Allen’s hurdle win earns him USATF Athlete of the Week honors

INDIANAPOLIS — Running the third-fastest time in history in the men’s 110m hurdles, Devon Allen (Annapolis, Maryland/USATF Arizona) earned recognition as the 23rd USATF Athlete of the Week award winner for 2022.

Allen, who earlier this year signed a free agent contract with the Philadelphia Eagles of the NFL, sped to a 12.84 to win at the USATF NYC GP at Randall’s Island, beating reigning world champion Grant Holloway, who is one of only two men ever to run faster than Allen. Holloway had a slight edge through the first seven barriers, but Allen surged over hurdle eight and went on to win, chopping .15 off his lifetime best.
 
A two-time Olympic finalist and twice a World Championships competitor for Team USATF, Allen ran his previous lifetime best of 12.99 at Zagreb, Croatia, last September. He won the Penn Relays in 13.11 in April and then romped to victory in 13.17 at the ATL Duval Challenge in Jacksonville last month. Allen has won five of his six races over the 110H this season.
 
Other top performances from last week:

• Alaysha Johnson moved to No. 9 on the all-time US performer list in the women's 100m hurdles at the USATF NYC GP with a national-leading 12.40.
• Abby Steiner of Kentucky set a collegiate record of 21.80 in the women's 200m to win the NCAA Championships. She also finished second in the 100m at 10.90, a lifetime best, and ran a 48.92 leg on the winning 4x400m relay.
• Trey Cunningham won the NCAA Championships in the men's 110m hurdles with a 13.00 to tie for second on the all-time collegiate performer list.
• Courtney Wayment of BYU shattered the women's collegiate record in the 3,000m steeplechase with a U.S.-leading 9:16.00 to win the NCAA Championships and move to No. 5 on the all-time U.S. performer list.

Now in its 21st 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 when there are high-level competitions and features the athlete on USATF.org. Selections are based on top performances and results from the previous week.

2022 Winners: January 10, Alicia Monson; January 17, Keira D’Amato; January 24, Nyckoles Harbor; January 31, Elle Purrier St. Pierre; February 7, Chris Nilsen; February 14, Grant Fisher; February 21, Camille Herron; February 28, Cole Hocker; March 7, Grant Fisher; March 14, Randolph Ross; March 21, Grant Holloway; March 28, Anna Hall; April 4, Natalie Cook; April 11, Valarie Allman; April 18, Gabby Thomas; April 25, Robyn Stevens; May 2, Erriyon Knighton; May 9, Emily Sisson; May 16, Britton Wilson; May 23, Janee Kassanavoid; May 30, Michael Norman; June 6, Chari Hawkins; June 13, Devon Allen.

We welcome your nominations!

To nominate an athlete for USATF Athlete of the Week, please send a detailed email about his/her performance to communications@usatf.org.

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