EUGENE, OREGON, July 04 — For the second time in less than 12 months at Hayward Field, a Texas teenager has joined the global elite of track & field.
Last August, it was Cooper Lutkenhaus. On Saturday, Tate Taylor (Harlan, San Antonio).
In a Prefontaine Classic featuring Olympic gold medalists, world champions and WR holders, the 18-year-old Taylor was the one sending a sellout crowd of 12,452 home reflecting on what they had seen.
Taylor himself? Couldn’t see keenly. His glasses kept falling off in a prerace workout, so he did the Clark Kent thing and went without ’em.
“I can definitely say, if you see me without my glasses, that’s a scary sight,” he said.
In the 200, Taylor built speed out of an unfavorable lane 3, then surged down the straight to finish in 19.75 — into an 0.9 wind. He broke his own HSR of 19.94, set here June 19 at the USATF U20 Champs. The mark took him to No. 3 on the all-time Junior (U20) list.
“Oh my gosh!” NBC analyst Ato Boldon found himself saying. Then he said it again.
“Oh my gosh.”
Making it meaningful was not the time Taylor ran, but who he beat. Finishing 2nd was Olympic champion Letsile Tebogo of Botswana in 19.93.
Makanakaishe Charamba of Zimbabwe was 3rd in 20.11. Courtney Lindsey, last year’s Pre runner-up, was 4th in 20.19.
Taylor sprinted 4th through 40m and didn’t seize the lead until 140m. His 100s were 10.21/9.54, compared with 10.26/9.67 for Tebogo. Taylor doubled his lead over the last 60m, running it in 5.83.
The fifth-fastest clocking so far in ’26, it’s the only time in the top 5 with a negative wind reading attached. The only U20s ahead of Taylor in history are Erriyon Knighton, 19.49 in ’22, and Australia’s Gout Gout, 19.67 on April 12 of this year.
A Taylor/Gout duel could well be the feature of next month’s U20 World Championships at Hayward Field.
Taylor didn’t race in Texas prep meets but won a sprint double at the USATF Juniors. He has committed to Texas Tech.
He called his time “crazy ridiculous” but sought to place it in perspective as the Los Angeles Olympics approach.
“I won this meet. But in ’28, it doesn’t mean anything that I won Pre two years ago,” Taylor said. “I’m trying to keep that ball rolling. You celebrate a little bit. But eventually, we’re going to have to run up the heat a little bit.”
Another rising global star is 20-year-old Aussie Cam Myers, who won the Bowerman Mile in 3:46.06 for an Australian Record. It was his first DL victory, something 25-year-old Olympic champion Cole Hocker has yet to accomplish.
Myers went ahead with 500m left and never relented. “You never know what shape other people are in, so I may as well just capitalize on what I know I’m capable of,” he said. “If someone was to beat me today, fair play to them, so I just ran hard.”
Americans Yared Nuguse, Ethan Strand and Hobbs Kessler ran 2-3-4 in 3:46.61, 3:46.97 and 3:47.38. Strand climbed to No. 5 on the all-time U.S. list.
Hocker, 6th in 3:47.67, has finished 6-7-4-6 in four Pre races. He raced indoors this winter despite a flamed pubic symphysis joint and set an American Record of 3:45.94, which remains the absolute world leader. He then quit running for 5 weeks. He said he has been training on land for 7 weeks.
“I really didn’t have too many gears left today, even with 400 to go,” he said.
Elsewhere, hurdler Jamal Britt continued a breakout 110H season at age 27. The Iowa graduate came from behind to set a Pre record of 12.86 (wind 1.8), making him No. 5 all-time.
Ja’Kobe Tharp, coming off his 12.75 World Record at the NCAA, was 2nd in 12.91. “My form started slipping, and that’s what happens,” said the new adidas pro. He plans to skip the USATF Championships and concentrate on the DL.
Demario Prince of Jamaica was 3rd in 13.01 and world champion Cordell Tinch 4th in 13.07.
Britt now has four DL wins this year, four sub-13s, and is just the third hurdler to run sub-12.90 more than once. He credited his coach, ’96 Olympic champion Allen Johnson of North Carolina A&T, and a Nike contract for his ascension.
“I’ve been unsponsored for years,” Britt said. “Two years ago, I’m sitting in my apartment with no power in the hottest time of the year thinking, ‘How am I going to get out of this?’”
Tharp’s Auburn teammate, Kayinsola Ajayi, won the non-DL 100 on the same track where he won the NCAA title 3 weeks ago. He equaled his Nigerian Record of 9.84 to beat Jamaica’s world champion Oblique Seville, who was 2nd in 9.89.
Christian Coleman was 3rd in 9.95 and Kenny Bednarek 4th in 9.96.
“Honestly, I think it was terrible,” Bednarek said. “I’m in way better shape than what I put out today.”
Another African winner was Botswana’s Collen Kebinatshipi in a duel of reigning world champions: Kebinatshipi from the 400, Rai Benjamin from the 400H. Kebinatshipi ran 44.00 and narrowly beat the hurdler, whose time was PR of 44.11 out of lane 9.
Italy’s Leonardo Fabbri won the shot with a world-leading 74-7¼ (22.74) on his first attempt. Olympic bronze medalist Rajindra Campbell of Jamaica grabbed 2nd at 72-8½ (22.16), also in the first round.
Joe Kovacs, 37, the previous world leader and a three-time Olympic silver medalist, was 8th at 69-1¼ (21.05).
Discus WR holder Mykolas Alekna, in his first competition in an Oregon singlet, won his event with a distance of 233-3 (71.06). The 23-year-old Lithuanian grad transfer from Cal couldn’t compete for the Ducks this spring because of a pectoral injury, but declines to say whether he will turn pro or use collegiate eligibility in ’27.
EUGENE DL SECOND-DAY MEN’S RESULTS
Non-DL 100(0.1): 1. Kayinsola Ajayi (Ngr) 9.84 =NR; 2. Oblique Seville (Jam) 9.89; 3. Christian Coleman (US) 9.95; 4. Kenny Bednarek (US) 9.96.
200(-0.9): 1. Tate Taylor (US) 19.75 HSR (old HSR 19.94 Taylor ’26) (3, 6 WJ; 2, 5 AJ);
2. Letsile Tebogo (Bot) 19.93; 3. Makanakaishe Charamba (Zim) 20.11; 4. Courtney Lindsey (US) 20.19; 5. Bryan Levell (Jam) 20.20; 6. Zharnel Hughes (GB) 20.26; 7. Sam Blaskowski (US) 20.32.
400: 1. Collen Kebinatshipi (Bot) 44.00; 2. Rai Benjamin (US) 44.11 PR; 3. Chris Bailey (US) 44.58; 4. Jacory Patterson (US) 44.88; 5. Chris Robinson (US) 44.88; 6. Khaleb McRae (US) 44.91; 7. Vernon Norwood (US) 44.92; 8. Ezekiel Nathaniel (Ngr) 45.32; 9. Michael Norman (US) 45.47.
Mile: 1. Cam Myers (Aus) 3:46.06 NR (out WL) (9, x W) (2:49.73);
2. Yared Nuguse (US) 3:46.61 (out AL) (x, 5 A);
3. Ethan Strand (US) 3:46.97 PR (5, 9 A);
4. Hobbs Kessler (US) 3:47.38 out PR; 5. Timothy Cheruiyot (Ken) 3:47.39 PR; 6. Cole Hocker (US) 3:47.57; 7. Robert Farken (Ger) 3:47.76 NR;
8. Vincent Ciattei (US) 3:48.34 PR (8, x A);
9. Azeddine Habz (Fra) 3:48.43; 10. Gary Martin (US) 3:48.76 PR; 11. Reynold Kipkorir (Ken) 3:51.31; 12. Colin Sahlman (US) 3:57.13;… rabbit—Abraham Alvarado (Mex) (55.82, 56.21 [1:52.03]).
(best-ever mark-for-place: 4–5, 7)
110H(1.8): 1. Jamal Britt (US) 12.86 PR (5, 6 W, A);
2. Ja’kobe Tharp (US) 12.91; 3. Demario Prince (Jam) 13.01 PR; 4. Cordell Tinch (US) 13.07; 5. Orlando Bennett (Jam) 13.15; 6. Jamar Marshall (US) 13.24; 7. Braxton Brann (US) 13.34; 8. Eric Edwards (US) 13.43; 9. Dylan Beard (US) 13.53.
Field Events
SP: 1. Leonardo Fabbri (Ita) 74-7¼ (22.74) (WL) (74-7¼, 70-6½, 70-5¾, f, 69-6¾, f) (22.74, 21.50, 21.48, f, 21.20, f);
2. Rajindra Campbell (Jam) 72-8½ (22.16); 3. Jordan Geist (US) 72-1½ (21.98); 4. Tripp Piperi (US) 71-2½ (21.70); 5. Roger Steen (US) 70-9¾ (21.58); 6. Chuk Enekwechi (Ngr) 70-1 (21.36); 7. Tom Walsh (NZ) 69-3½ (21.12); 8. Joe Kovacs (US) 69-¾ (21.05); 9. Payton Otterdahl (US) 67-5¼ (20.55).
DT: 1. Mykolas Alekna (Lit) 233-2 (71.06) (225-9, f, f, 228-10, 233-2, f) (68.81, f, f, 69.74, 71.06, f); 2. Kristjan Čeh (Slo) 229-5 (69.94); 3. Rojé Stona (Jam) 221-2 (67.42); 4. Matt Denny (Aus) 217-5 (66.26); 5. Alex Rose (Sam) 216-1 (65.86); 6. Daniel Ståhl (Swe) 214-9 (65.46); 7. Lawrence Okoye (GB) 214-1 (65.25); 8. Ralford Mullings (Jam) 213-1 (64.94); 9. Sam Mattis (US) 207-8 (63.31); 10. Reggie Jagers (US) 205-9 (62.72).
