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New York Times
02-08-2025
- Sport
- New York Times
Kenny Bednarek, Melissa Jefferson-Wooden win 100 gold at U.S. Track and Field Championships
EUGENE, Ore. — No Noah Lyles. No Sha'Carri Richardson. Both have automatic bids to the 2025 World Championships in Tokyo. So America's king and queen of the 100-meter dash sat this one out, creating space for someone else to own the moment. Two rising stars emerged from the shadows, both having paid their dues as co-stars, both with the talent to take over the top spot one day. Advertisement Melissa Jefferson-Wooden blistered the field in Friday's 100-meter women's final at the U.S. Track and Field Championships. She lowered her world lead to 10.65 seconds. It's tied for the fifth fastest of all time. It was an emphatic statement of her arrival as a threat for the crown. 'Amazing,' she said. 'I've been dreaming of days like this. And it's finally starting to come true.' Kenny Bednarek seized the opportunity and posted a personal-best time of 9.79 to win the men's 100 meters. It was just .04 off the current world lead, set by Jamaica's Kishane Thompson last month. It was his first U.S. Championship. 'It's about damn time, you know?' Bednarek said, flashing a smile beneath his Nike headband. 'It's been second, second, second for a very long time. I always knew I had the capability of doing it. But I just had to believe in myself, and this year, I feel like I started living up to my expectations.' Courtney Lindsey (9.82) took second. NCAA star T'Mars McCallum finished third (9.83). Christian Coleman, one of the veterans of Team USA, finished fifth (9.86). Bednarek's specialty is the 200 meters, but he's long proved capable in the 100. But like Jefferson-Wooden, Bednarek knows the chill of living in the shadow of a star. Lyles has been a mountain in the sprint discipline. He is America's reigning king of the 100 and 200. He won gold in the 100 at the Worlds in 2023 and the gold in the Olympics in 2024. He's won the last three gold medals in the 200 at the World Championships. Lyles was expected to pull off the double at the Olympics. But he wound up with a bronze after racing with COVID-19. Bednarek took silver behind Letsile Tebogo of Botswana in Paris — a rare moment where Bednarek got the best of Lyles. Life behind Lyles has kept Bednarek from stockpiling victories. But it also left him no choice but to push himself to keep pace next to an all-time great. Friday, he said, was proof of his growth. Advertisement One of the elements he's been working on is relaxing to close races. Especially in the 200, he's been known to tense up on the turn, which slows him down. He wants to win so badly, he forgets to relax. But Friday, he caught a cramp at about the 50-meter mark. But he didn't tense up. He pushed through. He didn't think about it. He didn't fret. And, thus, he didn't decelerate. He held that top-end speed. 'If I can stay relaxed,' he said, 'I can get the win. … If I can relax in a race, nobody is going to beat me.' Who's beating Jefferson-Wooden now? Her last five 100-meter races this season have been consistently elite: 10.75, 10.73, 10.75, 10.86 and now 10.65. Kayla White (10.84) took second with a personal best. Aleia Hobbs (10.86) third. Twanisha Terry (10.94), one of the three U.S. women to qualify for Paris (with her Star Athletics teammates Richardson and Jefferson-Wooden), finished fourth. Only two women in the world can claim to be faster than Jefferson-Wooden right now: reigning gold medalist Julien Alford of St. Lucia and Richardson. And Richardson isn't in top form after the start of her season was delayed with injury. Both would have their hands full with Jefferson-Wooden in Tokyo. 'I want to be the greatest to ever do it,' Jefferson-Wooden said. Her eyes expanded. Her smile widened. Her tone softened. She said it with a fantastical energy. But watching her run, it feels increasingly plausible. (Photo of Melissa Jefferson-Wooden: Christian Petersen / Getty Images)
Forbes
02-08-2025
- Sport
- Forbes
Melissa Jefferson-Wooden Extends Unbeaten 100 Meter Streak With U.S. Title
Melissa Jefferson-Wooden never looked in doubt. On Friday night in the women's 100 meter final at the USATF Outdoor Championships at Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon, the 24-year-old continued her torrid streak at the distance, claiming her first U.S. title with a time of 10.65 seconds. The performance was a new personal best, a new world lead, and best yet, the fifth-best time in U.S. history, tying her Star Athletics teammate, Sha'Carri Richardson, and former U.S. star Marion Jones. What's better than all of that is the fact that Jefferson-Wooden hasn't lost a 100 meter race since August of last year, when she finished third in the 100 meters at the 2024 Paris Olympics in 10.92. That moment may have been the start of something special for the former Coastal Carolina star. For years, she's been a vital piece of the U.S. sprint corps, racking up an Olympic win in the 4x100 and two more golds in the 4x100 at previous World Championships. But now, on the heels of a massive victory, is it officially Jefferson-Wooden's time to shine? This South Carolina Native Is Rolling On The Track In 2025 alone, Jefferson-Wooden has won five finals over the 100 meter distance, including a momentum-swinging win at the Prefontaine Classic in May (10.75). Previous fixtures included a trio of victories at Grand Slam Track across events in Kingston, Miami and Philadelphia. Of course, Jefferson-Wooden's position on Friday didn't look guaranteed at first. Her effort out of the blocks left her slightly behind Kayla White over the first 20 meters. But once she stood up, Jefferson-Wooden stepped past White and shut the door on any challenger. The South Carolina native eventually gapped the field by nearly two-tenths. White was second in 10.84, while Aleia Hobbs was third in 10.92. The trio booked their tickets to the 2025 World Championships in Tokyo, Japan, in September. The final saw five women break 11 seconds, including Twanisha Terry (10.94) and Tamari Davis (10.97), though the field was without Richardson, who scratched from semifinal and reportedly was dealing with an arrest earlier in the week. Outlining The Men's 100 Meter Final At USAs In the men's final, Kenny Bednarek earned his keep with his first race under 9.8, winning in 9.79 seconds. In many ways, his season has mirrored that of Jefferson-Wooden – 'Kung Fu' Kenny is also undefeated over 100 meters in 2025. For that matter, he's also unbeaten over 200 meters. Alongside Bednarek, Courtney Lindsay and surprise third-place finisher T'Mars McCallum solidified their bids to the World Championships in Tokyo for Team USA. In McCallum's case, he's also a South Carolina native like Jefferson-Wooden. In an incredibly loaded men's final, seven athletes broke 10 seconds. High schooler Maurice Gleaton, in fact, tied the high school national record with his season- and career-best time of 9.92 seconds. A Career-Defining Year For Melissa Jefferson-Wooden It's been a career-year for Jefferson-Wooden – in more ways than one. She married her college sweetheart, Rolan Wooden II, in January. Since then, plenty of good things have followed. On Friday, she moved up on an illustrious 100 meter U.S. list. While Florence Griffith-Joyner's 37-year-old U.S. record of 10.61 remains, it may not be there for long. Jefferson-Wooden, a Florida resident who trains with Star Athletics – alongside Richardson and Terry -- has now logged four times under 10.8 this season, including her second-best outing of 10.73 seconds at Franklin Field in Philadelphia, a notoriously difficult track for sprinters. Since 2003, Jefferson-Wooden has carved out a slow-but-steady rise up the U.S. sprint ranks, going from fifth in the women's final in 2023 to second at the U.S. Olympic Trials in 2024. The 24-year-old wasn't a highly-sought out recruit out of high school in South Carolina. By the time she graduated from Coastal Carolina, she had claimed an indoor 60 meter title and run a best of 10.88 seconds. By 2025, however, few are doubting Jefferson-Wooden's potential. She'll arrive in Tokyo with much to prove, and perhaps the athlete to beat in the women's 100 meters.
