Lyles' Heartbreak, Sha'Carri's Comeback - USATF Recap

^{August 1, 2025}

👋 Hey, Speedsters!

The wait is finally over! Day 1 of the USATF Outdoor Championships 2025 has kicked off at Hayward Field. The buzz in the stadium has been rising since the spectators’ gates opened at 10. a.m. After all, 7 event finals featuring American greats and several heats were lined up for the next 10 hours.

You asked us to cover field events extensively, and we heard you! While we focused on a field-specific coverage today, some track races were too good to be missed. So we’ve brought the best of both for you! Hop on!

🙌 Field Stole The Spotlight

Though things kicked off with the Men’s Decathlon 100m event, where Peyton Bair of Mississippi State clocked an impressive 10.41 seconds, the focus shifted to the field soon, where the next hour was all about one man, Kyle Garland.

After finishing second in the 100m, Garland took the lead spot with a monster Long Jump of 7.89 meters. As the sand splashed up around him, the scoreboard displayed 2,022 points. Whereas, Hakim McMorris jumped from sixth to second place with his 7.55m leap, Austin West climbed from fifth to third with a solid 7.50m. But, Heath Baldwin, one of the most anticipated, registered #5 overall.

Similarly, the women’s heptathlon kicked off with the 100m Hurdles, where the packed Hayward Field crowd was in disbelief when Michelle Atherley came out flying and won in 12.95 seconds, defeating Anna Hall, who was third with 13.12. Unexpected! But soon, the field took over…

The women’s heptathlon High Jump and the men’s decathlon Shot Put started, almost side by side, just five minutes apart. This time, Anna Hall delivered! Her 1.90-meter jump took her straight to the top of the leaderboard. 1,106 points! If you haven’t already, watch here. Taliyah Brooks was second, whereas Michelle Atherley didn’t record a height. Shocking! Thus, with zero points, she dipped to the bottom…

Meanwhile, on the men's side, on a day when no one could crack 16m, Kyle Garland’s dominance continued with a massive 16.95-meter throw. The next best was Zach Ziemek at 15.56m.

As the women’s heptathlon and men’s decathlon headed into a roughly six-hour break before the next stages, fans witnessed the first final of the Nationals: the Men’s Javelin Throw.

But before that, a Quick Weather Check: It wasn’t the sunniest day out in Eugene, with a partly cloudy sky. While the temperature sat at a warm 86°F, with 33% humidity. For fans, it was warm but manageable. But for the athletes, conditions looked near perfect, not too hot, not too sticky.

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🎫 Field Qualification Tickets!

All eyes were on Curtis Thompson in the men’s Javelin Throw final, and his massive 83.89-meter throw (that’s 275 feet, 2 inches) from his fourth attempt, delivered! Just like that, he claimed his 5th U.S. national title and booked his ticket to his third World Championships. Joining him would be Dash Sirmon and Marc Anthony Minichello who came second and third, respectively!

This was followed by the women’s Hammer final, where Illinois assistant coach DeAnna Price opened with a massive 78.53m (257-0), taking the lead on her first attempt, to never give it up. Fans roared as the national record holder eventually won, which means the 2019 World Champion is now headed to Tokyo. And so are Brooke Andersen and Rachel Richeson, who also met the World Championship standard. But it was a tough day for Paris silver medalist Annette Echikunwoke, who finished a disappointing sixth.

✨ Stacked Field Finals

Meanwhile, two more field finals gave us surprises. Evelyn Bliss, who just became America’s 10th-best thrower at the World University Games last week, pulled off a win ahead of favorite Madison Wiltrout, in the women’s Javelin Throw. Bliss touched the 57.77m mark. Thrilling! Meanwhile, Madison came second with her 56.46m throw, and Sara Blake threw a season best, 55.80m!

Over on the men’s side, the Hammer Throw final concluded with Rudy Winkler, who shattered his own American record at the Prefontaine Classic, showing his dominance again! 81.47m on his best throw, and that made him the US Champion! In the second spot was Trey Knight (78.76), followed by Daniel Haugh in third (77.28). All three have now cleared the World Championship standard! Kudos!

But soon, the spotlight shifted to the track as some of America’s favorites walked in for the opening rounds of their events....

🌟 Track Action!

Finally, the first track event of Day 1, started with men’s 800m heats. In Heat 1, the defending national champion, Bryce Hoppel, clocked 1:45.69, hitting the World standard. Thus, proving why he is the most trusted bet for Team USA. Meanwhile, Heat 3 saw Josh Hoey win in 1:47.14, whereas former world champ Donavan Brazier won Heat 4 with 1:48.23. Now, the top six from each heat, along with the next three fastest overall, will advance to tomorrow’s semifinals.

Next up, women’s 800m. Three heats in total, with all the eyes on Athing Mu-Nikolayev…. And she did not disappoint! In Heat 2, she finished ahead of Ajee’ Wilson by clocking 2:00.06, the fastest time in the first two heats. But, Sage Hurta-Klecker’s 1:59.28 run in Heat 3 (only woman to dip under 2:00) changed everything. Athing Mu now sits third overall heading into the semis, a solid start. But for Hurta-Klecker, who’s never made a global team, this might just be the year she makes it BIG time!

🏆 The Highlight!

As the afternoon settled, Hayward Field exploded with energy. After all, it was time for the women’s 100m Round 1. Stepping onto the track in Heat 1 was none other than the reigning world champion, Sha’Carri Richardson. Until now, she hadn’t placed higher than fourth all year. But today, she clocked 11.07s finishing in the second spot. Yes, there was an unexpected winner! Kayla White, with a blazing 10.89 seconds, stormed past the field to snatch the win from Richardson. Watch Sha’Carri’s season best below!

Then came Heat 2….with another twist. Twanisha Terry finally had her moment! She clocked 10.89s, clenching the first spot. While Gabby Thomas finished third in 11.02s! So yeah, this could be called the day of favorites falling behind. But not all! Well, Melissa Jefferson Wooden’s 10.86s topped Heat 3. And we thought it was the fastest time, until Heat 4 changed that. Well, Jacious Sears stopped the clock at 10.85 to register the fastest qualifying run in the women's 100m first round. Meanwhile, Check Sha’Carri and Twanisha, hop onto the internet’s viral trend here!

🤯 Can’t Miss!

Noah Lyles showed up at Hayward Field flashing the Yu-Gi-Oh! card, just like the 2024 Olympic Trials. The reigning World Champion’s outfit had special details too, check here. Classy! But once the men’s 100m heats began, it wasn’t just about style anymore….Heat 1 started, with a slight headwind of -0.7 m/s, making conditions tricky. But T’Mars McCallum, fresh off snatching the 200m world lead from Letsile Tebogo, crossed the line first in 10.01, edging out Trayvon Bromell, by just 0.03 seconds.

Then came Heat 2, and Kenny Bednarek dipped under the 10s, clocking 9.95, the fastest of the day so far. The reigning world champion Noah Lyles won Heat 3, but was 0.1s slower than Kenny and 0.05s slower than his season best! Not quite like the fastest man in the world today. Plus, he has now decided to walk out of the 100m, as he has a direct bye into the Worlds! Watch a snippet of his race below!

And finally, Heat 4 wasn’t the Coleman comeback we expected! He trailed behind Courtney Lindsey with 10.08s.

😲 The Most Watched

Finally, for the show stopper field event of the day, Tara Davis-Woodhall gave us a thriller! Yes, she entered the event as a favorite, unbeaten by any American competitor since July 2023. And as soon as the event started, we saw that dominance come alive once again….

Tara jumped to a massive 6.92m in round 3, which secured her lead over Jasmine Moore’s 6.77 mark. She then improved it to a whopping 7.11m mark in round 4. And finally, the reigning Olympic champion closed the day with 7.12m world lead on the board. Watch Tara do just Tara things and give us a massive world lead! She was the only athlete who crossed the 7m mark with Claire Bryant coming second with 6.92 on board! Amazing!

Well, that’s it for Day 1! We’ll be back with some exciting updates from Day 2 soon!

That’s it for today, folks! We’ll look to knock on your inbox soon with more interesting stories!