The USATF Indoor Championships had many amazing high points. My favorites were the 60 meter hurdles, the 1,500m and 3000 meters, and of course, the men’s 60 meters.
Christian Coleman’s 60m WR was a fantastic way to end an indoor championship, and Christian has been named the USATF Athlete of the Week.
Christian entertained both Saturday and Sunday. His runs were fast, relaxed and suggested how fast he would run in the next round!
What can he do in Birmingham? We can not wait to see!
Christian Coleman celebrating after his 60 meter WR! photo by PhotoRun.net
Christian Coleman (Atlanta, Georgia) smashed the world record in the men’s 60m at the USATF Indoor Championships in Albuquerque to earn USATF Athlete of the Week.
Coleman, who in January had run the fastest time ever with a 6.37 at Clemson, pulled away from the field over the final half of the race in Albuquerque to slice .05 off the existing world record, set in 1998 by Maurice Greene, and equaled by Greene in 2001. It was the largest reduction of the WR ever.
Other notable performances from the USATF Indoor Championships:
Sharika Nelvis — Nelvis beat the strongest field ever in the women’s 60m hurdles, running 7.70 to set an American record and become the third-fastest woman in history.
Katie Nageotte — Nageotte had the best day of her pole vault career, clearing 4.91m/16-1.25 to win her first USATF national title and move to No. 4 on the world all-time indoor list.
Maria Michta-Coffey — Capturing her ninth straight indoor race walk gold, Michta-Coffey became the winningest woman ever in the event at the USATF Indoor Championships. Michta-Coffey won the 3,000m event by almost 33 seconds.
Donavan Brazier — Brazier again narrowly missed the American record in the men’s 800m, winning in 1:45.10, the third-fastest American man ever indoors.
Shelby Houlihan — For the second year in a row, Houlihan won the distance double at USATF Indoors, taking top honors in the 3,000m and coming back to win the 1,500m with a mad dash to the tape.
Paul Chelimo — Matching Houlihan’s feat, Chelimo became only the second man in meet history to turn the 1,500m/3,000m double.
Erica Bougard — Bougard scored 4,760 points to defend her title in the pentathlon and move to No. 2 on the all-time U.S. women’s list.
Now in its 17th year, USATF’s Athlete of the Week program is designed to recognize outstanding performers at all levels of the sport. USATF names a new honoree each week and features the athlete on USATF.org. Selections are based on top performances and results from the previous week.
2018 Winners: January 4, Brian Herron; January 11, Katelyn Tuohy; January 18, Molly Huddle; January 25, Christian Coleman; February 1, Sonja Friend-Uhl; February 8, Emily Infeld; February 15, Kendra Harrison; February 22, Christian Coleman.
We welcome your nominations!
To nominate an athlete for USATF Athlete of the Week, please send a detailed email about his/her performance to [email protected].
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