FEARLESS FORECASTING by Roy Conrad
as of May 23
TEAM USA for September’s World Championships in Tokyo will be chosen at the later-than-usual USATF Championships (Eugene, July 31–August 03). Collegiate athletes will face a long break between the NCAA and the USATF meets.
From the exceedingly tenuous vantage point of 11 weeks out, here’s our Top 10 charting for each women’s event at USATF. The listing of an athlete in a discipline doesn’t guarantee she’ll contest that event (or events).
Athletes who have met the Tokyo qualifying standard are noted with an asterisk. Achieving a Q isn’t mandatory for making the team, as WA will fill out about half the fields in each event from its world rankings.
The U.S. will have 3 Wild Card slots (meaning 4 can qualify instead of the standard 3), given to reigning WC gold medalists: Sha’Carri Richardson (100), Chase Jackson (SP) & Lagi Tausaga (DT).
Here’s our Top 10s (the number in the right-hand column represents the athlete’s placing in last year’s U.S. Rankings as compiled by T&FN):
| 100 METERS | |||
| 1 | *Sha’Carri Richardson | (Nike) | 1 |
| 2 | *Melissa Jefferson | (Nike) | 2 |
| 3 | *Tamari Davis | (adidas) | 3 |
| 4 | *Anavia Battle | (adidas) | nr |
| 5 | *McKenzie Long | (adidas) | 9 |
| 6 | *TeeTee Terry | (Nike) | 4 |
| 7 | Jacious Sears | (Nike) | nr |
| 8 | Kayla White | (unattached) | nr |
| 9 | *Cambrea Sturgis | (adidas) | nr |
| 10 | Indya Mayberry | (TCU) | nr |
| 200 METERS | |||
| 1 | *Gabby Thomas | (New Balance) | 1 |
| 2 | *Tamari Davis | (adidas) | nr |
| 3 | *Anavia Battle | (adidas) | 6 |
| 4 | *JaMeesia Ford | (South Carolina) | 7 |
| 5 | *Brittany Brown | (Nike) | 2 |
| 6 | *McKenzie Long | (adidas) | 3 |
| 7 | Jenna Prandini | (Puma) | nr |
| 8 | Tamara Clark | (adidas) | 9 |
| 9 | *Madison Whyte | (USC) | nr |
| 10 | *Dana Wilson | (North Carolina HS) | nr |
| 400 METERS | |||
| 1 | *Aaliyah Butler | (Georgia) | 5 |
| 2 | *Alexis Holmes | (Nike) | 1 |
| 3 | *Bella Whittaker | (unattached) | 7 |
| 4 | *Kaylyn Brown | (Arkansas) | 2 |
| 5 | *JaMeesia Ford | (South Carolina) | nr |
| 6 | *Bailey Lear | (unattached) | nr |
| 7 | Madison Whyte | (USC) | nr |
| 8 | Quanera Hayes | (Nike) | 6 |
| 9 | *Rosey Effiong | (Arkansas) | 10 |
| 10 | Lynna Irby-Jackson | (adidas) | 9 |
| 800 METERS | |||
| 1 | *Addy Wiley | (adidas) | 1 |
| 2 | *Michaela Rose | (LSU) | 6 |
| 3 | *Sage Hurta-Klecker | (On AC) | 5 |
| 4 | *Nia Akins | (HOKA) | 2 |
| 5 | *Meghan Hunter | (BYU) | nr |
| 6 | Emily Richards | (Atalanta NYC) | nr |
| 7 | Victoria Bossong | (Harvard) | nr |
| 8 | Makayla Paige | (North Carolina) | nr |
| 9 | Roisin Willis | (Stanford) | nr |
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