Top 10 US Female Athletes of the Year 2023 (10-6)

We asked Deji Ogeyingbo to take a shot at the top 10 US women and men, this is how he begins it! 

Top 10 US Female Athletes of the Year 2023 (10-6)

What a year it was for the United States Track and Field Association! After hosting the World Athletics Championships on home soil in 2022, all eyes were on them as they looked to defend their title at this year’s championships in Budapest 2023. Once again, the US was head and shoulders as they racked up 29 medals overall. 

As we count down to the Top 10 female US athletes of the year, we look at some of the athletes who distinguished themselves at major competitions such as the World Championships and Diamond League and how their performances at the global level gave them the nudge ahead of their rivals. 

10. Nia Ali

Starting our countdown is former world champion in the women’s 100m Hurdles, Nia Ali. Not every day does one get to witness a comeback story, especially in a Sport like Track and Field. Four years after winning her first world title against all odds in Doha, there is no denying the fact that Ali had her best year in 2023. 

The 35-year-old missed out on the 2021 Tokyo Olympics after she put to bed that same year. Still, Ali was able to get back to the grind and ensure she made amends for not making it past the first round of the 2022 World Championships in Oregon. It wasn’t her first rodeo though. In 2016, Ali won a Silver medal in her signature event barely a year after becoming a mother. 

Ali didn’t start the year on the strongest of notes, but once she got into her strides, she began to run times that her younger rivals became scared of. Since 2021, all the talks have been about Olympic Champion, Jasmine Camacho-Queen and World Champion, Tobi Amusan. Regardless, Ali ran the fastest time of the year when she clocked 12.37 to win the US Championships in July. 

The time gave her the right impetus to approach the world title in Budapest. However, having won her Heats and finished second in her semifinal, she narrowly came unstuck in the final as she placed eighth. Regardless, Ali will go into the Olympics in Paris next year with renewed vigor knowing fully well that she can still race against the very best at her age. 

9. Laulauga Tausaga  

At the start of 2023, if a…