Koech, who had not raced for two months before USAs due to hamstring tightness, won his first US title in a meet-record 3:30.17. Ethan Strand (3:30.25) was 2nd as Olympic champ Cole Hocker (3:30.37) was only 3rd. Nuguse (3:31.34) led until 120m to go but faded to 5th.
SML ran 48.90 to win her second US 400m title (Sanya Richards-Ross's American record is 48.70). LRC Supporters Club member Dan Michalski finished 2nd in the men's steeple while 20-year-old Angelina Napoleon's incredible season continued as she was 2nd in the women's steeple behind champ Lexy Halladay-Lowry.
Courtney Lindsey (9.82) and Tennessee's T'Mars McCallum (9.83) will join Bednarek on Team USA as Maurice Gleaton Jr. ran 9.92 to finish 6th and tie the US high school record. Kayla White (10.84) and Aleia Hobbs (10.92) rounded out the women's top 3.
There is no way to sugar coat. Mu's results under Bobby Kersee have been disappointing - extremely so after she failed to make the 800m final at USAs. She's gone from unbeatable world beater to American also-ran very quickly. Who should she replace Kersee with?
Despite almost falling at the bell, Lutkenhaus ran 1:45.57 -- just .12 off his high school record -- to finish 2nd in his semifinal behind American record holder Bryce Hoppel. Josh Hoey and Donavan Brazier made the final as well.
A police report alleges that video surveillance shows Richardson got into a heated exchange with Coleman at the Seattle airport on Sunday night where she repeatedly shoved him and threw a pair of headphones that struck him. Coleman denied that anything physical happened and didn't want to be a victim but Richardson was arrested due to the video evidence.
All 12 qualifiers for the men's 1500m final ran 3:34 or faster. Plus Athing Mu-Nikolayev said her 2:00.06 sb in the 800 felt "way more comfortable" than her last race in Memphis.
Infeld has run 15 USATF track finals in her career. Until Thursday, all of those races (281.5 laps, or just shy of 70 miles of racing) had ended the same way: with someone other than Infeld crossing the finish line first. But with a new sponsor (Brooks) and a new (old) coach in Chris Miltenberg, Infeld finally won her first US track title in the 10,000m, 16 years after first appearing at the USATF junior championships in the 800 meters.
Day 1 MB Talk:
GST committed to paying Kingston prize money by the end of July; Fisher, who is owed $100,000 for that meet, said he has still not been paid. "I don't want it to come to a lawsuit and a big headache and Grand Slam being crushed and everyone saying 'I told you so,'" Fisher said. "I don't think that's a good outcome for anybody."
Three years ago, USATF published a document on its website titled "Journey to Gold: Strategic Roadmap to 2028." The idea: capitalize on a six-year window bookended by two rare opportunities -- a home World Championships in 2022 and a home Olympics in 2028 -- to grow the sport domestically. The aim, spelled out in a purple box on page 1, was to make track & field the country's fifth-most followed sport by LA28. As part of this initiative, USATF launched a series of professional meets known as the "Journey to Gold Tour." Three nationally-televised meets stood at the heart of those efforts. Last year, the USATF Bermuda, NYC, and LA Grand Prix meets were all shown nationally on NBC. In 2025, none of those meets were even held. What happened to them? And what should USATF's role be in promoting/staging professional track meets?
We've never seen anything like this before? 1:45 for a HS sophomore. 3 individual national track titles for a HS junior. What can the talented duo do in Eugene?
Could a HS star win an event (or two) in the men's meet? Quincy Wilson has a shot in the 400 as do Tate Taylor and Maurice Gleaton in the 100.
2025 USAs is gonna be wild. The women's 800 is WIDE OPEN. The 400s should be especially good, with Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone vs. Aaliyah Butler and HS junior Quincy Wilson trying to make the men's team. Plus who makes the team in the loaded men's 5,000? Did you know the men's 10k and 5k have never had the same 1-2-3 at USAs? And that this will be the first USAs since 2018 that men's 100 won't be broadcast on tv?
After more than a week with no explanation for Hall's withdrawal, his agent John Regis told LetsRun.com that he will not compete at USAs due to a hamstring injury. Hall could theoretically still make it to Worlds by winning the DL title.
Just three years ago, the US SUCKED at the men's 800. But this year, five Americans have broken 1:44 and 14 have broken 1:45, both all-time records. Oh, and there's a 16-year-old named Cooper Lutkenhaus who has run 1:45.45, taking a full second off a 29-year-old US high school record. We break it down for you.
It's been 89 years since the US had the same top three in consecutive USA men's 1500 finals. Could Cole Hocker, Yared Nuguse, and Hobbs Kessler change that in 2025? Or will recent college grads Ethan Strand and Nathan Green run their way onto the team? Already this year, Hocker has run personal bests in the 800 (1:45.13), mile (3:47.43), 3,000 (7:23.14), and 5,000 (12:57.82). He ran faster and finished higher at Pre this year compared to last year. Last year, Hocker made a big jump in fitness between Prefontaine and the Olympics. If Hocker can make that same jump in 2025, he is going to be a beast come Tokyo.
Deena Kastor, the Olympic bronze medallist in the marathon, shares stories of the coach who shaped her as a runner and human being.
Grand Slam Track founder Michael Johnson told Dennis Young of Front Office Sports that the loss of the investor caused "major, major cash flow issue" for the startup track league. *FOS Sports article
Suspicion of Chepngetich was sky high last October when she ran 2:09:56 in Chicago and now she's been popped.. But since Chepngetich tested positive for a masking agent, she could be competing again as soon as April 2027 even if her ban is upheld. Is that fair? Plus is the AIU nearing a breaking point with Federico Rosa and Kenya?
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Koech's coach Claudio Berardelli says his talent could be comparable to that of his two biggest stars, marathoner Sabastian Sawe and Olympic 800m champion Emmanuel Wanyonyi. "I’m still trying to figure out exactly what happened and what is the potential of this boy," Berardelli said.
Freeman found incredible success in an event that has often plagued American relay squads, but USATF chose not to renew her contract at the end of 2024. Why? Jonathan Gault investigates.
Kersee doesn't talk often to the media but he talked to our Jonathan Gault about his plans for Athing Mu. Kersee said he believes racing the 1500 will help make Mu a better 800 runner but said he also hopes she can run more 400s moving forward and that she can eventually break 49 seconds in that event.
Hoey's career had stagnated until connecting with Rinaldi in 2023. Within minutes of seeing him train in-person, Rinaldi knew he was special: "I said, if I can’t get this guy to run 1:44, there’s something wrong with me." (SC paywall lifted)
Jonah Koech wasn't even supposed to be in Sunday's 1500. As they approached the bell, he was in 13th out of 17. A lap later, he was the champion. He is just the third American man to win a Diamond League 1500/mile and the first runner sponsored by Under Armour to win a DL race. His 3:37.27 pre-race pb is also the slowest of any man to win a DL 1500/mile.
For five years, Hoey cylced through coach after coach but barely improved from his 1:47.67 high school 800m pb. Learn why he moved around so often -- and why he never gave up. Part I of JG's 7,000+ word feature.
*MB: Josh Hoey profile by JG
The US indoor 1500m/3000m champion overhauled his fueling in workouts before the 2024 season. Now he swears by his routine.
In the span of one week in February, runners broke five world indoor records and every American men's middle-distance record from 800m to 5000m. Jonathan Gault spoke to some of America's top athletes and coaches to find the reasons behind all of the fast times.
From novice fans to running diehards, there was something for everyone (except perhaps Brits and Norwegians) to enjoy about one of the greatest middle distance races ever run.
Just before Blanks chases a 5,000m pb and collegiate record in what is likely his final NCAA race at Boston University on Saturday, he told LetsRun about the key session of his 2024 XC season -- one he described as "probably the best workout I've had so far in my career."
Simpson and Centrowitz, who both 1st medalled in 2011 and retired in 2024, leave the sport as two of the faces on the Mt. Rushmore of American 1500m running after piling up a combined eight medals at global championships. And despite not ever finishing in the top 3 on the yearly 1500 list (Simpson's best was 4th, Centro's 9th), they will be remembered as two of the better milers of their generation.
Your latest American stars share their insights.
Keira D'Amato, the new American record holder in the marathon, was joined by Deena Kastor, who held the record for 15 years.
Sisson was the guest on the LetsRun.com Track Talk podcast after she became the first American to go sub 67 in the half marathon on a record-eligible course. Podcast highlights above. Full pod here.
Woody Kincaid joined us after he broke the American record indoors at 5000. He talks above why he left the Bowerman Track Club. Podcast highlights and link to full podcast here.
Coogan's New Balance Boston team had 3 Olympians in 2021 and 2022 could be the biggest year yet for the program with 2 new additions and the TRACK at New Balance coming on March 1st.
Danny Mackey has taken the Brooks Beasts from an unproven club to the Olympic podium in its first decade.
Dathan Ritzenhein is the first of the top pro coaches to sit down and talk about his club heading into the 2022 campaign.
