Sha’Carri Richardson and Noah Lyles named 2023 USATF Athletes of the Year
The World champions will be crowned at the USATF Night of Legends on Saturday, 2 December in Orlando. Richardson's coach Dennis Mitchell was selected as the Coach of the Year.
Sha’Carri Richardson and Noah Lyles are the 2023 USATF Athletes of the Year, following their triple-medal haul at the World Athletics Championships in Budapest.
In addition to being named the 2023 Jackie Joyner-Kersee Female Athlete of the Year, Richardson witnessed her coach Dennis Mitchell receiving recognition as the Coach of the Year for guiding her to double gold in Budapest.
It has been a dominant season for the 23-year-old American sprinter, who dashed to 12 sub-11-second finishes in the 100m, including the 10.65 that secured gold at the World Championships and moved her to fifth in the all-time list.
She added bronze in the 200m at the Worlds behind Shericka Jackson before anchoring the U.S. women’s 4x100m to the world title.
Richardson and her coach Mitchell will be honoured at the USATF Night of Legends on Saturday, 2 December in Orlando, Florida.
Besides guiding her to success at both World Championships and Diamond League events, Mitchell has also coached another 4x100m women’s relay world champion, TeeTee Terry, and trained Olympic silver medallist Kenny Bednarek to the 200m final in Budapest.
Triple world champion Lyles was named as the top man in USA track and field for the third time, joining Michael Johnson as the only other man to win the Jesse Owens Male Athlete of the Year thrice.
Lyles became a six-time world champion after winning the 100m, 200m for a third consecutive time at the championships and also anchored the 4x100m to gold.
The 26-year-old sprinter ended yet another season unbeaten in the 200m, showcasing his dominance with a remarkable 19.47 world lead at the London Diamond League.
Shawnti Jackson, 18, the 200m and 4x100m 2023 Pan American champion, was named the USATF Youth Athlete of the Year.
For the second year in a row, Jenny Hitchings, 60, will be honoured as the USATF Masters Long Distance Running Athlete of the Year, thanks to her impressive 2:45:27 marathon record in London, and for breaking the 15km, 20km, 25km, and 30km American records.