EUGENE, Ore. (AP) — Sprinter Allyson Felix earned her spot in a fifth straight Olympics. Long jumper Brittney Reese made her fourth games. That sort of experience — any sort of experience — appears more of the exception than the rule on the track team the United States is sending to Tokyo next month.
The team is headlined by a 17-year-old sprinter who broke Usain Bolt’s youth records (Erriyon Knighton) and a long/high jumper from LSU (JuVaughn Harrison) accomplishing things not seen since the days of Jim Thorpe.
There’s a Harvard-educated sprinter who wants to be an epidemiologist one day (Gabby Thomas) and another speedster with orange hair (Sha’Carri Richardson).
New faces all waiting to make their mark.
Maybe the most confident voice among this youthful bunch belongs to 23-year-old Noah Lyles. He, too, is heading to his first Olympics after winning the final event of the 10-day trials — the men’s 200 meters. Lyles fully believes the team can top the 32 medals it won at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Games.
“Shoot, I want all the sprints. Plain and simple,” Lyles said. “I don’t think I’m crazy for saying I think we can do it. Why not sweep them all? Why not go top three in each one? I don’t think it’s crazy.”
Far less crazy now that Bolt is retired and watching on TV.
“There’s no Jamaican dominance. There’s only U.S. dominance. We’re going to start breaking records,” Lyles said.
That, in fact, has already begun.
Shot putter Ryan Crouser, 28, broke a 31-year-old world record on the first day of trials.
On the last day, in record-setting heat that led the trials to be moved to the night, Sydney McLaughlin provided a perfect bookend, finishing the 400 hurdles in 51.90 seconds. The 21-year-old edged Dalilah Muhammad, who babysat the record for 23 months.
“It was definitely just a matter of time. Definitely knew she was capable of it,” Muhammad said. “I absolutely saw it coming.”
DAY & KNIGHTON
Not even Bolt was this fast at 17 years old. Knighton, who’s from Florida, broke an under-20 200 record that once belonged to the Jamaican sensation, finishing in 19.84 seconds. Bolt’s overall world record stands at 19.19.
“It will probably sink in when I get home,” Knighton said of his accomplishments. “It’s a really big achievement.”
