by Lia Skoufos, MS
This article is part of a USATF Campus exclusive series to help understand the World Athletics Rankings. For track enthusiasts and elite athletes alike, this series aims to provide clarity, analysis, and education on all things World Rankings and how they impact Team USATF. For more information on how the World Rankings system works, see this article.
From August 18-25, one U.S. athlete in the top 100 of their respective event had the biggest absolute improvement to their World Ranking, improving by 24 spots. Recent Texas A&M University graduate Jasmine Montgomery is already ranked 27th in the world in the women’s 200m, and after this weekend she improved from 87th to 63rd in the 100m to claim biggest absolute mover honors. In her first ever international competition, Montgomery ran her second fastest wind-legal 100m with a time of 11.07 (+0.7 m/s) for fourth place at the Felix Sanchez Classic. This performance is her fastest in over a year and the most placing points she has ever earned in a 100m race. Those two factors combined bumped a windy 11.15 (+2.2 m/s) from the ATX Classic out of her ranking score, replacing 1154 points with 1227 and sending her up 24 spots in the rankings. When assessing improvement based on percentage increase in ranking (e.g. 2nd to 1st is a 50% improvement as is moving from 30th to 15th), one U.S. athlete climbed from 24th to 10th for a 58% improvement. Ethan Strand took his first ever Diamond League win at the Silesia Kamila Skolimowska Memorial on August 23 in the 1500m, outkicking several Olympic and World Champions to run within a second of his personal best. This is the highest that Strand has ever been ranked, and with a placing score of 140 for winning a “GW” category race, it comes as no surprise. According to the World Athletics Scoring Tables, his time in the mile at the Prefontaine Classic was more impressive. But with both marks serving as a one-two punch in his ranking score, it’s no wonder that Strand has tentatively put himself into the quota of athletes qualified for the Diamond Leage Final and World Athletics Ultimate Championship. More details on rankings, results, and scenarios can be found on the World Athletics website. You can also experiment with my World Athletics Rankings Dashboard & Calculator and World Rankings Over Time Dashboard, hosted exclusively on USATF Campus.
Lia Skoufos is a Sports Scientist at USATF specializing in throwing events. She holds a BS in Kinesiology from the University of Illinois Chicago and MS in Sport and Exercise Analytics from Marquette University and supports a range of analytics-based projects at USATF. In addition to her work with the throws group, she focuses on creating data-driven visuals and bridging the gap between technical analytics and practical applications by translating complex information into clear, actionable insights for coaches, athletes, and all USATF Campus members.