American Athletes at World Athletics Championship 2023: Lyles leads high-quality US team

The World Athletics Championships are now just around the corner. Plenty of countries will head to Budapest in Hungary with high hopes of clinching a few medals, but few nations will be as expectant as the US, who send a star-studded athletics team across the pond for the 2023 renewal of this competition.

While some nations, such as the one representing Great Britain and Northern Ireland, have opted to take rather small, compact teams, the US sends a predictability large and high-quality team of Athletes to Budapest.

Let’s take a closer look at the American team and highlight some of the medal hopefuls:

American Female Athletes

Hurdling heroine Sydney McLaughlin was expected to be one of the US’ leading lights ahead of the World Championships. Despite still being only 24-years-old, McLaughlin has a huge reputation and was previously feared by all in the 400m hurdles division. After picking up a silver at the age of just 20 in Doha (2019), she went on to claim gold at the Olympic Games in Tokyo, before adding a gold medal at the World Championships in Oregon last year, where she broke her own world record set back in 2020. However, devastatingly, the hurdler announced last week that a knee injury will keep her out of this tournament. A real blow.

Fortunately, the US have other female athletes to carry the torch in McLaughlin’s absence. Both Sha’Carri Richardson and Gabrielle Thomas, who missed last year’s Championships due to injury, have high hopes of performing very well in the sprinting division. With both set to run, it would be a surprise if at least one medals didn’t go the way of the US in the 200m.

Nia Ali is certainly among the more hopeful athletes in the 100m hurdles. She may be 34 now, but she’s still going strong, while she’s got that all important gold-medal-winning experience having come home in front in Doha back in 2019.

In the field, Tori Franklin will be hoping to build on her third-place finish in the Triple Jump at last year’s Championships in Oregon, while the much the same can said for Valarie Allman, the discus thrower who also won bronze in Oregon. Allman is the reigning Olympic champion too, so a gold medal here should certainly be in her sights.

Here’s the complete list of female athletes due to compete for the USA at the 2023 World Athletics Championships:

100m – Brittany Brown, Tamari Davis, Sha’Carri Richardson

200m – Sha’Carri Richardson, Gabby Thomas, Kayla White

400m – Talitha Diggs, Britton Wilson

800m – Nia Akins, Kaela Edwards, Athing Mu, Raevyn Rogers

1500m – Nikki Hiltz, Sinclaire Johnson, Cory McGee

5000m – Elise Cranny, Alicia Monson, Natosha Rogers

10000m – Elise Cranny, Alicia Monson, Natosha Rogers

100m Hurdles – Nia Ali, Keni Harrison, Masai Russell

400m Hurdles – Anna Cockrell, Shamier Little, Dalilah Muhammad

3000m Steeplechase – Emma Coburn, Krissy Gear, Courtney Wayment

35km Race Walk – Stephanie Casey, Miranda Melville, Maria Michta-Coffey

Marathon – Keira D’Amato, Findsay Flanagan, Susanna Sullivan

High Jump – Vashti Cunningham

Pole Vault – Hana Moll, Katie Moon, Sandi Morris, Bridget Williams

Long Jump – Quanesha Burks, Tara Davis-Woodhall, Jasmine Moore

Triple Jump – Tori Franklin, Jasmine Moore, Keturah Orji

Shot put – Adelaide Aquilla, Jalani Davis, Chase Ealey, Maggie Ewen

Discus – Valarie Allman, Elena Bruckner, Veronica Fraley, Lagi Tausaga-Collins

Hammer Throw – Brooke Andersen, Janee’ Kassanavoid, DeAnna Price, Jillian Shippee

Javelin – Ariana Ince, Maggie Malone

Heptathlon – Taliyah Brooks, Anna Hall, Chari Hawkins

Relays – Tamara Clark, Makenzie Dunmore, Rosey Effiong, Quanera Hayes, Alexis Holmes, Lynna Irby-Jackson, Melissa Jefferson, Twanisha Terry

American Male Athletes

Naturally, the US also has a men’s team that is stacked with quality. 200m powerhouse Noah Lyles holds arguably USA’s best chance of a gold medal. The national record holder won gold in both Doha and Oregon and looks all set to defend his crown once more. Perhaps the man from Gainsville, Florida, who won gold in the 2022 Diamond League too, will have eyes on Usain Bolt’s world record of 19.19.

Lyles is also expected to run in the 100m, though he’d have to go some to beat countryman, Fred Kerley, who is the early favourite to claim that crow. Kerley is another gold medal hopeful for the US having scooped the top prize in Oregon last year.

Away from the track, JuVaughan Harrison must have a big chance int the High Jump. The 24-year-old is currently second favourite in the betting for that event after picking up the silver medal in the 2022 Diamond League.

Ryan Crouser could hardly be a bigger favourite to land yet another Shot Put title. The powerful thrower has already claimed gold medals at two Olympic Games, while he claimed his first world title in Oregon last year. It would be a huge shock if the world record holder didn’t come out on top once more.

Below is the full list of male athletes competing for the USA at the 2023 World Championships:

100m – Cravont Charleston, Christian Coleman, Fred Kerley, Noah Lyles

200m – Kenny Bednarek, Erriyon Knighton, Courtney Lindsey, Noah Lyles

400m – Bryce Deadmon, Quincy Hall, Michael Norman, Vernon Norwood

800m – Isaiah Harris, Bryce Hoppel, Clayton Murphy

1500m – Cole Hocker, Yared Nuguse, Joe Waskom

5000m – Paul Chelimo, Sean McGorty, Abdihamid Nur

10000m – Woody Kincaid, Joe Klecker, Sean McGorty

100m Hurdles – Freddie Crittenden, Grant Holloway, Daniel Roberts, Cordell Tinch

400m Hurdles – CJ Allen, Trevor Bassitt, Rai Benjamin

3000m Steeplechase – Benard Keter, Kenneth Rooks, Isaac Updike

20km Race Walk – Nick Christie