FEARLESS FORECASTING by Jack Pfeifer
as of May 22
Team USA for August’s World Championships will be chosen at the USATF Championships (Eugene, July 06–09).
With 3½ weeks from the end of the NCAA to the start of the selection meet collegians will have roughly twice as much time for recovery as they had last year.
From the tenuous vantage point of 7 weeks out, here’s our Top 10 charting for each women’s event. The listing of an athlete in a discipline doesn’t guarantee she’ll contest that event (or events).
Note that athletes who won individual golds at the ’22 WC and those who won Diamond League titles in ’22 have earned the right to WA Wild Cards for this summer and need put in only a token appearance (event doesn’t matter) at the Nationals.
The 6 American Wild Card holders: 800 — Athing Mu; 400H —Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone; PV — Katie Moon; SP — Chase Ealey; DT — Valarie Allman; HT — Brooke Andersen (Allman won the DL title, the other 5 WC golds). Kara Winger also holds a Wild Card in the javelin but retired after winning the DL title.
The Top 10s (the number in the right-hand column represents the athlete’s placing in last year’s U.S. Rankings; athletes with asterisks have achieved the WC qualifying standard):
| 100 METERS | |||
| 1. | *Sha’Carri Richardson | (Nike) | 5 |
| 2. | *Aleia Hobbs | (adidas) | 1 |
| 3. | *Tamari Davis | (adidas) | 4 |
| 4. | *Jacious Sears | (Tennessee) | nr |
| 5. | *Morolake Akinosun | (adidas) | nr |
| 6. | *TeeTee Terry | (unattached) | 3 |
| 7. | Abby Steiner | (Puma) | 7 |
| 8. | Celera Barnes | (adidas) | 8 |
| 9. | Melissa Jefferson | (Nike) | 2 |
| 10. | Mikiah Brisco | (adidas) | nr |
| 200 METERS | |||
| 1. | *Abby Steiner | (Puma) | 1 |
| 2. | *Gabby Thomas | (New Balance) | 2 |
| 3. | *Sha’Carri Richardson | (Nike) | nr |
| 4. | *Tamari Davis | (adidas) | nr |
| 5. | *McKenzie Long | (Mississippi) | nr |
| 6. | *Jenna Prandini | (Puma) | 4 |
| 7. | *Kayla White | (Nike) | 8 |
| 8. | *Anavia Battle | (adidas) | 10 |
| 9. | *Brittany Brown | (Nike) | 5 |
| 10. | *Lanae Thomas | (Texas) | nr |
| 400 METERS | |||
| 1. | Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone | (New Balance) | nr |
| 2. | *Lynna Irby-Jackson | (adidas) | 3 |
| 3. | *Talitha Diggs | (Florida) | 1 |
| 4. | *Gabby Thomas | (New Balance) | nr |
| 5. | *Makenzie Dunmore | (Empire) | nr |
| 6. | *Tierra Robinson-Jones | (Texas A&M) | nr |
| 7. | *Jermaisha Arnold | (Texas A&M) | nr |
| 8. | *Jan’Taijah Jones | (USC) | nr |
| 9. | *Kennedy Simon | (Texas) | 5 |
| 10. | *Ziyah Holman | (Michigan) | nr |
| 800 METERS |
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