FEARLESS FORECASTING by Roy Conrad
as of June 04
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 9 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 | *Melissa Jefferson | (Nike) | 2 |
| 2 | *Tamari Davis | (adidas) | 3 |
| 3 | *Anavia Battle | (adidas) | nr |
| 4 | *McKenzie Long | (adidas) | 9 |
| 5 | *TeeTee Terry | (Nike) | 4 |
| 6 | Jacious Sears | (Nike) | nr |
| 7 | Kayla White | (unattached) | nr |
| 8 | *Celera Barnes | (adidas) | 10 |
| 9 | *Alexis Brown | (Lenoir-Rhyne) | nr |
| 10 | *Sha’Carri Richardson | (Nike) | 1 |
| 200 METERS | |||
| 1 | *Gabby Thomas | (New Balance) | 1 |
| 2 | *Tamari Davis | (adidas) | nr |
| 3 | *Melissa Jefferson | (Nike) | nr |
| 4 | *Anavia Battle | (adidas) | 6 |
| 5 | *JaMeesia Ford | (South Carolina) | 7 |
| 6 | *Brittany Brown | (Nike) | 2 |
| 7 | *McKenzie Long | (adidas) | 3 |
| 8 | Jenna Prandini | (Puma) | nr |
| 9 | *Madison Whyte | (USC) | nr |
| 10 | *Dana Wilson | (North Carolina HS) | nr |
| 400 METERS | |||
| 1 | *Bella Whittaker | (unattached) | 7 |
| 2 | *Aaliyah Butler | (Georgia) | 5 |
| 3 | *Alexis Holmes | (Nike) | 1 |
| 4 | *Kaylyn Brown | (Arkansas) | 2 |
| 5 | *JaMeesia Ford | (South Carolina) | nr |
| 6 | Lynna Irby-Jackson | (adidas) | 9 |
| 7 | *Bailey Lear | (unattached) | nr |
| 8 | Madison Whyte | (USC) | nr |
| 9 | Quanera Hayes | (Nike) | 6 |
| 10 | *Rosey Effiong | (Arkansas) | 10 |
| 800 METERS | |||
| 1 | *Addy Wiley | (adidas) | 1 |
| 2 | *Michaela Rose | (LSU) | 6 |
| 3 | *Sage Hurta-Klecker | (On AC) | 5 |
| 4 | *Meghan Hunter | (BYU) | nr |
| 5 | *Nia Akins | (Hoka) | 2 |
| 6 | Emily Richards | (Atalanta NYC) | nr |
| 7 | Victoria Bossong | (Harvard) | nr |
| 8 | Makayla Paige | (North Carolina) | nr |
| 9 | Roisin… | ||
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