TUCSON — Olympians, world gold medalists, and past USATF titlists highlighted competition Saturday as six champions were crowned at the inaugural USATF Winter Long Throws National Championship at Drachman Stadium on the campus of the University of Arizona. Elite fields battled for medals and cash prizes, with $90,000 up for grabs to throwers in the discus, hammer, and javelin.
There was a wind advisory in effect for the Tucson area when the meet started, with steady breezes of more than 15 mph and occasional stronger gusts, hampering most of the athletes in the men's and women's javelin competitions, except for Madison Wiltrout.
Wiltrout, the girls' high school national record holder and a member of the World Championships team last year, nailed a lifetime best 61.29/201-1 on her first attempt to become the No. 7 all-time U.S. performer. That gave her a margin of victory of more than 18 feet over 2023 Pan American Games gold medalist Maddie Harris, who had a best of 55.74/182-10, and reigning USATF champion Evie Bliss of Bucknell, who placed third at 54.70/179-5.
2025 World Championships bronze medalist and reigning USATF champion Curtis Thompson held the lead in the men's javelin with an opening attempt of 72.10/236-6 that he improved to 74.48/244-4 in round four before Marc Anthony Minichello launched his best throw of the day on his final attempt to take the gold at 75.32/247-1. Third place went to Jacob Moran at 67.86/222-7.
The men's hammer had three of the all-time top 10 American performers – American record holder and five-time national champion Rudy Winkler, 2024 Olympic Trials winner Daniel Haugh, and last year's USATF runner-up Trey Knight. Tokyo Olympian Alex Young, the 2017 USATF champ, was also in the field.
Knight exploded to the lead with a 78.35/257-0 on his first attempt, the second farthest throw of his career, and was even better on his next try, moving to No. 7 on the all-time U.S. performer list with a 79.33/260-3 PB to put pressure on Winkler. Winkler responded in typical fashion in round three with a massive 80.60/264-5, a distance only he and two other men have exceeded on the U.S. all-time list. That held up for the win, and Young nabbed third at 74.57/244-8, with Haugh fourth at 73.34/240-7.
Chock-a-block with almost all the major U.S. players, the women's hammer throw featured all three medalists from the 2025 USATF Championships and six of the top eight finishers. American record holder and 2019 world champion DeAnna Price staked her claim in the first round with a 74.17/243-4 but was passed by last year's USATF Indoor Championships weight throw winner Rachel Richeson, who powered the four-kilogram ball out to 75.39 in the third round.
Brooke Andersen, the 2022 world champion, moved ahead of Price into second place with a 74.67/244-11 on her fourth attempt and that settled the podium placings. Richeson added padding to her victory margin with her third farthest throw ever, a 76.86/252-2 on her sixth and final attempt.
As the wind died down after the javelin ended, Valarie Sion needed only one attempt to ice the women's discus competition, hitting 64.76/212-5 in round one. The American record holder improved on her next attempt to 66.02/216-7 and then had four fouls as she captured her 30th victory in a row since placing second at the 2023 World Championships in Budapest.
Erika Beistle, who won the NCAA Division II title for Grand Valley State last year, nabbed second with a 62.88/206-3 in the fifth round on one of her two legal attempts, while 2025 NCAA Division I champion Cierra Jackson was five centimeters behind that with a 62.83/206-1 in round two for third. Paris Olympian Jayden Ulrich also surpassed 62 meters, throwing 62.12/203-9 for fourth.
Closing out the day, the top two men from last year's USATF Championships discus again went head-to-head with the same result. Sam Mattis, the No. 2 all-time U.S. performer, took an early lead with a 64.62/212-0 but that was short-lived as Reggie Jagers grabbed the lead with a 64.87/212-10 effort in the second stanza. Jagers, the 2025 USATF champion, added to his lead with a 65.83/215-11 in the third round and sealed the win with a 65.33/214-4 on his final throw. Mattis improved to 64.94/213-0 in round five and ended up second, with Joseph White third with a best of 61.82/202-10.