Olympic champions Athing Mu and Ryan Crouser make season debuts with Paris on their mind at the 2024 U.S. Olympic Team Trials - Track & Field: Day one
Athing Mu is back.
The 2024 U.S. Olympic Team Trials - Track & Field got underway Friday (21 June) with the reigning 800m Olympic champion Mu qualifying into women's semi-finals, marking her return to competition in her first race of the year following a nine-month hiatus.
Mu hadn't competed yet this 2024 season due to hamstring soreness, having last competed at this same venue - Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon - at the Diamond League Final last September.
She was third in her heat, clocking a 2:01.73.
In the men’s 400m, 16-year-old sensation Quincy Wilson continued his breakout season, not only qualifying into semi-finals, but earning the second fastest time (44.66) of the afternoon to set a new U18 world record.
Michael Norman, the 2022 world champion at this venue, is back competing in the 400m, earning second place in his heat (45.31) to advance into Sunday's semi-finals.
Reigning shot put Olympic and world champion Ryan Crouser, the current world record holder, began his campaign for a third Olympic gold medal on Friday as well, with the opening round of the field event.
In the lone final of the day, Grant Fisher, Woody Kincaid and Nicolas Young booked their tickets to Paris with a 1-2-3 finish in the men's 10,000m, the final event of the night. Fisher broke away in the penultimate lap, then held his lead for a 27:49.47, outpacing Kincaid (27:50.74) and Young (27:52.40).
In the women's 100m heats, reigning world champion Sha'Carri Richardson avoided disaster out of the starting blocks, then cruised to a 10.88 to advance to the finals rounds, set for Saturday (22 June).
The men's pole vault included the biggest surprise of the day, as American record hold KC Lightfoot failed to qualify for the final. Lightfoot missed all three of his attempts at 5.60m, with the qualifying height being 5.65m for the 12 finalists. Reigning Olympic silver and world bronze medallist Chris Nilsen and Sam Kendricks, a two-time world champ and the Rio 2016 bronze medallist**,** are among the finalists set to compete Sunday (23 June).
Lightfoot had been fourth in pole vault at Tokyo 2020 in 2021.
Athing Mu makes successful return; Michaela Rose qualifies fastest
In the 800m, all eyes were on the 22-year-old Mu, who got a roaring reception from the Eugene crowd.
The New Jersey native said she was relaxed and happy coming into the heats, adding that she’d made a lot of progress coming into these Trials. She shared that, as always, her plan was to take it “just one day at a time, one race at a time.”
Mu also shared that her delay in competing this season was, in fact, health-related, with that aforementioned hamstring issue keeping her out of competition. But, she said: "[With] there being three rounds, it's plenty of time to get acquainted with the event once again and just go for what it feels like to be in a fast 800.”
Michaela Rose, a collegiate standout for LSU, recorded the only sub-two-minute time of the night to earn the top spot, advancing with a 1.59:57. She was followed by Ajee Wilson, who earned her season best time of 2:00.96.
Men's 400m: A 'Quincy' double as Hall, Wilson go 1-2
Quincy Hall led the men’s 400m field with a 44.60, but the big story was the teen Wilson, that 44.66 breaking all sorts of records.
The high schooler said of his approach to Friday's performance: “To be honest I have nothing to lose,” he told U.S. broadcaster NBC.
Chris Bailey, Matthew Boling and Johnnie Blockburger rounded out the top five times of the night. The top five in each of the five heats, plus the two fastest, advance to semi-finals on Sunday (23 June).
Norman put out a 45.31 to advance to the 400m semis. He revealed to reporters that he’s currently working through injuries, offering that he’s: "One-hundred percent running the 400," but says he hasn't sprinted fully since February.
Joe Kovacs leads men’s shot put field; Crouser advances in third
The men’s shot put was led by two-time Olympic silver medalist (and twice world champion) Joe Kovacs, who is aiming to qualify for a third Olympic Games. Kovacs led the field with a throw of 22.30m. Kovacs called it good after the first throw.
It was a similar effort for Crouser, who received a roaring welcome having grown up in nearby Boring, Ore. Crouser, who was also making his season debut, qualified in third with a throw of 21.44m.
Crouser is the current World record holder of 23.56m, set at the 2022 World Athletics Championships - also held in Eugene.
Crouser told repoters that he’s been dealing with an Ulnar nerve injury in his elbow and then a pectoral tear, dating back to early March.
He was cleared to compete ahead of the Prefontaine Classic last month, where he was a late scratch. Following Friday’s qualifiers, Crouser said that he was “focusing on efficiency,” explaining that he was “expending as little as I can to get through.”
He added that he’s been focused on throwing 21 metres, which was more than enough to advance him through.
Payton Otterdahl finished in second ahead of Crouser with his second throw of 21.74m.
The field of 12 advancing into Saturday’s final are rounded out with: Tripp Piperi, Jordan Geist, Roger Steen, Josh Awotunde, Tarik O’Hagan, T’Mond Johnson, Jordan West, Patrick Larrison and Nikolas Curtiss.
Shamier Little leads women’s 400m, but scratches ahead of semis
Two-time world silver medalist in 400m hurdles, Shamier Little, blew away the field in the 400m to take the fastest time of the night in the third heat with 50.13. Her dominating performance marked a season best. But, in a post-race interview, Little shared that she’ll be scratching ahead of the 400m semi-finals. She said: “I just wanted to do one round and see what I’ve got in my legs.”
She clarified that her main goal for Trials “is to make the team in the 400 metre hurdles,” saying: “That’s my bread and butter.”
The field continues on into semi-finals on Saturday, however the 400m hurdles qualifying will not begin until later in the Trials on Thursday (27 June).
Aaliyah Butler followed with a 50.44 to win heat two. Lynna Irby-Jackson also raced her season's best with a 50.89 to advance into semi-finasl in third place.
Paris bound: Fisher, Kincaid, Young triumph in 10,000m
The first evening in Eugene closed out with plenty of drama in the men's 10,000m final, with a lead pack headed by Conner Mantz for much of the first half of the race.
Young took that mantle with six laps remaining, the 21-year-old college star for Northern Arizona University looking for his Olympic debut having been ninth at the U.S. Trials in the 5000m in 2021.
He would get just that, with Fisher, who was fifth in this event at Tokyo 2020 in 2021, taking the lead with two-and-a-half laps to go - and never looking back. Kincaid ran much of the race on Fisher's shoulder, and to his benefit: He finished with a second-place effort, good enough to join Fisher at a second Games for them both.
In a post-race interview, Fisher shared that his plan going into the event was to control the outcome by moving out front early. He said, "My plan was to go to the front with 1,200 to go and press," adding, "I know I'm good off a fast pace. If I leave it off to a 400-meter sprint, it becomes more of a toss-up. "
Fisher is looking forward to a chance to get on the podium in Paris. He said, "I've been close to the medals before—never gotten them—so hopefully this is my time."
EUGENE, OREGON: Woody Kincaid, second place, Grant Fisher, first place, and Nicolas Young, third place, pose on the podium after the men's 10,000 meter run final on Day One of the 2024 U.S. Olympic Team Track & Field Trials at Hayward Field on June 21, 2024 in Eugene, Oregon. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)