CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – The Fighting Illini men’s and women’s track and field teams are set to begin their 2024 season with the Illini Open at the UI Armory on Saturday, Jan. 6. Field events are slated to begin at noon, with track events beginning at 1 p.m. CT. Teams in the field include Butler, Illinois, and Milwaukee.
This will be the first chance for fans to see Petros Kyprianou‘s new and improved squad with the addition of some high-profile names. Last year’s NCAA Outdoor Championships qualifiers Aiden Ouimet (decathlon), Robert Williams (400mH), Tori Thomas (pole vault), and Alex Babbington (high jump) all will be active. Each of these athletes have their names etched in the program’s all-time top-10 record book for their respective events.
Number-one recruit in the country Sophia Beckmon out of Oregon will sport Illini gear for the first time. Beckmon enters Champaign owning the nation’s second-longest high-school girls long jump in history with a 6.80m (22-4) leap. She’s also a 2023 NACAC U23 gold medalist and Nike Outdoor national champion in the long jump.
A couple U20 European champions will also be in the field. Viktor Morozov won the triple jump this summer with a mark of 16.45m (53-11 1/2). Morozov also placed sixth in the triple jump at the indoor and outdoor Big Ten Championships last season. Newcomer Elizabeth Ndudi sports the Orange and Blue for the first time Saturday. Ndudi became the first Irish jumps athlete to medal at U20 Euros, let alone win it, with her personal-best mark of 6.56m (21-6 1/4).
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