The USATF U20 Outdoor Championships, formerly known as the USA Junior Outdoor Track & Field Championships, is an annual outdoor track and field competition organized by USA Track & Field (USATF) which serves as the national championship for American athletes aged under 20. The competition is also used for American national team selection for the IAAF World U20 Championships in even-numbered years and the Pan American U20 Athletics Championships in odd-numbered years.[1][2]

USATF U20 Outdoor Championships
Current season, competition or edition:
Current sports event 2024 USATF U20 Outdoor Championships
SportTrack and field
Founded1972
CountryUnited States
Official websiteUSATF Official website

The event was established in 1972 and were originally organized by the Amateur Athletic Union. The Athletics Congress of the USA took over organizational duties in 1980 and the competition was held under the USATF name for the first time in 1993. The men's and women's competitions were held separately from 1972 to 1982, with combined sex championships being held in 1974, and 1978–1980 within that period.[3]

It is held separately from the USATF National Junior Olympic Track & Field Championships, which hosts various age category competitions for athletes aged between 8 and 18.[4]

Events

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On the current programme a total of 38 individual United States U20 Championship athletics events are contested, divided evenly between men and women. For each of the sexes, there are six track running events, three obstacle events, four jumps, four throws, a racewalk and a combined track and field event.

Track running
Obstacle events
Jumping events
Throwing events
Walking events
Combined events

For the years 1972 and 1973, track races were held over imperial distances before metrication of the sport in 1974. The results of field events were measured in metric units from 2001 onwards. The distance events were mile run, 3 miles and 6 miles. The women's pentathlon was replaced by the heptathlon in 1981. The decathlon was not held at the first edition and the pentathlon not held at the second edition. The women's 400 m hurdles was not contested in 1972 or 1974. The steeplechase was held over 2000 m for men in 1986 and for women in 2002.[5]

The women's distance programme varied in early years, with no distance race over one mile in 1972, a two-mile race in 1973, no race again in 1974, then the introduction of a 3000 m in 1975. A women's 10,000 m was held from 1988 to 1998, but the women's 5000 m in (introduced in 1996) became the women's longest distance thereafter. A women's steeplechase was first held in 2002. Women's racewalking event has varied in distance over the years, starting over one mile in 1972, skipping the 1973 and 1974 editions, being held over 1500 m in 1975, over 3000 m from 1976 to 1985, 5000 m from 1986 to 1999, before finally matching the men's 10,000 m distance in from 2000 onwards. The women's field programme gradually expanded to match the men's, with triple jump being introduced in 1985 and pole vault and hammer throw in 1995.[5]

Editions

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Edition Venue Stadium Date Notes
2024 Eugene, Oregon Hayward Field June 12-13
2023 Eugene, Oregon Hayward Field July 7–9
2022 Eugene, Oregon Hayward Field June 23–25
2021 Cancelled due to the COVID-19 Pandemic
2020 Cancelled due to the COVID-19 Pandemic
2019 Miramar, Florida Ansin Sports Complex June 21–23[6]
2018 Bloomington, Indiana Billy Hayes Track June 15–17[7]
2017 Sacramento, California Hornet Stadium June 22–25[8]
2016 Clovis, California Veteran's Memorial Stadium at Buchanan High School June 24–26[9]
2015 Eugene, Oregon Hayward Field June 25–28[10]
2014 Eugene, Oregon Hayward Field (multis - Sacramento, California 6/25-26)
2013 Des Moines, Iowa Drake Stadium June 19-23
2012 Bloomington, Indiana Billy Hayes Track June 15- 17
2011 Eugene, Oregon Hayward Field June 23- 26
2010 Des Moines, Iowa Drake Stadium June 23- 27
2009 Eugene, Oregon Hayward Field June 25- 28
2008 Columbus, Ohio Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium June 20- 22
2007 Indianapolis, Indiana IU Michael A. Carroll Track & Soccer Stadium June 21- 24
2006 Indianapolis, Indiana IU Michael A. Carroll Track & Soccer Stadium June 21- 24
2005 Carson, California Home Depot Center June 23- 26
2004 College Station, Texas Anderson Track & Field Complex June 25- 27
2003 Stanford, California Cobb Track at Angell Field June 19- 23
2002 Stanford, California Cobb Track at Angell Field June 21- 22
2001 Richmond, Virginia Sports Backers Stadium June 16- 17
2000 Denton, Texas Mean Green Stadium June 23- 24
1999 Denton, Texas Mean Green Stadium June 19- 20
1998 Edwardsville, Illinois Ralph Korte Stadium June 19- 20
1997 Edwardsville, Illinois Ralph Korte Stadium June 21- 22
1996 Delaware, Ohio Selby Stadium June 28-29
1995 Walnut, California Hilmer Lodge Stadium June 23- 24
1994 Tallahassee, Florida Mike Long Track June 24- 25
1993 Spokane, Washington Spokane Falls Community College June 26- 27
1992 Columbus, Ohio Jesse Owens Track @ Ohio Stadium July 5- 6
1991 Blaine, Minnesota National Sports Center June 21- 23
1990 Fresno, California Ratcliffe Stadium June 29- July 1
1989 Columbus, Ohio Jesse Owens Track @ Ohio Stadium June 9- 11
1988 Tallahassee, Florida Mike Long Track June 23- 25
1987 Tucson, Arizona Rincon Vista Complex Hep/ Dec: June 16- 17
June 19- 21
1986 Towson, Maryland Minnegan Stadium June 26- 29
1985 Elmhurst, Illinois York High School June 21-22
1984 Los Angeles, California Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Hep: June 16- 17, Dec: June 18- 19
June 22-24
1983 University Park, Pennsylvania Nittany Lion Track June 25- 26
1982 Bloomington, Indiana (men)
Los Angeles, California (women)
Billy Hayes Track (men)
Elvin C. "Ducky" Drake Stadium (women)
June 14- 15 (men)
June 30- July 1 (women)
1981 Knoxville, Tennessee (men)
Los Angeles, California (women)
Tom Black Track (men)
Elvin C. Ducky Drake Stadium (women)
June 12- 13 (men)
June 30- July 1 (women)
1980 Knoxville, Tennessee Tom Black Track June 16- 17
1979 Bloomington, Indiana Billy Hayes Track June 23- 24
1978 Bloomington, Indiana Billy Hayes Track June 24- 25
1977 Knoxville, Tennessee (men)
Los Angeles, California (women)
Tom Black Track (men)
Elvin C. "Ducky" Drake Stadium (women)
June 17- 18 (men)
June 13- 14 (women)
1976 Knoxville, Tennessee (men)
Los Angeles, California (women)
Tom Black Track (men)
Elvin C. "Ducky" Drake Stadium (women)
June 8-9 (men)
June 15- 16 (women)
1975 Knoxville, Tennessee (men)
White Plains, New York (women)
Tom Black Track (men)
Glen D. Loucks Field (women)
June 13- 14 (men)
June 27- 28 (women)
1974 Gainesville, Florida Pearcy Beard Track June 14- 15
1973 Gainesville, Florida (men)
Irvine, California (women)
Pearcy Beard Track (men)
UC- Irvine (women)
June 22- 23 (men)
June 19- 20 (women)
1972 Lakewood, Colorado (men)
Poplar Bluff, Missouri (women)
Jefferson County Stadium (men)
Poplar Bluff Stadium
June 23- 24 (men/ women)

Records

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Championships records[11]
Event Record Athlete School or Club Location Date Ref
100 m 10.00 Trentavis Friday Cherryville High School Eugene July 5, 2014
200 m 20.15 Michael Norman Vista Murrieta High School Clovis June 26, 2016
400 m 44.93 Steven McElroy University of Cincinnati Eugene June 25, 2022 [12]
800 m 1:46.97 Vincent Crisp Texas Tech Clovis June 25, 2016
1500 m 3:42.8h Tom Byers Ohio TC Gainesville June 15, 1974
5000 m 13:55.65 John Zishka Lancaster High School Knoxville June 17, 1980
10,000 m 29:11.2h Rudy Chapa
Eric Hulst
Hammond High School
Laguna Beach High School
Knoxville June 13, 1975
110 m hurdles (99 cm) 13.12 (+1.6 m/s) Ja'Kobe Tharp Auburn Eugene June 13, 2024 [13]
400 m hurldes 49.45 Belfred Clark Knoxville TC Los Angeles June 24, 1984
2000 m steeplechase 5:50.66 Brian Lenihan Dartmouth Towson June 29, 1986
3000 steeplechase 8:48.17 Wyatt Haughton BYU Eugene June 12, 2024 [14]
10K Walk 42:50.20 Ben Shorey Wisc.-Parkside Stanford June 21, 2002
HJ 2.27 m (7 ft 5+14 in) Kevin Clements Illinois State Columbus June 11, 1989
PV 5.55 m (18 ft 2+12 in) Zach Bradford Kansas Bloomington June 15, 2018
LJ 8.17 m (26 ft 9+12 in) James Stallworth Tulare Union High School Fresno June 30, 1990
TJ 16.83 m (55 ft 2+12 in) Will Claye Oklahoma Eugene June 28, 2009
SP 19.67 m (64 ft 6+14 in) Michael Carter Metro Speedsters Bloomington June 22, 1979
SP (6kg) 21.90 m (71 ft 10 in) John Maurins Wake Forest Eugene June 25, 2015
DT 58.14 m (190 ft 8+34 in) Casey Malone Arvada West High School Delaware June 28, 1996
DT (1.75kg) 63.01 m (206 ft 8+12 in) Rodney Brown LSU Bloomington June 17, 2012
HT 65.01 m (213 ft 3+14 in) Jake Freeman Bishop Hendricken High School Denton June 20, 1999
HT (6kg) 78.28 m (256 ft 9+34 in) Conor McCullough Princeton Des Moines June 25, 2010
JT 72.65 m (238 ft 4 in) Joe Zimmerman unattached Des Moines June 25, 2010
Decathlon 7599 Curtis Beach Albuquerque TC Eugene June 26, 2009
Decathlon
Junior implements
8016 Kevin Lazas Arkansas Eugene June 24, 2011

Women

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Championships records[11]
Event Record Athlete School or Club Date Location Ref
100 m 11.09 Candace Hill Asics June 24, 2016 Clovis
200 m 22.48 (0.0 m/s) Shawnti Jackson Run U Xpress July 9, 2023 Eugene [15]
400 m 50.69 Sanya Richards St. Thomas Aquinas High School June 22, 2002 Stanford
800 m 1:59.04 Juliette Whitaker Maryland High School June 25, 2022 Eugene
1500 m 4:14.74 Mary Cain Bronxville High School June 17,2012 Bloomington
3000 m 9:10.51 Kate Murphy Lake Braddock Secondary School June 25, 2016 Clovis
5000 m 15:56.84 Fiona O'Keeffe Davis High School June 24, 2016 Clovis
10,000 m 34:22.32 Carole Zajac Villanova June 23, 1991 Blaine
100 m hurdles 12.84 Tia Jones Walton High School June 25, 2016 Clovis
400 m hurdles 54.54 Sydney McLaughlin Union Catholic Regional High School June 25, 2016 Clovis
3000 m steeplechase 10:14.67 Sarah Edwards Virginia Tech June 24, 2017 Sacramento
High jump 1.90 m (6 ft 2+34 in) Erin Aldrich Lake Highlands High School June 28, 1996 Delaware
Pole vault 4.42 m (14 ft 6 in) Rachel Baxter Virginia Tech June 17, 2018 Bloomington
Long jump 6.72 m (22 ft 12 in) (+0.7 m/s) Alyssa Jones Stanford July 8, 2023 Eugene [16]
Triple jump 13.71 m (44 ft 11+34 in) Brittany Daniels Merrill West High School June 27, 2004 College Station
Shot put 17.57 m (57 ft 7+12 in) Laura Gerraughty North Carolina June 22, 2002 Stanford
Discus throw 60.59 m (198 ft 9+14 in) Shelbi Vaughan Mansfield Legacy High School June 15, 2012 Bloomington
Hammer throw 68.12 m (223 ft 5+34 in) Shelby Ashe Throw 1 Deep June 16, 2012 Bloomington
Javelin throw 54.28 m (178 ft 1 in) Dana Baker Olathe North High School June 15, 2018 Bloomington
Heptathlon 5660 pts Anna Hall Valor Christian High School June 15–16, 2018 Bloomington
10000 m walk 48:24.61 Taylor Ewert Beavercreek High School 23 June 2019 Miramar [17]

References

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  1. ^ USATF U20 Outdoor Championships Team Processing USATF
  2. ^ Florida’s Ansin Sports Complex selected for 2019-20 USATF U20 Championships USATF
  3. ^ USA Junior Outdoor Track & Field Championships. USATF. Retrieved 2019-09-07.
  4. ^ 2014 USATF National Junior Olympic Track & Field Championships Athlete Info. USATF. Retrieved 2019-09-07.
  5. ^ a b USA Junior Outdoor Track & Field Champions. USATF. Retrieved 2019-09-07.
  6. ^ 2019 USATF Outdoor Championships. USATF. Retrieved 2019-09-07.
  7. ^ 2018 USATF U20 Outdoor Championships. USATF. Retrieved 2019-09-07.
  8. ^ 2017 USATF U20 Outdoor Championships. USATF. Retrieved 2019-09-07.
  9. ^ 2016 USATF U20 Outdoor Championships. USATF. Retrieved 2019-09-07.
  10. ^ 2015 USATF U20 Outdoor Championships. USATF. Retrieved 2019-09-07.
  11. ^ a b "USA Track & Field - Statistics - Event/Meet Records - USA Junior Outdoor Track & Field Championships". www.usatf.org. Archived from the original on October 20, 2011.
  12. ^ Zach Stipe (June 25, 2022). "Bearcats' star will compete at World Championships in August". gobearcats.com. Retrieved July 31, 2022.
  13. ^ "HAUGHTON RECORD, LEISETH THROWS DOUBLE TOP PERFORMANCES AT USATF U20 CHAMPIONSHIPS". USATF. June 14, 2024. Retrieved July 2, 2024.
  14. ^ "HAUGHTON RECORD, LEISETH THROWS DOUBLE TOP PERFORMANCES AT USATF U20 CHAMPIONSHIPS". USATF. June 14, 2024. Retrieved July 2, 2024.
  15. ^ "JACKSON, SHEA SHINE ON FINAL DAY OF USATF U20 CHAMPIONSHIPS". USATF. July 10, 2023. Retrieved September 24, 2023.
  16. ^ "ALYSSA JONES CHAMPION WOMEN'S LONG JUMP - MEET RECORD 22-0.75 (6.72M) - USATF U20 OUTDOOR CHAMPIONSHIPS 2023". runnerspace.com. July 8, 2023. Retrieved July 14, 2023.
  17. ^ Mark Dwyer (June 24, 2019). "Taylor Ewert Sets 10K Race Walk Meet Record At USATF U20". milesplit.com. Retrieved July 14, 2023.