University of Tennessee Athletics
Thursday, July 25
Des Moines, IA
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USATF Senior Championships
Coleman Captures U.S. Title; Four VFLs Qualify For 2019 World Championships
July 29, 2019 | Track & Field
DES MOINES, Iowa -- Headlined by a 100-meter national title from 2017 Bowerman award winner Christian Coleman, four former Tennessee track & field standouts earned spots on Team USA's world championship roster this past weekend with their performances at the USATF Outdoor Championships. Coleman (2015-17) will represent the Red, White and Blue alongside Nia Ali (2007), Justin Gatlin (2001-02) and Nathan Strother (2015-18) at the 2019 IAAF World Championships, set for Sept. 27 - Oct. 6 in Doha, Qatar.
To qualify for Team USA's world championship contingent, an athlete must have recorded a top-three finish at the national meet. Additionally, reigning 2017 IAAF World Outdoor Champions received an automatic wild-card bye into the World Championships.
Coleman secured his first U.S. outdoor title Friday night, leading the competition from start to finish in the men's 100m dash final with a time of 9.99. The five-time NCAA Champion owns the world's fastest 100m clocking in 2019, recording a mark of 9.81 at the Prefontaine Classic last month.
Coleman also qualified for the world championships in the 200m dash, taking home a silver medal with his time of 20.02 in the U.S. final. He will be the only American athlete competing in both short sprints at Doha 2019.
Gatlin received a wild-card bye and will look to defend his 2017 100m world title in September. A 12-time NCAA All-American in just two seasons for the Vols, the 37-year-old currently ranks second behind Coleman in the IAAF Men's 100m world rankings and owns a season-best time of 9.87.
Ali claimed a silver medal in the 100m hurdles at the 2019 U.S. Championships, turning in a season-best mark of 12.55. In her lone season with the Lady Vols, Ali captured the 2007 SEC heptathlon title and was named SEC Freshman Runner of the Year. To this day, she holds the program's freshman record in the indoor 60m hurdles with a mark of 8.13.
Strother earned his first IAAF World Championship berth with a bronze medal performance in the men's 400m, clocking a personal-best time of 44.29. In four seasons at UT, Strother collected nine All-America certificates and posted school records in both the indoor and outdoor 400m dashes.
Tennessee had a total 11 former athletes competing at the U.S. Championships this past weekend. A full breakdown of those results can be viewed below.
Women's 100m First Round: 16. Shania Collins, 11.57q
Women's 100m Semifinal: 11. Shania Collins, 11.47
Women's 200m First Round: 6. Shania Collins, 23.21Q; 19. Felicia Brown, 23.77
Women's 200m Semifinal: 9. Shania Collins, 23.03
Women's 400m First Round: 18. Felecia Majors, 53.45
Women's 100m Hurdles First Round: 5. Nia Ali, 12.92Q
Women's 100m Hurdles Semfinal: 2. Nia Ali, 12.78Q
Women's 100m Hurdles Final: 2. Nia Ali, 12.55
Women's Long Jump Final: 17. Tianna Bartoletta, 5.66m / 18-7
Women's Triple Jump Final: 8. LaChyna Roe, 13.10m / 42-11.75
Men's 100m First Round: 2. Justin Gatlin, 10.16Q; 9. Christian Coleman, 10.29Q; 27. Mustaqeem Williams, 10.58
Men's 100m Semifinal: 1. Christian Coleman, 9.96Q; 3. Justin Gatlin, 10.16Q
Men's 100m Final: 1. Christian Coleman, 9.99; DNS. Justin Gatlin
Men's 200m First Round: 8. Christian Coleman, 20.70Q; 24. Mustaqeem Williams, 21.22
Men's 200m Semifinal: 3. Christian Coleman, 20.14Q
Men's 200m Final: 2. Christian Coleman, 20.02
Men's 400m First Round: 5. Nathan Strother, 45.17Q
Men's 400m Semifinal: 4. Nathan Strother, 44.69Q
Men's 400m Final: 3. Nathan Strother, 44.29
Men's Decathlon: 9. Chris Helwick, 7,524 points
For the most up-to-date information on Tennessee track & field, follow @Vol_Track on Twitter.
To qualify for Team USA's world championship contingent, an athlete must have recorded a top-three finish at the national meet. Additionally, reigning 2017 IAAF World Outdoor Champions received an automatic wild-card bye into the World Championships.
Coleman secured his first U.S. outdoor title Friday night, leading the competition from start to finish in the men's 100m dash final with a time of 9.99. The five-time NCAA Champion owns the world's fastest 100m clocking in 2019, recording a mark of 9.81 at the Prefontaine Classic last month.
Coleman also qualified for the world championships in the 200m dash, taking home a silver medal with his time of 20.02 in the U.S. final. He will be the only American athlete competing in both short sprints at Doha 2019.
Gatlin received a wild-card bye and will look to defend his 2017 100m world title in September. A 12-time NCAA All-American in just two seasons for the Vols, the 37-year-old currently ranks second behind Coleman in the IAAF Men's 100m world rankings and owns a season-best time of 9.87.
Ali claimed a silver medal in the 100m hurdles at the 2019 U.S. Championships, turning in a season-best mark of 12.55. In her lone season with the Lady Vols, Ali captured the 2007 SEC heptathlon title and was named SEC Freshman Runner of the Year. To this day, she holds the program's freshman record in the indoor 60m hurdles with a mark of 8.13.
Strother earned his first IAAF World Championship berth with a bronze medal performance in the men's 400m, clocking a personal-best time of 44.29. In four seasons at UT, Strother collected nine All-America certificates and posted school records in both the indoor and outdoor 400m dashes.
Tennessee had a total 11 former athletes competing at the U.S. Championships this past weekend. A full breakdown of those results can be viewed below.
Women's 100m First Round: 16. Shania Collins, 11.57q
Women's 100m Semifinal: 11. Shania Collins, 11.47
Women's 200m First Round: 6. Shania Collins, 23.21Q; 19. Felicia Brown, 23.77
Women's 200m Semifinal: 9. Shania Collins, 23.03
Women's 400m First Round: 18. Felecia Majors, 53.45
Women's 100m Hurdles First Round: 5. Nia Ali, 12.92Q
Women's 100m Hurdles Semfinal: 2. Nia Ali, 12.78Q
Women's 100m Hurdles Final: 2. Nia Ali, 12.55
Women's Long Jump Final: 17. Tianna Bartoletta, 5.66m / 18-7
Women's Triple Jump Final: 8. LaChyna Roe, 13.10m / 42-11.75
Men's 100m First Round: 2. Justin Gatlin, 10.16Q; 9. Christian Coleman, 10.29Q; 27. Mustaqeem Williams, 10.58
Men's 100m Semifinal: 1. Christian Coleman, 9.96Q; 3. Justin Gatlin, 10.16Q
Men's 100m Final: 1. Christian Coleman, 9.99; DNS. Justin Gatlin
Men's 200m First Round: 8. Christian Coleman, 20.70Q; 24. Mustaqeem Williams, 21.22
Men's 200m Semifinal: 3. Christian Coleman, 20.14Q
Men's 200m Final: 2. Christian Coleman, 20.02
Men's 400m First Round: 5. Nathan Strother, 45.17Q
Men's 400m Semifinal: 4. Nathan Strother, 44.69Q
Men's 400m Final: 3. Nathan Strother, 44.29
Men's Decathlon: 9. Chris Helwick, 7,524 points
For the most up-to-date information on Tennessee track & field, follow @Vol_Track on Twitter.
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