USATF Announces Nominees for 2026 Athlete of the Year Awards

INDIANAPOLIS – USA Track & Field today announced the nominees for its 2026 Athlete of the Year awards, recognizing an outstanding year of performances across track and field, road racing and para athletics.

The nominees include world-record setters, world champions, national champions and athletes who have distinguished themselves in competition throughout the 2026 season.

The nominees are:

Men’s Track Athlete of the Year

• Kenny Bednarek – Won the 100 and 200 meters at the inaugural World Ultimate Championship, clocking a season-best 9.85 in the 100 and 19.52 in the 200. Won the Diamond League 200m final.
• Cooper Lutkenhaus – Won the 800 meters at the 2026 World Athletics Indoor Championships and established the world under-20 indoor record during the season. Won the USATF Outdoor title in the 800m.
• Ja’Kobe Tharp – Set a world record of 12.75 seconds in the 110-meter hurdles on June 10, establishing an American record. Won the event at the inaugural World Ultimate Championship.

Men’s Field Athlete of the Year

• Jordan Geist – Set a personal best of 22.44 meters in the shot put at the Ed Murphey Classic and finished second in the inaugural USATF Tour standings. Won the 2026 USATF Outdoor title.
• JuVaughn Harrison – Ranked number three in the world in the high jump. His jump of 2.34m is the second best mark in 2026. Finished second at the World Ultimate Championship.
• Curtis Thompson – Won the men’s javelin at the 2026 American JavFest with a throw of 84.13 meters. Won the 2026 USATF Outdoor title.

Women’s Track Athlete of the Year

• Anna Cockrell – Ranked second in the world in the 400m hurdles in 2026. Won the Diamond League final and finished third at the World Ultimate Championships. Won the 2026 USATF Outdoor title. Ran the fastest time in the world in 2026 at 52.13.
• Melissa Jefferson-Wooden – Won the 100 and 200 meters at the World Ultimate Championship in 10.62 and 21.47, respectively. Her 200-meter performance ranked third on the all-time world list. Also won the 200 at the 2026 Toyota USATF Outdoor Championships.
• Masai Russell – Set a world and American record of 12.09 seconds in the 100-meter hurdles at the Zürich Diamond League meet, improving her own American record and extending her winning streak to 10 races. Won the Diamond League final and World Ultimate Championship.

• Chase Jackson – Improved her American record in the shot put to 21.14 meters, becoming the first American woman to surpass 21 meters in the event and winning the 2026 world indoor title, Diamond League final and USATF Indoor and Outdoor championships. Ranked second in the world in 2026.
• Sandi Morris – Won the 2026 World Ultimate Championship, USATF Outdoor title and Prefontaine Classic. Ranked second in the world.
• Val Sion – Ranked number one in the world in 2026. Won the 2026 USATF Outdoor title and Prefontaine Classic. Her 73.10 in April was the second farthest throw ever by an American.

Men’s Para Track Athlete of the Year

• Joel Gomez – Set a world record in the men’s T13 1,500 meters, clocking 3:48.14 to win at the 2026 Toyota USATF Outdoor and Para National Championships. Gomez also ran a personal best of 3:41.65 in the 1,500 meters in Portland, Oregon, on June 21.
• Daniel Romanchuk – Swept the T54 400, 800, 1,500 and 5,000 meters at the 2026 USATF Para National Championships, winning in 45.86, 1:30.91, 3:03.83 and 10:31.41, respectively. He also won the men's wheelchair division at the Peachtree Road Race in 19:00, extending his winning streak to nine consecutive years.
• Hunter Woodhall – Competed at several major meets in 2026, finishing fourth in the para 100 meters at the LA Grand Prix in 10.81 seconds and sixth at the Prefontaine Classic in 11.02 seconds. He also competed in the 100 and 400 meters at the USATF Para National Championships.

Women’s Para Track Athlete of the Year

• Brittni Mason – Winner of the ambulatory 100m at the USATF Para Championships. Won the para 100 meters at the 2026 Prefontaine Classic in 12.05 seconds, her fastest performance since 2021.
• Tatyana McFadden – Set a world record in the women’s T54 400 meters, clocking 50.05 seconds in Arbon, Switzerland, on May 14 to break her previous mark of 50.46. She also won the T54 100 meters in 15.57 and the T54 800 meters in 1:46.99 at the same meet. Set the world record in the 800m in Nottwil, Switzerland with a time of 1:41.14. McFadden won the women’s wheelchair division at the 2026 Peachtree Road Race in 23:02.
• Linden Williamson – Set an Americas record in the T34 400 meters in 59.80 seconds before improving to 57.72 at the 2026 USATF Championships. She also equaled the Americas record in the 800 meters in 1:57.07.

Men’s Para Field Athlete of the Year

• Jeremy Campbell – Threw 62.43 meters in the F64 discus at the 2026 Oklahoma Throws Series World Invitational. This marks places him number one in the world in his event and category.
• Max Rohn – Won the 2026 USATF discus title. Recorded a throw of 54.08 meters at Chula Vista on June 20, 2026.
• Jarryd Wallace – Won the ambulatory long jump at the 2026 Toyota USATF Outdoor and Para National Championships.

• Beatriz Hatz – Won the women’s T64 long jump at the 2026 USATF Championships with a leap of 5.24 meters.
• Jessica Heims – Won the ambulatory Discus title at  the 2026 Toyota USATF Outdoor and Para National Championships. Set the world lead in the F64 Discus with a throw of 33.73m at Drake Relays. The mark is the second farthest in the world this year.
• Noelle Malkamaki – Won the ambulatory shot put title at the 2026 Toyota USATF Outdoor and Para National Championships.

Women’s Road, Trail and Ultra Athlete of the Year

• Lauren Harris – Set an American record in the women's half-marathon race walk with a time of 1:36:04.
• Emma Grace Hurley – Set the American marathon debut record of 2:20:47 at the Bank of America Chicago Marathon. Also set American records in the 8K (24:29), 20K (1:02:53) and women’s only half marathon (1:06:23). Won the USATF 10-mile and 25-kilometer championships in 2026.
• Courtney Olsen – Won the women's individual title at the 2026 IAU 100K World Championships in 7:10:31, finishing more than a minute ahead of the runner-up.

Men’s Road, Trail and Ultra Athlete of the Year

• Nick Christie – Set an American record in the men's half-marathon race walk with a time of 1:28:35 at the race-walking competition in Podebrady, Czechia.
• Drew Hunter – Won the 2026 USATF 5-kilometer championship in 13:28 and earned a place on Team USATF for the World Athletics Road Running Championships, where he set the American record for the men’s road 5K in 13:14.
• Clayton Young – Ran the second fastest marathon ever by an American by finishing in 2:05:23 at the Bank of America Chicago Marathon.

Voting for the 2026 USATF Athlete of the Year awards is currently open via USATF social media. A ballot was also sent to members of the track & field media. The winners will be announced on December 5 at the Night of Legends ceremony in Portland, OR.

For more information on USA Track & Field, visit usatf.org.