Men

Christian Cantwell

• World Champion, men’s shot put
• Top 3 marks in the world outdoors in 2009, including WL 22.16/72-8.50
• 5 of top 6 marks by an American outdoors in 2009
• Top 2 marks in the world indoors in 2009, including WL 21.47/70-5.25
• USA Indoor and Outdoor champion
• Posted major wins in London, Zagreb and World Athletics Final

• NOTES: Defeated Olympic gold medalist Tomasz Majewski at the World Championships with his fifth-round throw that also was the 2009 world leader and Cantwell’s best of the season. The two-time World Indoor champion and 2008 Olympic silver medalist, this was Cantwell’s first medal of any color at a World Outdoors. It closed out a season in which he was the world’s top thrower both indoors and outdoors.

Kerron Clement

• World champion, 400m hurdles, successfully defending his world title from 2007
• Gold medalist at World Championships, 4x400m relay
• Time of 47.91 at World Championships was 2009 world leader
• Posted major wins at adidas Track Classic, Osaka, Rome, London and World Athletics Final

• NOTES: Considered a world record threat since he was a 19-year-old, Clement at age 23 won his second straight world outdoor 400m hurdles title, matching the feat of Edwin Moses and Felix Sanchez. Also ran in his first 4x400m relay final at Berlin, helping Team USA to gold by running the third leg.

Tyson Gay

• Twice broke American record in 100m, including 9.71 and 9.69; tied AR in Rome (9.77)
• 9.69 is #2 performance of all-time, behind Usain Bolt WR 9.58
• Ran 3 of the top 4 times in the world in the 100m in 2009, all equal to faster than the previous American record (9.69, 9.71, 9.77)
• Silver medalist at World Outdoor Championships, 100m
• Ran PR 19.58 for 200m; #2 U.S. all-time behind AR 19.32 of Michael Johnson
• Posted major 100m wins at Rome, Stockholm, World Athletics Final, Shanghai, Kawasaki and Daegu; 200m wins at Reebok GP in NYC and London

• NOTES: Gay started his season late due to a knee injury from the winter; throughout the competitive season, he ran with a groin injury that seemed to particularly impact the first 20 meters of his races. Despite the injury, he lowered his personal best by .08 during the season and three times set an American record during what was a curtailed outdoor campaign. The second-fastest 100m runner of 2009, he is the second-fastest man in history.

Trey Hardee

• World Champion, decathlon
• Score of 8790 at World Championships was a huge PR and makes him the #3 American all-time behind Olympic champions Dan O’Brien and Bryan Clay
• 2009 World Leader (8790)
• Set individual event personal bests in the long jump and javelin at World Championships
  U.S. champion

• NOTES: The surprise winner of the World title, Hardee won the competition in Berlin by 150 points, a personal best by 256 points. He joins, O’Brien, Tom Pappas and Bryan Clay as American world champions in the decathlon; of that group, no win was more unexpected than Hardee’s. He now instantly becomes a gold-medal threat at future world events.

Bernard Lagat

• World Championships silver medalist, 5000m; placed second to world record holder Kenenisa Bekele
• World Championships bronze medalist, 1500m
• Tied Eamonn Coghlan with seventh Wanamaker Mile win at Millrose Games
• Ran World Leader for indoor mile (3:51.34).
• Ran U.S.-leading times indoors in 1500m (3:36.82), mile (3:51.34) and 3000m (7:35.42); U.S. leaders outdoors in 1000m (2:17.52), 1,500m (3:32.56), 3000m (7:33.15)
• Posted major victories indoors at Millrose Games Wanamaker Mile, Stuttgart 3000m and Lievin 1,500m; outdoors at Nike Prefontaine Classic 3,000m, London mile and Tangier 1500m

• NOTES: Sustained an ankle injury indoors at Birmingham, keeping him out of his plans to compete at USA Indoors. Waged several close battles with Bekele during the outdoor season at 3,000 to 5,000 meters, including at World Champs and World Athletics Final, inspiring Lagat to seriously consider moving to the 5,000m in 2010 and beyond. Now owns six World Outdoor medals – four in the 1,500 (silver in 2001 and ’03; gold in ’07 and bronze in ‘9) and two in the 5,000 (gold in ’07 and silver in ’09).

LaShawn Merritt

• World Champion, 400m and 4x400m relay
• Had the five fastest times in the world in 2009, including WL 44.06 at Worlds, and six of the top 7 times
• Undefeated at 400m
• Won second consecutive U.S. outdoor title
• Posted major wins at adidas Track Classic, Osaka, Rome, London and World Athletics Final

• NOTES: Left no question that he is the world’s #1 400m runner with an undefeated season marked by relatively easy wins, making him one of the world’s most dominant athletes in any event. At age 23, Merritt is looking for multiple world and Olympic titles.

Dwight Phillips

• World champion, long jump
• Became 3-time world champion, with titles in 2003 and ’05, tying Ivan Pedroso for most LJ wins at World Championships.
• 2009 World leader of 8.74m/28-8.25 tied him as the #5 performer of all time
• Had the top nine jumps by an American and five of top seven jumps in the world in 2009
• Won 4th career U.S. outdoor title
• 2009 Visa Champion as top performer of Visa Championship Series
• Posted major wins at Nike Prefontaine Classic, adidas Track Classic, Rome, London, Shanghai

Women

Jenny Barringer

• Set American record in steeplechase (9:12.50) in placing fifth at World Championships
• Broke collegiate records indoors in the mile (4:25.91), 3000 (8:42.03) and 5000 (15:01.70), and outdoors in the 1500 (3:59.90), 3000 steeplechase (9:12.50) and 5000 (15:05.25)
• NCAA champion in indoor 3000m and outdoor 3000 steeplechase
• Became third American woman in history to run under 4:00 in the 1,500 with her time of 3:59.90 at Nike Prefontaine Classic
• U.S. leader in 3,000m and 3,000m steeplechase in 2009; #2 American in 1,500m and 5,000m
• U.S. champion in steeplechase
• Posted major win at 5,000m at Stockholm

• NOTES: Despite substantial financial incentives to turn professional after placing ninth at the 2008 Olympics, Barringer chose to finish her eligibility at Colorado in 2009. She had what many consider to be the greatest collegiate season ever by a U.S. middle-distance runner, with six collegiate records. Previously considered strictly a steeplechaser, Barringer now is among the world’s elite at the 1,500 and 5,000 as well.

Allyson Felix

• World Champion in 200 meters and 4x400m relay
• Set record with third consecutive world title in the 200m
• Had top two times in the world in 2009, including WL 21.88, and top three times by an American in 2009
•  Second-fastest American over 400m in 2009 (49.83)
• Won fourth career U.S. outdoor title
• Posted major wins in the 200 at Stockholm, Gateshead, Shanghai and World Athletics Final; 400m wins at Doha and the Reebok GP in NYC

• NOTES: Although winning has become second nature to Felix, she was motivated in Berlin to atone for her Olympic silver. She was the only American sprinter under 400 meters to win a gold medal in Berlin and became the only athlete in history to win three consecutive world titles in the 200.

Carmelita Jeter

• Ran two fastest 100m times in world in 2009, 10.64 and 10.67
• 10.64 makes her the second-fastest woman all-time, behind Florence Griffith-Joyner
• Bronze medalist, World Championships
• U.S. champion
• Posted major wins at Nike Prefontaine Classic, Reebok GP in NYC, adidas Track Classic, London, Zurich, Brussles, World Athletics Final, Shanghai, Kawasaki and Daegu

• NOTES:  Jeter, who turns 30 in November, turned heads by getting faster as the season wore on, running her fastest times and posting dominant victories late in a long season, at the World Athletics Final and in Asia. She attributed her vast improvement in 2009 to a change in coaches and more dedication in the weight room; the results were borne on the track with Jeter running especially well in the last half of her races.

Brittney Reese

• World champion, long jump
• Had the top four jumps in the world in 2009, including WL 7.10m/23-3.50 in winning world title
• Won second consecutive U.S. title
• Major wins at World Championships, USA Outdoors, Belem, Doha and World Athletics Final

• NOTES: Reese became the first #1 world-ranked American long jumper since Marion Jones. Although she entered the World Championships with the farthest jump in the world to date, she faced a field that included the Olympic gold and silver medalists. Reese displayed grace under pressure, jumping her season- and personal best, and the world leader, in Berlin to win the gold.

Sanya Richards

• World Champion in 400m and 4x400m relay
• Ran the four fastest times in the world in 2009, including WL 48.83, and seven of the 10 fastest
• Second-fastest American over 200m in 2009 (22.29)
• Won fifth career U.S. title in 400m
• Posted major wins at Nike Prefontaine Classic, Berlin (ISTAF), Oslo, Rome, Paris, Zurich, Brussels and World Athletics Final

• NOTES: #1 World ranked since 2005, Richards in 2009 won her first individual gold medal in world or Olympic competition. It was part of an utterly dominant season in which Richards won some races by close to a full second. She also nearly won World Athletics Final 200m, matching Allyson Felix’s time of 22.29, but Felix got the nod in a photo finish.