. Riley understands this, and she’s not afraid to push the envelope with technology to help viewers better understand track and field.

During the Trials, fans of the distance races rejoiced at coverage that continued through commercials with double boxes. It’s a feature that’s been around for five years, Riley said, but its use is expected now.

“Sponsors are noticing that it’s nice to have action, it’s nice to have people sticking around for those commercials,” she said. “Early on there was definitely an effort to showcase the value of it. Now that we’re five years on, people know that’s expected and what track fans really want.”

Riley has been experimenting with other forms of technology—miles per hour graphics and live leaderboards that show how many meters behind athletes are from the leader. The point, always, is to give the viewer at home deeper understanding.

Heading to Tokyo

On the NBC broadcast in primetime, Riley and her team will make sure track and field is accessible for those who tune into the sport only once every four years. Boldon says Riley has pushed him not to rely on statistics and times. Instead, she’ll be in his ear during broadcasts, urging him along to find a different way to tell stories. “Make me care,” she’ll say. “Make me care.”

But changing technology allows viewers to customize what they see. If hardcore triple jump fans want to watch every minute of triple jump or discus from Tokyo, and not just a highlights package, that’s possible with the cable channels and digital streams.

And that means as the broadcast team heads for Tokyo, they’ve got hours and hours of work ahead of them. For 10 straight days, July 30 to August 8, Riley and the team will be at it, documenting the performances and the emotions they inspire.

“For the TV dorks like we are, our team relishes the opportunity to do lots of TV and cover lots of competition,” Riley said. “That’s really fun stuff.”

While some reigning Olympic and world champions might be missing from the Games in Tokyo, the extra year as a result of the postponement in 2020 has allowed a number of new talents to emerge.

For some it means a debut Olympic experience which may not originally have been expected until at least 2024, while for others it is a realistic opportunity to win medals and titles.

Of the 43 individual events contested at the Rio 2016 Olympics, the winners from just 18 of those will defend their titles in Tokyo.

The likes of world 800m champion Donavan Brazier and Olympic 110m hurdles champion Omar McLeod missed out on being selected for their national team, while other stars, such as world and Olympic triple jump champion Christian Taylor, are currently sidelined with injury.

But while those global champions won't be able to contend for top honours in Tokyo, here are some of the new generation of stars who are set to emerge.

Selemon Barega, 10,000m

After winning world U18 and U20 titles in 2017 and 2016 respectively, Ethiopia’s Barega stepped up to secure senior 5000m silver at the World Athletics Championships in 2019. Still aged just 21, he is now preparing for his debut Olympics, where he will race the 10,000m.

Barega started the season with intent, running an Ethiopian all-comers’ record of 27:58.5 at altitude in Addis Ababa in January. He then went even faster at the Ethiopian Trials in Hengelo in June, clocking 26:49.51 on the same track on which he ran his 26:49.46 PB in 2019. That, together with the speed he demonstrated by running PBs of 3:32.97 for 1500m and 7:26.10 for 3000m during the indoor season, means he is set to be a strong force in Tokyo

Jasmine Camacho-Quinn, 100m hurdles

Medal success in Tokyo would see Camacho-Quinn become the first Puerto Rican woman to secure an Olympic podium place in athletics and this season she has certainly demonstrated her ability to achieve that feat.

The 24-year-old improved her own national 100m hurdles record to 12.32 to move to equal seventh on the world 100m hurdles all-time list in Eugene in April and hasn’t been beaten since. She clocked 12.38 to win at the Wanda Diamond League meeting in Florence and 12.34 for success in Szekesfehervar, meaning she has the three fastest times in the world so far this year. “I'm looking forward to the Olympics this year - it will be like redemption from my fall in 2016,” she said after her Florence run as she reflected on missing out on the final in Rio. “I'm really excited. Training really hard, working really hard, but really looking forward to it.”

Tara Davis, long jump

Davis leapt into the seven-metre club in March, breaking the US collegiate long jump record with 7.14m at the Texas Relays. The longest jump in the world since the 2019 World Athletics Championships final, that mark moved the 22-year-old to fifth on the US all-time list.

The world U20 bronze medallist had also broken the collegiate indoor record with 6.93m at the NCAA Indoor Championships earlier in the year and finished second at the US Olympic Trials, going beyond seven metres again with a best of 7.04m. “I’m shocked still because seven metres as a jumper is the biggest thing ever. Hitting it in the Olympic Trials is unreal,” she said after her performance in Eugene, where she finished second to four-time world gold medallist and 2012 Olympic champion Brittney Reese. “I’m freaking jumping with my idol, Brittney Reese. Being with her and competing with her in 2016 I was so starstruck. I was like, ‘I see her on TV and now I’m jumping with her’.”

Alison Dos Santos, 400m hurdles

After running in the lane next to Karsten Warholm during his world record in Oslo, improving his South American record to 47.38 to finish second, Brazil’s Dos Santos went even quicker to win three days later in Stockholm, taking another 0.04 off that mark.

This season has seen the 21-year-old build on his 2019 breakthrough, having that year improved his PB and the South American U20 record seven times, eventually clocking 48.28 to finish seventh at the World Athletics Championships in Doha. Also a key member of Brazil’s relay team, he ran the fastest split of the mixed 4x400m final at the World Athletics Relays in Silesia, recording a 44.62 anchor leg. “I'm looking forward to the Olympics, and yes, I think I can get a medal,” he said with a smile after his run in Stockholm.

Mondo Duplantis, pole vault

While some may argue that a world record (or two) rules an athlete out from being considered part of a ‘new generation’, pole vault star Duplantis is still aged only 21 and has much more he hopes to accomplish during his career, including winning Olympic gold.

This season he has cleared six metres or higher in four competitions, capped by his 6.10m in Hengelo - a height only he, Renaud Lavillenie and Sergey Bubka have ever achieved. After winning 2019 world silver behind Sam Kendricks - who ended Duplantis’ 23-competition win streak in challenging conditions in Gateshead in May - Duplantis will be looking to go one better in Tokyo. He also believes he can go higher than his 6.18m world record this season and after attempting 6.19m in Oslo, he said: “I really think I can get that record soon. But for now I feel good, a month away from the most important meet of my life. I am in good shape, I am running well on the runway and keeping up the rhythm well.”

JuVaughn Harrison, long jump and high jump

Harrison secured his two Olympic spots in style at the US Trials, soaring over 2.33m and then leaping a PB of 8.47m to improve his own best-ever single-day high jump and long jump double. As a result, he will become the first male athlete to represent the USA in both events at the Olympics since Jim Thorpe in 1912. No other athlete has ever achieved both a 2.30m high jump and 8.40m-plus long jump.

The 22-year-old is no stranger to juggling both events on the same day and in March he cleared 2.30m and jumped 8.45m at the NCAA Indoor Championships. In Tokyo, the high jump final is on the evening of day three and the long jump final is on the morning of day four. He is expecting to rise to the challenge. “It will be harder competition which will make me push harder and jump farther,” he said.

Erriyon Knighton, 200m

Running 19.88 at the age of just 17, Knighton broke not one but two world 200m age-group bests which had previously been held by a certain Usain Bolt. At the US Olympic Trials, the former American football player ran 20.04 in the heats to improve Bolt’s world U18 best before taking 0.16 off that mark in the semifinals to break the world U20 record of 19.93 set by Bolt in 2004. In the final he went quicker still, clocking 19.84 to finish third and become the youngest man to represent the USA in athletics at the Olympics since Jim Ryun in 1964, also in Tokyo.

Racing outside of the USA for the first time, Knighton then placed third at the World Athletics Continental Tour Gold meeting in Szekesfehervar, running 20.03. “It hasn't sunk in, it’ll probably sink in when I get home,” he said after claiming his Olympic place. “I'm happy. I feel it's a really big achievement.”

Nicola McDermott, high jump

As an eight-year-old, McDermott dreamt of becoming a consistent two-metre-plus international high jumper and having already achieved the latter, this year her two-metre aim was accomplished, too. Clearing 2.00m at the Australian Championships in April, the 24-year-old broke Eleanor Patterson’s Oceanian record and then added another centimetre to the mark in Stockholm earlier this month, despite not feeling 100 percent.

McDermott didn’t manage to register a height when she made her World Athletics Championships debut in London and two years later the Commonwealth bronze medallist finished 15th in qualifying. This time, as she makes her Olympic debut, her mind is on medals. “I’m not going to say it’s impossible to get a medal,” she said. “I’ll be aiming and I think 2.01m will maybe get me in the medals so I am aiming and training for that and believing that I can do it.”

Sydney McLaughlin, 400m hurdles

Like Duplantis, McLaughlin is already a world record-breaker having taken the 400m hurdles to another level with her time of 51.90 at the US Olympic Trials. She also was no stranger to making history before that, with world U18 best and world U20 record times among her age-group accomplishments.

Now aged 21, she made her first Olympic team at just 16, finishing fifth in her semifinal nine days after her 17th birthday, and then secured silver at the 2019 World Athletics Championships in Doha, a race won by her compatriot Dalilah Muhammad in a world record of 52.16. It was that mark McLaughlin improved in Eugene. “So many amazing women have come before me and will come after me,” she said after her world record. “I'm excited for what the future holds. I just want to leave my mark and be part of such an amazing sport, because the glory isn't forever.”

Athing Mu, 800m

Mu is another athlete to have risen impressively through the ranks, having stormed into the spotlight in 2019 when as a 16-year-old she ran the second-fastest ever indoor 600m time of 1:23.57. This year she has broken the world U20 indoor 800m record with 1:58.40 and then dominated the two-lap final at the US Olympic Trials, running a world-leading 1:56.07 to improve her own North American U20 record.

The 19-year-old also ran an area U20 record in the 400m with 49.57 to win the NCAA title earlier in the month. “This is my first year coming out here running to my potential,” she said after her trials win. “I wouldn't want to say I'm dominant at it yet. My confidence takes a lot from it. In 2019, I wasn't confident, but I was good enough. Gaining confidence has contributed to my dominance thus far in the 800m. Being good at it, knowing it's my event.”

Great experience

While some reigning global champions may be missing out on Tokyo, there are a number of vastly experienced stars who will be adding another Olympics to their impressive tally of major events. The USA’s Allyson Felix has already won six Olympic gold medals and 13 world titles, while shot put star Valerie Adams has claimed two Olympic and four world titles for New Zealand, with Tokyo being a fifth Olympic Games for both athletes.

Spain’s 51-year-old Jesus Angel Garcia, meanwhile, will compete at his eighth Olympics – the most ever for a track and field athlete. Who knows whether some of this new generation of stars will still be in action come the Olympic Games in 2048!

World outdoor record-holders Sydney McLaughlin, Ryan Crouser and Keni Harrison are among the 130 athletes named on the team to represent the United States at the Tokyo Olympic Games.

The squad includes 13 medalists from the 2016 Games in Rio and six defending world champions from Doha. Experienced headliners include five-time Olympians Allyson Felix in the 400m and Abdi Abdirahman in the marathon, while the youngest athlete on the team is 17-year-old Erriyon Knighton, who twice broke the world U20 200m record last month at the US Olympic Trials.

JuVaughn Harrison won both the long jump and high jump at the Trials in Eugene and he will be among the athletes contesting two events in Tokyo as he has been selected for both disciplines.

Other athletes announced on the team include world indoor 60m hurdles record-holder Grant Holloway, who was just 0.01 shy of breaking Aries Merritt’s world 110m hurdles record of 12.80 in Eugene, plus former world 400m hurdles record-holder Dalilah Muhammad, the second-fastest ever 200m sprinter Gabby Thomas and multiple global long jump gold medalist Brittney Reese.

USA team for Tokyo 

WOMEN

100m: Teahna Daniels, Javianne Oliver, Jenna Prandini

200m: Anavia  Battle, Jenna Prandini, Gabby Thomas

400m: Allyson Felix, Quanera Hayes, Wadeline Jonathas

800m: Athing Mu, Raevyn Rogers, Ajee' Wilson

1500m: Heather MacLean, Cory McGee, Elle Purrier

5000m: Elise Cranny, Rachel Schneider, Karissa Schweizer

10,000m: Alicia Monson, Karissa Schweizer, Emily Sisson

Marathon: Sally Kipyego, Molly Seidel, Aliphine Tuliamuk

3000m steeplechase: Emma Coburn, Val Constien, Courtney Frerichs

100m hurdles: Christina Clemons, Gabbi Cunningham, Keni Harrison

400m hurdles: Anna Cockrell, Sydney McLaughlin, Dalilah Muhammad

20km race walk: Robyn Stevens

High jump: Tynita Butts-Townsend, Vashti Cunningham, Rachel McCoy

Pole vault: Morgann LeLeux, Katie Nageotte, Sandi Morris

Long jump: Quanesha Burks, Tara Davis, Brittney Reese

Triple jump: Tori Franklin, Jasmine Moore, Keturah Orji

Shot put: Adelaide Aquilla, Jessica Ramsey, Raven Saunders

Discus: Valarie Allman, Kelsey Card, Rachel Dincoff

Hammer: Brooke Andersen, Gwen Berry, DeAnna Price

Javelin: Ariana Ince, Maggie Malone, Kara Winger

Heptathlon: Erica Bougard, Annie Kunz, Kendell Williams

4x100m: English Gardner, Aleia Hobbs, Gabby Thomas (plus others selected in individual events)

4x400m: Kendall Ellis, Lynna Irby, Kaylin Whitney (plus others selected in individual events)

MEN

100m: Ronnie Baker, Trayvon Bromell, Fred Kerley

200m: Kenny Bednarek, Erriyon Knighton, Noah Lyles

400m: Michael Cherry, Michael Norman, Randolph Ross

800m: Bryce Hoppel, Isaiah Jewett, Clayton Murphy

1500m: Matthew Centrowitz, Cole Hocker, Yared Nuguse

5000m: Paul Chelimo, Grant Fisher, Woody Kincaid

10,000m: Grant Fisher, Woody Kincaid, Joe Klecker

Marathon: Abdi Abdirahman, Jake Riley, Galen Rupp

3000m steeplechase: Hillary Bor, Mason Ferlic, Benard Keter

110m hurdles: Devon Allen, Grant Holloway, Daniel Roberts

400m hurdles: Rai Benjamin, David Kendziera, Kenny Selmon

20km race walk: Nick Christie

High jump: JuVaughn Harrison, Shelby McEwen, Darryl Sullivan

Pole vault: Sam Kendricks, KC Lightfoot, Chris Nilsen

Long jump: Marquis Dendy, JuVaughn Harrison, Steffin McCarter

Triple jump: Chris Benard, Will Claye, Donald Scott

Shot put: Ryan Crouser, Joe Kovacs, Payton Otterdahl

Discus: Mason Finley, Reggie Jagers, Sam Mattis

Hammer: Daniel Haugh, Rudy Winkler, Alex Young

Javelin: Michael Shuey, Curtis Thompson

Decathlon: Steven Bastien, Garrett Scantling, Zach Ziemek

4x100m: Kenny Bednarek, Cravon Gillespie, Micah Williams (plus others selected in individual events)

4x400m: Elija Godwin, Vernon Norwood, Trevor Stewart (plus others selected in individual events)

MIXED

4x400m: Shae Anderson, Bryce Deadmon, Wil London, Taylor Manson (plus others selected in individual events).

In a culture saturated by so many other sports, those in the USA fret about who can be the face of athletics.

Who can be featured on television news? Who can be a crossover figure like gymnast Simone Biles? Who can be a Carl Lewis or a Jackie Joyner-Kersee?

As the 10-day US Olympic Trials closed on Sunday night (27) in Eugene, Oregon, there was a deep reservoir of young candidates – none more so than Sydney McLaughlin. The 21-year-old became the first woman to break the 52-second barrier in the 400m hurdles.

Record temperatures approaching 44C delayed the programme by five hours, but there was no delaying the inevitable: McLaughlin was going to break the world record, and she did so with her time of 51.90.

“I definitely saw it coming,” said Dalilah Muhammad, the world and Olympic champion. “She looked so good in the rounds.”

McLaughlin’s time broke the record of 52.16 set by Muhammad at the World Athletics Championships Doha 2019. McLaughlin, second in that race in 52.23, pulled away from Muhammad over the final two hurdles in Eugene.

Even with 2020 lost to the pandemic, the world record has been broken three times in 23 months – twice by Muhammad, once by McLaughlin.

That was the highlight of another historic day of young record-breakers. The trials ended with 11 world-leading marks, five by men and six by women.

Athing Mu, 19, set a trials record in the 800m; Cole Hocker, 20, became the youngest men’s 1500m champion in 110 years; JuVaughn Harrison, 22, became the first to make the US team in the high jump and long jump since Jim Thorpe in 1912; Noah Lyles, 23, ran a world-leading 200m, and Erriyon Knighton, 17, again lowered the world U20 record in the 200m.

McLaughlin has been projected as the sport’s face in the United States since she made an Olympic team at age 16. After one college season at Kentucky, she turned professional.

“I was growing into my own person,” she said. “My faith is the biggest change. Trusting God and knowing He will carry me through.”

Her record-setting might not be over. Not only could McLaughlin lower her world record at the Tokyo Olympics, she should be named to the 4x400m relay team that could set one – though that mark (3:15.17) is arguably a much bigger ask.

McLaughlin trains in Los Angeles under Bobby Kersee, who also coached Joyner-Kersee.

“Bobby knows how to put things together when the time comes,” McLaughlin said.

Muhammad, who over the past 12 months has had to contend with injuries and a bout of Covid-19, finished second in 52.42, the third-fastest time of her career. NCAA champion Anna Cockrell took the third spot in 53.70, nearly a full second faster than her previous PB, in beating Shamier Little (53.85). Olympic bronze medallist Ashley Spencer stumbled over an early hurdle and finished seventh.

Likely to join McLaughlin in that 4x400m team is Mu, considering earlier this month she set a collegiate record of 49.57 – faster than the winning mark at the USA Trials.

Mu ran a world-leading 1:56.07 to win the 800m, breaking her own North American U20 record. World silver medallist Raevyn Rogers was second in a PB of 1:57.66 and US record-holder Ajee Wilson third in 1:58.39. Not until late did Wilson overtake Michaela Meyer, who was fourth in 1:58.55.

Mu sat in the pack for the first lap, passing through 200m in 27.54 and 400m in a swift 57.53. She then made her move on the second lap, positioning herself at the front with 200 metres to go. She kicked hard as she came off the final bend and, having covered the final lap in 58.54, crossed the line almost two seconds ahead of her nearest opponent.

In the men's 1500m, Hocker was in sixth place with about 150 metres left but used a closing rush to overtake Olympic champion Matthew Centrowitz, 3:35.28 to 3:35.34.

Yared Nuguse, 22, was third in 3:36.19, overtaking the most recent national champion, Craig Engels, who is also this year’s fastest US man (3:33.64).

Hocker put a finger to his lips past the finish as if to shush critics. An “in-the-moment thing”, he said.

“Last year I wasn’t at this level. I was nowhere near this level,” he said. “This whole year, I felt like I was proving myself to the world, but also proving my talent to myself. There’s a lot of negative talk out there, and I wanted to silence everyone.”

Hocker has not met the 3:35 Olympic standard but has a world ranking that looks sufficient to secure his spot on the US team.

He is the youngest US Olympian in the men’s 1500m since Marty Liquori, then 19, in 1968. And he is the youngest national champion in the men’s 1500 or mile since 1911, when Abel Kiviat won a few days after turning 19.

Hocker has run 23 races since 29 January. Thirteen were PBs. Of the 10 others, eight were prelims and one an NCAA indoor title.

“I’m impressed that he’s been able to do that since January and is showing no signs of letting up,” said Centrowitz.

Harrison won the high jump at 2.33m, beating Darryl Sullivan on countback. Olympic medallist Erik Kynard was fourth.

The delay allowed Harrison more rest for the long jump, in which he jumped a PB of 8.47m, completing the best ever one-day jumps double.

“It just gave my legs more time to recover and gave me a chance to eat something,” Harrison said. “I was ready to go earlier, even though they said it was too hot.”

Marquis Dendy, the 2016 world indoor champion, was second at 8.38m and Steffin McCarter third with 8.26m. Olympic champion Jeff Henderson was sixth with 8.08m, meaning he won’t defend his title in Tokyo.

In a competition that showcased newcomers, it was appropriate that the last athlete to secure an Olympic berth was Knighton. He is the youngest man on the US team since Jim Ryun in 1964.

World champion Lyles won the 200m in a world-leading 19.74, followed by Kenny Bednarek, 19.78, and Knighton, 19.84. Knighton broke his own world U20 record of 19.88 from Saturday’s semifinals. He set a world U18 record of 20.04 in Friday’s first round, then twice broke that.

Lyles was fourth in the 200m at the 2016 trials as an 18-year-old.

“Ever since then, the mind-set of being an Olympian has been on my mind,” said Lyles. “Having the pause on 2020 has probably been my hardest yet. I don’t think anyone can prepare you for the lion you have to slay at the Olympic Trials.”

In the heptathlon, the year’s top three scores were posted by Annie Kunz (6703), Kendall Williams (6683) and Erica Bougard (6667). Kunz, whose previous best was 6153, did not have the Olympic standard until this week.

Kunz broke or was close to her PBs in all seven disciplines. She started with a marginally wind-assisted 12.95 in the 100m hurdles and followed it with 1.81m in the high jump, an outdoor PB. She then threw 15.73m in the shot put, which moved her into the lead overall – a position she maintained after clocking a PB of 23.71 in the 200m to end the first day at the top of the leader board.

She started the second day with a huge PB of 6.50m in the long jump, but briefly relinquished her lead after the javelin (45.06m). Kendell Williams, who ended the first day in third place, was having a strong second day with marks of 6.73m in the long jump and 47.41m in the javelin. It meant Williams went into the final event with a two-point lead over Kunz.

But Kunz ensured she stayed ahead of Williams in the 800m, eventually clocking 2:15.24 to retake the lead with a score of 6703, moving to fifth on the US all-time list. Williams, who finished second with a PB of 6683, is now sixth on that list.

Taliyah Brooks, in fourth place through five events, had to withdraw because of the heat.

“I have grown immensely since 2019,” said Kunz, who finished 13th at the 2019 World Championships. “It feels like the sky’s the limit now.”

The men’s 5000m, held in the morning to escape the worst of the heat, was won by Olympic silver medallist Paul Chelimo. He gradually veered from the rail to inside of lane four to force out Bowerman Track Club’s Grant Fisher and Woody Kincaid.

Chelimo was first in 13:26.82, followed by Fisher (13:27.01) and Kincaid (13:27.13). Their respective closing laps were 52.83, 52.99 and 52.74. Cooper Teare was fourth in 13:28.08 off a 53.97 last lap.

Fisher and Kincaid became the first pair to finish in the top three of 5000m and 10,000m at the same US Trials. Qualifying in both had been done previously, but never two at the same trials.

For months, they have trained in relative isolation. They have triple jumped in empty stadiums and chased qualifying standards on high school tracks. You may have heard this before, but the pandemic created challenges for American track and field athletes.

For those who managed to push through the long delay, a meet five years in the making has finally arrived: The U.S. Olympic track and field trials are set to start on Friday afternoon at the University of Oregon’s Hayward Field, a freshly renovated stadium that — barring something else unforeseen — will also host the world championships next year.

But first come the trials. As athletes from across the country bid to compete at the Tokyo Games this summer, here is a look at what to watch over the coming days:

What’s the schedule?

Glad you asked. It is a long meet — 10 days, with two rest days built in the middle — running from Friday through June 27. There are 40 events in all (20 for the women, 20 for the men), with preliminary rounds for most of them. On Friday, for example, there are preliminary rounds in events ranging from the women’s discus to the men’s 800 meters. There are also two finals scheduled for the first day, in the men’s shot put and the men’s 10,000. On Sunday, eight more champions will be crowned, including in the men’s 100. (More on that later.)

So who gets to go to the Olympics?

The top three finishers in each event qualify, provided they have reached the Olympic standard. If not, they have until July 1 to attain it.

Who are some of the most compelling athletes to watch?

Any list like this has to start with Allyson Felix, the nine-time Olympic medalist who is aiming to compete in her fifth and final Olympic Games. A onetime prodigy who is entered in the 200 and 400 meters, Felix, 35, long ago secured her place as one of the sport’s most revered and respected figures. She has advocated for gender equality since giving birth to her first child in 2018.

Felix’s retirement will leave a void among the American women, and Sha’Carri Richardsonseems prepared to help fill it. In April, she ran the sixth-fastest 100 in history. Richardson, just 21, is unapologetically brash while consistently coming through with fast times and big performances. She is easy to spot, too: Just look for her colorful hair.

In the women’s 1,500 meters, Elle Purrier St. Pierre is the favorite after a string of convincing victories this season. She grew up on a dairy farm in Vermont, where she would train by running to the Quebec border and back. Her sponsors include Cabot Cheese.

Donavan Brazier is the American record-holder and reigning world champion in the men’s 800. He seems determined after failing to qualify for the Olympics in 2016.

And Sam Kendricks, who has won back-to-back world men’s pole vault championships, is the heavy favorite in Oregon. His toughest competition figures to be in Tokyo, where Mondo Duplantis, who grew up in Louisianabut competes for Sweden, will be waiting. Duplantis, 21, already owns the world record but is seeking his first Olympic gold.

How about a few must-see events?

No, we didn’t forget about Noah Lyles, the world champion in the men’s 200 meters. Lyles wants to double in the 100 and 200 meters in Tokyo, and his 100-meter form has been coming along slowly. He will face a loaded 100-meter field in Eugene, Ore., headlined by the likes of Trayvon Bromell, who has run the fastest time in the world this year, and Justin Gatlin, the five-time Olympic medalist who has twice been suspended for doping. Americans have the six fastest 100-meter times in the world this year — and Lyles is not among them.

The field in the men’s 1,500 is also competitive. Matthew Centrowitz, the 2016 Olympic champion, was injured last year and benefited from the postponement. Craig Engels is the 2019 national champion, but he is equally renowned for his mullet. There is also a group of up-and-comers headlined by Cole Hocker, fresh off an N.C.A.A. title at Oregon, and Hobbs Kessler, the fastest high school miler ever.

The most anticipated showdown, though, could materialize in the women’s 400-meter hurdles. At the 2019 world championships, Dalilah Muhammad, 31, had to break her own world record to outrun Sydney McLaughlin, one of the sport’s rising stars. Muhammad, the Olympic champion in Rio, has been working in recent weeks to return to form after injuring her hamstring. McLaughlin, 21, spent much of the spring fine-tuning her speed and technique while competing in the 100-meter hurdles. If both athletes are healthy, their final — held on the final day of the meet — should be a highlight.

Who’s missing?

The trials got a harsh dose of reality this week when Shelby Houlihan, the American record-holder in the women’s 1,500 meters, was suspended from competing for four years after she had tested positive for an anabolic steroid. Houlihan has maintained her innocence, claiming she ate tainted pork from a food truck. For about eight hours Thursday, it seemed that Houlihan might still be able to run while she appealed the ban, but ultimately the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee stepped in and said that she could not participate in the trials.

Speaking of suspensions, that deep field in the men’s 100 meters is missing an important name: Christian Coleman, who won the 2019 world championship under a cloud of suspicion, and was subsequently suspended for missing a series of drug tests.

Also absent will be Christian Taylor, the two-time Olympic champion in the men’s triple jump. Taylor ruptured his Achilles’ tendon at a meet last month and underwent surgery. He has vowed to make a comeback in time for next year’s world championships.

On the bright side, several American runners will not be at the trials — but only because they have already punched their tickets for Tokyo. We are referring, of course, to the marathoners, whose trials were staged all the way back in the prepandemic era, in February 2020. Galen Rupp, Jacob Riley and the seemingly ageless Abdi Abdirahman, 44,qualified for the men, while Aliphine Tuliamuk, Molly Seidel and Sally Kipyegomade the women’s team. (Rupp, a two-time Olympic medalist, is expected to compete in the 10,000 on Friday, though he told OregonLive.com last month that he would treat the race as a rigorous training run and appears to have no intention of running the track event in Tokyo.)

Is it on television?

NBC and NBCSN will provide live daily coverage of the meet. 

After a string of 200m victories and some swift – albeit wind-assisted – times over 100m in the past two months, 17-year-old Erriyon Knighton finally entered the record books with his 20.11 200m win at the Duval County Challenge, a World Athletics Continental Tour Bronze meeting, in Jacksonville on Monday (31).

Knighton, who hails from Tampa in Florida, turned professional at the start of this year and has been mixing it with the world’s best during the outdoor season. He clocked a wind-assisted 9.99 over 100m in Clermont at the start of May and followed it with a 200m PB of 20.30 at the World Athletics Continental Tour Gold meeting at Mt SAC. More recently, he won the future stars 100m race at the Continental Tour Gold meeting in Boston, clocking 10.16.

In Jacksonville, however, Knighton made another step up in class, taking on some of the world’s biggest sprint stars.

Drawn in lane three, Knighton got off to a solid start and trailed European champion Zharnel Hughes and 2016 world indoor 60m champion Trayvon Bromell as they entered the straight.

Bromell briefly edged in front while Hughes faded slightly, then Knighton held his form well to take the lead, crossing the line in 20.11 (1.6m/s) to take 0.02 from the world U18 best set by Usain Bolt back in 2003.

Bromell finished second in 20.20, his fastest time for five years, while Hughes was third in 20.30.

World silver medallist Brittany Brown won the women’s 200m in 22.43 (1.0m/s), beating Dezera Bryant (22.47) and Kyra Jefferson (22.63).

Shamier Little improved her own world-leading 400m hurdles mark by more than half a second, dominating the race to win in 53.12 – the second-fastest time of her career.

Jamaica’s Ronda Whyte was a distant second in 54.33. Dalilah Muhammad, competing in a separate heat, clocked 55.01 in what was her first hurdles race since breaking the world record to win the world title in 2019.

World champion Grant Holloway notched up another convincing 110m hurdles win, clocking 13.10 (1.1m/s) to finish ahead of Devon Allen (13.22) and Daniel Roberts (13.23).

Jamaica’s Brittany Anderson came out on top of a strong 100m hurdles field, winning in 12.59 (0.7m/s). World indoor silver medallist Christina Clemons was second in 12.64, just 0.01 ahead of 2015 world champion Danielle Williams.

Elsewhere, world U20 champion Brianna Williams won the women’s 100m in 10.98 (1.0m/s), from Mikiah Brisco (11.09). World indoor bronze medallist Ronnie Baker took the men’s race in 9.99 (1.3m/s) after clocking a wind-assisted 9.91 in the heats.

Sports Illustrated has released its Fittest 50 list, and as usual, multiple runners were included. The Fittest 50 is SI‘s attempt to list the fittest men and women in the world, looking at athletes from any and all sports. This year, nine runners were selected, with six of the 25 women and three of the 25 men coming from the track, trails or road. Here’s a breakdown of where each individual placed and why the SI panel (which included Dr. Michael Joyner of the Mayo Clinic) chose them.

The women

Running was the sport with the most women included in the top 25, and the six athletes chosen was double the three chosen from MMA, which was the sport with the next-most number of selections. American marathoner Sara Hall is #24, and with her performances in the past year, it comes as no surprise to see her on this list. The SI team notes how Hall overcame the disappointment of missing out on the Tokyo Olympics and ended up running two huge marathon PBs, first at the London Marathon (where she finished in second in 2:22:01) and then with her win at The Marathon Project, where her 2:20:32 finish was the second-fastest marathon in U.S. history.

Up next is Dalilah Muhammad at #16. SI refers to Muhammad as the “queen of the 400-metre hurdles,” a title she has owned since her gold medal in the event at the 2016 Olympics. Since then, she has broken the world record on multiple occasions (her current record stands at 52.16 seconds, a time that won her the gold medal at the 2019 world championships), and she is now a heavy favourite to win gold in Tokyo this summer.

American ultrarunner Courtney Dauwalter comes in at #14, and her remarkable result from Big’s Backyard Ultra in 2020 is listed as a big reason for that. Dauwalter won the American title at the event, running 455K. Just ahead of Dauwalter at #13 is American track and field star Tianna Bartoletta. Bartoletta is truly a track and field standout, as she has won Olympic and world medals in both sprints and jumps. In London in 2012, she won Olympic gold as part of the U.S. women’s 4 x 100m relay team. She and the squad defended that title in Rio four years later, and she added an individual gold medal in the long jump.

Emma Coburn is #10 on the list, coming in ahead of tennis star Serena Williams. SI lists Coburn’s multiple steeplechase medals, from her bronze in Rio to her gold and silver at the 2017 and 2019 world championships, and it’s noted that she has the potential to break the American 3K steeplechase record of 9:00.85 later this year. Finally, coming in at #6 on the list is Shaunae Miller-Uibo. The Bahamian sprinter is the defending 400m Olympic gold medallist, and she could also be a threat in the 200m in Tokyo.

The men

Unlike on the women’s list, running didn’t win for the most men selected in the top 25 (American football had four athletes and basketball had three), but three athletes still made the elite list. American ultrarunning sensation Jim Walmsley was included at #24, and he is extremely deserving of this honour. Firstly, as noted in the SI piece, he competed at the U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials in 2020, going out of his comfort zone and running 42.2K instead of his preferred ultra distances of 100K or 100 miles. He finished in 2:15:05, earning him 22nd place in his debut marathon. He then kicked off 2021 with an amazing 100K run in Arizona, where he finished in 6:09:26, breaking the American record and finishing just 12 seconds off the world best.

Next up is Eliud Kipchoge at #20. While Kipchoge had the worst marathon of his career at the London Marathon in October 2020, there’s no denying that he’s still one of the best road runners in the world. He’s the world record holder in the marathon and he is the only human to run under two hours in the event, making him a favourite to win gold in Tokyo this summer.

Finally, breaking into the top 10 is Noah Lyles at #9. Lyles is the reigning 200m world champion, and he owns a PB of 19.50 in the event. He’s a heavy favourite to take gold in Tokyo, and he might even compete in the 100m. Add all this together and he’s a clear choice for SI‘s Fittest 50 list.

Sports Illustrated has released its Fittest 50 list, and as usual, multiple runners were included. The Fittest 50 is SI‘s attempt to list the fittest men and women in the world, looking at athletes from any and all sports. This year, nine runners were selected, with six of the 25 women and three of the 25 men coming from the track, trails or road. Here’s a breakdown of where each individual placed and why the SI panel (which included Dr. Michael Joyner of the Mayo Clinic) chose them.

Running was the sport with the most women included in the top 25, and the six athletes chosen was double the three chosen from MMA, which was the sport with the next-most number of selections. American marathoner Sara Hall is #24, and with her performances in the past year, it comes as no surprise to see her on this list. The SI team notes how Hall overcame the disappointment of missing out on the Tokyo Olympics and ended up running two huge marathon PBs, first at the London Marathon (where she finished in second in 2:22:01) and then with her win at The Marathon Project, where her 2:20:32 finish was the second-fastest marathon in U.S. history.

Up next is Dalilah Muhammad at #16. SI refers to Muhammad as the “queen of the 400-meter hurdles,” a title she has owned since her gold medal in the event at the 2016 Olympics. Since then, she has broken the world record on multiple occasions (her current record stands at 52.16 seconds, a time that won her the gold medal at the 2019 world championships), and she is now a heavy favorite to win gold in Tokyo this summer. 

American ultrarunner Courtney Dauwalter comes in at #14, and her remarkable result from Big’s Backyard Ultra in 2020 is listed as a big reason for that. Dauwalter won the American title at the event, running 455K. Just ahead of Dauwalter at #13 is American track and field star Tianna Bartoletta. Bartoletta is truly a track and field standout, as she has won Olympic and world medals in both sprints and jumps. In London in 2012, she won Olympic gold as part of the U.S. women’s 4 x 100m relay team. She and the squad defended that title in Rio four years later, and she added an individual gold medal in the long jump. 

Emma Coburn is #10 on the list, coming in ahead of tennis star Serena Williams.

Unlike on the women’s list, running didn’t win for the most men selected in the top 25 (American football had four athletes and basketball had three), but three athletes still made the elite list. American ultrarunning sensation Jim Walmsley was included at #24, and he is extremely deserving of this honor. Firstly, as noted in the SI piece, he competed at the U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials in 2020, going out of his comfort zone and running 42.2K instead of his preferred ultra distances of 100K or 100 miles. He finished in 2:15:05, earning him 22nd place in his debut marathon. He then kicked off 2021 with an amazing 100K run in Arizona, where he finished in 6:09:26, breaking the American record and finishing just 12 seconds off the world best. 

Next up is Eliud Kipchoge at #20. While Kipchoge had the worst marathon of his career at the London Marathon in October 2020, there’s no denying that he’s still one of the best road runners in the world. He’s the world record holder in the marathon and he is the only human to run under two hours in the event, making him a favorite to win gold in Tokyo this summer. 

Finally, breaking into the top 10 is Noah Lyles at #9. Lyles is the reigning 200m world champion, and he owns a PB of 19.50 in the event. He’s a heavy favourite to take gold in Tokyo, and he might even compete in the 100m. Add all this together and he’s a clear choice for SI‘s Fittest 50 list.

Britain’s Laura Muir is among the nominees for the female world athlete of the year honor, while Uganda’s Joshua Cheptegei is on a shortlist for the male prize at the World Athletics Awards.

This year the global governing body’s awards event will be held virtually on Saturday December 5.

Muir clocked 1500m times of 3:57.40, 3:57.86 and 3:58.24 to lead the world rankings and set a British 1000m record of 2:30.82 in 2020, while Cheptegei broke three world records throughout the year – running 12:51 for a road 5km, 12:35.36 for 5000m on the track and 26:11.00 for 10,000m on the track.

Ethiopia’s Letesenbet Gidey, who set a world record of 14:06.62 over 5000m, and Netherlands’ Sifan Hassan, who recorded a world record distance of 18,930m in the one-hour run and broke the European 10,000m record with 29:36.67, are also among the female nominees.

The men’s shortlist also features Sweden’s world pole vault record-breaker Mondo Duplantis and Norway’s Karsten Warholm, who ran a world-leading 46.87 in the 400m hurdles and was unbeaten in that event.

Female world athlete of the year nominees: Femke Bol, Netherlands; Letesenbet Gidey, Ethiopia; Sifan Hassan, Netherlands; Peres Jepchirchir, Kenya; Faith Kipyegon, Kenya; Laura Muir, Great Britain and Northern Ireland; Hellen Obiri, Kenya; Yulimar Rojas, Venezuela; Elaine Thompson-Herah, Jamaica; Ababel Yeshaneh, Ethiopia

Male world athlete of the year nominees: Donavan Brazier, USA; Joshua Cheptegei, Uganda; Timothy Cheruiyot, Kenya; Ryan Crouser, USA; Mondo Duplantis, Sweden; Jacob Kiplimo, Uganda; Noah Lyles, USA; Daniel Stahl, Sweden; Johannes Vetter, Germany; Karsten Warholm, Norway

A three-way voting process will determine the finalists. The World Athletics Council and the World Athletics Family will cast their votes by email, while fans can vote online via the World Athletics’ social media platforms.

As well as male and female athlete of the year honors, the World Athletics Awards will include the president’s award, coaching achievement award and athletics photograph of the year, as well as a Covid inspiration award, athletes community award and member federations award.

Last year Eliud Kipchoge and Dalilah Muhammad were named world athletes of the year, while the 2018 winners were Kipchoge and Caterine Ibarguen.

Organizers of the Zurich Diamond League, cancelled because of the coronavirus pandemic, will host the televised 90-minute live event.

World 200m champion Noah Lyles and multi-medal winning fellow American Allyson Felix will headline an ambitious track and field meet on July 9 that sees athletes competing in eight disciplines at seven venues across the globe.

"We would like to present a live event at Weltklasse Zurich level even this year. Therefore, we have been looking for creative ideas and working on new formats," said co-meeting director Christoph Joho.

There will be eight three-way competitions, four for men and four for women, pitching Europe against the United States and the rest of the world.

There is a women's 150m race featuring six-time Olympic champion Felix, Bahamian Olympic 400m gold medallist Shaunae Miller-Uibo and Switzerland's 200m world bronze medallist Mujinga Kambundji. Kambundji will run in Zurich, Felix in California and Miller-Uibo in Florida.

"This new format will hopefully give the fans something fun to look forward to during a time that has been really difficult for everyone," said Felix.

Lyles is slated to run the 200m, while a rarely-run 100 yards sees Canada's multi-world and Olympic medal-winning sprinter Andre de Grasse up against Jamaica's Olympic 110m hurdles champion Omar McLeod and Frenchman Jimmy Vicaut.

American world record holder and current world 400m hurdles champion Dalilah Muhammad will compete in a hurdles race over 300m, while Greece's Ekaterini Stefanidi goes up against American Sandi Morris in the women's pole vault.

The men's triple jump features American world champion Christian Taylor and Pedro Pablo Pichardo, the Cuban-born two-time world silver medallist competing for Portugal.

Briana Williams has gone pro!

The 17-year-old Jamaican, who had an outstanding year in 2019, has signed a multi-year contract with Nike. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Recognized as one of the rising stars in track and field having won the sprint double at the World U20 Championships in Tampere in 2018, Williams was courted by a number of shoe companies with PUMA and Nike being the frontrunners.

Nike eventually won the right to the signature of the talented teen, whose coach Ato Boldon confirmed the signing to Sportsmax.TV.

“Briana has had people dedicated to her abilities for many years. Even before me, Coach Tennessee and Coach Damion Thomas, have done right by her,” Boldon said.

“I was just handed the baton for this leg of the race, but I’ve been around this industry a long time and for a company like Nike, who can back anyone, to put this level of support behind Briana, makes all of the work over the last five years, worth it. She is extremely blessed and fortunate to be where she is at just 17.”

Williams, who turns 18 in March, said the Nike deal has provided a platform for her to chase her dreams.

“I’m extremely proud. I have come a long way. This is a big deal for me because I’m young but I’m ready to show the world what I am capable of,” said Williams who now belongs to the group (HSI) that includes indoor 400m WR holder Mike Norman and world champions Christian Coleman and Dalilah Muhammad.

“I’m glad that Nike gave me this opportunity. It means the world to me as a girl with big dreams.”

The year 2019 was a big year for Williams. She won the 100m at the NACAC U18 Championships in Mexico and the Pan Am U20 Championships in Costa Rica during the year in which she ran unbeaten at the junior level.

She also won the Austin Sealy Award at the CARIFTA Games for the second year running after winning three gold medals, duplicating her achievements in 2018. In June, she set a Jamaican junior record of 11.02s in New Mexico.

Track & Field News, considered the bible of the sport, recognized her stellar year by naming her their High School Athlete of the Year for 2019.

The prodigious teen suffered a setback during the year when she returned an adverse finding for a banned diuretic found in her urine sample at the Jamaican National Championships in June where she finished third in the 100m behind two-time Olympic champions Elaine Thompson and Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce.

As such, her time of 10.94s, which would have been a U18 world record and a national junior record for Jamaica, was subsequently struck from the record books.

Following a hearing before an Independent Anti-Doping Disciplinary Panel in September, Williams was reprimanded but was free to compete. However, due to how late the verdict came, her chances of competing at the 2019 World Championships in Doha were effectively dashed.

1-Kosgei Shocks Everyone in Chicago-On October 13, Brigid Kosgei made history when she won the Chicago Marathon in 2:14:04. The Kenyan ran almost perfectly even splits to achieve her goal in the Windy City, passing the halfway mark in 1:06:59 before clocking 1:07:05 for the second half.

2-Eliud Kipchoge Dips Under 2-Hour Marathon Barrier-In his second attempt at breaking the two-hour barrier in the marathon, Eliud Kipchogeof Kenya accomplished the feat with a stunning run of 1:59:40 on the streets of Vienna in October.

3-Joan Samuelson Crushes Her Goal 40 Years After Boston Victory-In 1979, Joan Benoit Samuelson set a national and course record when she won the Boston Marathon as a 21-year-old college student. Forty years after her historic victory, Samuelson, 61, set out to run within 40 minutes of her winning time at the 2019 Boston Marathon. On April 15, the 1984 Olympic champion wore a similar Bowdoin College singlet to honor her 1979 win and shattered her goal, crossing the finish line in 3:04. “To be here, 40 years later and being able to run, let alone being able to run a marathon, I feel blessed,” she said.

4-Jim Walmsley Obliterates His Own Western States Record-Ultrarunning star Jim Walmsley maintained his Western States winning streak when he obliterated his own course record in June. Navigating 100 miles from Squaw Valley to Auburn, California, Walmsley broke the tape in 14 hours and 9 minutes, which broke his own course record by more than 20 minutes

5-Donavan Brazier Breaks 34-Year-Old American Record-Donavan Brazier had the race of his life when he broke one of the oldest American records on his way to winning gold in the 800 meters at the IAAF World Championshipsin Doha, Qatar. With 250-meters to go, Brazier ran away from the field to secure the first 800-meter world championship gold medal for the United States in a time of 1:42.34. 

6-Dalilah Muhammad Sets World Record Twice-Dalilah Muhammad made history twice this season when she broke the 400-meter hurdles world record and lowered it once again on her way to winning the world championships.

7-Sifan Hassan Wins Unprecedented Double at Worlds-At the IAAF World Championships in Doha, Sifan Hassan won two gold medals that no man or woman has achieved in the history of the world championships or Olympic Games. The Dutch runner, 26, kicked off the competition by winning the 10,000-meter final in a national record time of 30:17:33. 

8-Maggie Guterl Becomes First Woman to Win Backyard Ultra-For 60 hours straight, Maggie Guterl ran the same 4.2-mile trail loop to become the last runner standing in the Big’s Backyard Ultra race. The Durango, Colorado, native ran 250 miles on her way to becoming the first woman to win the brutal race that rewards the person who can run for the longest amount of time.

9-Geoffrey Kamworor Breaks Half Marathon World Record-Holding a 4:25-mile pace, Geoffrey Kamworor of Kenya shattered the world record at the Copenhagen Half Marathon in September, running 58:01. The performance, which was 17 seconds faster than the previous record, took place in the same city where the 26-year-old won his first of three half marathon world championship titles in 2014.

10-Joyciline Jepkosgei Debuts in NYC Marathon, Beats Mary Keitany-In her first marathon, Joyciline Jepkosgei of Kenya secured a title in a major upset. The half marathon world record-holder raced like a veteran in the New York City Marathonto beat four-time champion Mary Keitany in a winning time of 2:22:38, only seven seconds shy of the course record.

11-Kenenisa Bekele Wins Berlin Marathon 2 Seconds Shy of World Record-One year after Eliud Kipchoge set a world record that many believed would be untouchable for at least a few years, Kenenisa Bekele nearly surpassed it at the Berlin Marathon. The 37-year-old Ethiopian won the race in 2:01:41, just two seconds shy of Kipchoge’s record. 

12-Freshman Sha’Carri Richardson Shatters 100-meter Collegiate Record-In her first ever NCAA Outdoor Championship, Sha’Carri Richardson made history. In the 100-meter final, the LSU freshman sprinted to victory in a collegiate record of 10.75.

13-Drew Hunter, Athing Mu, and Colleen Quigley Win First Pro Titles-The USATF Indoor Championships brought out exciting breakthroughs for three young athletes. In the men’s 2-mile, 21-year-old Drew Hunter won the crown out of the “slower” heat by running a world-best time of 8:25.29. The women’s 600 meters was won by 16-year-old Athing Mu who defeated world silver medalist Raevyn Rogers in an American record time of 1:23.57.

14-BYU Snaps NAU’s Winning Streak at the NCAA Cross Country Championships-The Brigham Young team had a banner day at the NCAA Cross Country Championshipsin November. Battling muddy conditions, the BYU Cougars secured the team victory over three-time defending champions Northern Arizona in the men’s race. With a team total of 109 points, BYU beat NAU by 54 points to win the program’s first NCAA cross-country championship in history.

15-Joshua Cheptegei Sets 10K World Record After Winning Two World Titles-Joshua Cheptegei of Uganda capped off a banner year when he set a world record in the 10K on December 1, running 26:38 to win the 10K Valencia Trinidad Alfonso in Valencia, Spain. Earlier this year, he won the world cross-country championships and the world championship 10,000 meters in Doha, Qatar.

Brigid Kosgei snubbed the call to represent Kenya at the World Championships in Doha in October in order to chase the world record in Chicago. It is a move she does not regret.

Now she has set her eyes on running at the Olympics having broken the world record for the women's marathon in Chicago, clocking 2:14:04.

"My coach and management have agreed that I should run at the Olympic Games in Tokyo. It remains the main target and challenge for me in 2020, which I want to accomplish," Kosgei said on Thursday on her way back from the World Athletics gala in Monaco, where she was among the final nominees for Female Athlete of the Year.

Kosgei will likely be in London in April to defend her London Marathon title. It will be her 10th marathon since her debut in Porto in 2015.

She has so far won in Porto, Milan, Chicago and London. Her worst performance was in Boston in 2018 in bad weather, where she clocked 2:31:48 on her way to eighth place.

"I am always motivated and I have no hard feelings for missing out on the World Athletics Female Athlete of the Year Award. I take a lot of positives from the fact that I was nominated among the best five runners in 2019, which means I had a good season. To make the final list is a win on its own," she said.

Kosgei was accompanied by her husband and coach Mathew Kosgei to Monaco, where 400m hurdler Dalilah Muhammad from USA won the Female Athlete of the Year Award, pipping Kosgei, Jamaica's Shelly Ann Fraser and Sifa Hassan of the Netherlands.

"I had my husband with me in Monaco, he has always encouraged me and coached me. He reminded me of the journey we have had, how far we have come and why being there was a victory in itself," Kosgei said.

For now, Kosgei will take a deserved rest as she plots her return next season in her push for the Olympic marathon crown.

Record-breakers Dalilah Muhammad and Eliud Kipchoge were named the World Athletics athletes of the year on Saturday.

Muhammad, who twice lowered the 400m hurdles world record last season, became the first athlete in her event to take the honor since Brit Sally Gunnell in 1993. And the first American woman to earn it from any event since Allyson Felix in 2012.

The Kenyan Kipchoge became the first repeat athlete of the year since Usain Bolt in 2012 and 2013. Kipchoge, who lowered the marathon world record by 78 seconds in 2018, became the first person to break two hours in a marathon on Oct. 12 in a non-record-eligible event.

The other female finalists were Jamaican sprinter Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, Dutch distance runner Sifan Hassan, Kenyan marathoner Brigid Kosgei and Venezuelan triple jumper Yulimar Rojas.

The other male finalists were Ugandan distance runner Joshua Cheptegei, American pole vaulter Sam Kendricks and sprinter Noah Lyles and Norwegian hurdler Karsten Warholm.

World Athletics is track and field’s international governing body, rebranded from IAAF this year. 

Last month the Kenyan broke Briton Paula Radcliffe's 16-year-old world record, running a time of 2hrs 14mins 04secs to win the Chicago Marathon.

Kosgei, 25, also became the youngest winner of the London marathon in April.

American Dalilah Muhammad, Jamaican Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, Venezuelan Yulimar Rojas and the Netherlands' Sifan Hassan are also up for the award.

Sprinter Fraser-Pryce won the world 100m and 4x100m titles in world-leading times of 10.71 and 41.44 in Doha, while Hassan broke the world mile record with a time of 4:12:33 in Monaco.

Triple-jumper Rojas won nine of her 12 competitions, including gold at the World Championships with 15.37m, while Muhammad set a new world record of 52.16 in the 400m hurdles in Doha.

Britain's world heptathlon gold medallist Katarina Johnson-Thompson missed out on the shortlist, having featured among the initial 11 nominees.

The male and female World Athletes of the Year will be announced live on stage at the World Athletics Awards 2019 in Monaco on Saturday 23 November.

This week marks the opening of the voting process for the 2019 World Athletes of the Year ahead of the World Athletics Awards 2019 in Monaco on Saturday 23 November.

The IAAF is pleased to confirm a list of 11 nominees for Female World Athlete of the Year who were selected by an international panel of athletics experts, comprising representatives from all six continental areas of the IAAF. The nominations of 11 athletes reflects the remarkable range of exceptional performances that the sport has witnessed this year, at the IAAF World Athletics Championships in Doha, and in the Diamond League and in road and cross country events. The IAAF’s Competition Performance Ranking show that the World Championships in Doha was the highest quality competition in the history of the event.

The nominees for 2019 Female World Athlete of the Year are (in alphabetical order):

Beatrice Chepkoech (KEN)- won world 3000m steeplechase title in a championship record of 8:57.84- won Diamond League title- won seven of her eight steeplechase races

Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce (JAM)- won world 100m and 4x100m titles in world-leading times of 10.71 and 41.44- won Pan-American 200m title- won seven of her 10 races at 100m

Katarina Johnson-Thompson (GBR)- won world heptathlon title in a world-leading 6981- undefeated in all combined events competitions, indoors and outdoors- won European indoor pentathlon title with a world-leading 4983

Sifan Hassan (NED)- won world 1500m and 10,000m titles in world-leading times of 3:51.95 and 30:17.62- won Diamond League 1500m and 5000m titles- broke world mile record with 4:12.33 in Monaco

Brigid Kosgei (KEN)- set a world record of 2:14:04 to win the Chicago Marathon- won the London Marathon- ran a world-leading 1:05:28 for the half marathon and 1:04:28 on a downhill course

Mariya Lasitskene (ANA)- won world high jump title with 2.04m- jumped a world-leading 2.06m in Ostrava- won 21 of her 23 competitions, indoors and outdoors

Malaika Mihambo (GER)- won world long jump title with a world-leading 7.30m- won Diamond League title- undefeated outdoors

Dalilah Muhammad (USA)- broke world record with 52.20 at the US Championships- improved her own world record to win the world 400m hurdles title in 52.16- won world 4x400m title

Salwa Eid Naser (BRN)- won world 400m title in 48.14, the third-fastest time in history- won Diamond League title and three gold medals at the Asian Championships- undefeated at 400m outdoors

Hellen Obiri (KEN)- won world cross-country title in Aarhus- won world 5000m title in a championship record of 14:26.72- ran a world-leading 14:20.36 for 5000m in London

Yulimar Rojas (VEN)- won world triple jump title with 15.37m- jumped world-leading 15.41m to move to second on the world all-time list- won nine of her 12 competitions, including the Pan-American Games

A three-way voting process will determine the finalists.

The IAAF Council and the IAAF Family will cast their votes by email, while fans can vote online via the IAAF's social media platforms. Individual graphics for each nominee will be posted on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram this week; a 'like' on Facebook and Instagram or a retweet on Twitter will count as one vote.

The IAAF Council’s vote will count for 50% of the result, while the IAAF Family’s votes and the public votes will each count for 25% of the final result.

Voting for the Female World Athlete of the Year closes on 5 November. At the conclusion of the voting process, five men and five women finalists will be announced by the IAAF.

The male and female World Athletes of the Year will be announced live on stage at the World Athletics Awards 2019.