A.G. Kruger, Men’s Weight Throw winner
“I finally stopped thinking and went in and threw. I’ve thrown countless times over the years. Just let it happen. That’s the biggest thing. Early on, I was thinking too much, doing too much. Screw it, just let it happen. That’s when the big stuff comes. You’ve done all your thinking and training. Let it go and see what happens in the end. I eked it out barely, but I’ve done that a couple times before and I’ll take the win.”
J.C. Lambert, Men’s Weight Throw second place
“I was kind of flat and I just wanted to wake everybody up a bit. I got a good [throw] early and I definitely had a bigger one left in me. Thought the last one was it, but clearly not. It was a good season, nonetheless. I wanted more but I’ll take what I can get.”
Amanda Smock, Women’s Triple Jump winner
“Defending the title is really awesome. I have a taste when Andrea Geubelle beat me on the outdoor season. It made me really hungry again to be back on top. So, to have another win to chalk up is good. I’m thrilled with that.
“Performance-wise, it’s very sub par. Based on where I’m at with my training, it’s decent, so I’ll just kind of take it and build on it. It’s a decent checkpoint to see where I’m at and what I need to work on.
“I’ll stay on this heavier cycle that I am on (in my training) and we’ll slowly, maybe in a month, start to hit some speed. I’m looking forward to feeling the effects of the speedwork and sharpening up a bit. Getting fast on the runway will translate into easier jumping.”
Kenna Wolter, Women’s Triple Jump second place
“I was probably trying too hard and got a little over-rotated on the last jump, I didn’t stay relaxed. It was a decent series for me, I didn’t PR or anything, but I can’t be too mad about coming in second.
“I have a few things to work on still on my technique, opeing up on prop phase and driving into third. I’ll just keep training hard. Something’s going right, right now, so I’ll just keep it going.
Demi Payne, Women’s Pole Vault champion
“It’s so exciting. There are some good girls here, the best of the best. Going up against Jenn and Mary was pretty intimidating but I knew I could do it if I could get over the bar and stay focused.”
“I feel like it’s surprising to others how quickly this has happened. It’s a long time coming but to see all my hard work come together, it’s been awesome.”
Mary Saxer, Women’s Pole Vault second place
“I keep hitting the same height all season. It’s frustrating but it could’ve gone worse. There was a lot of anticipation today with me, Jenn and Demi. It was a good competition and I’m glad it lived up to the hype today. That’s a great thing for the sport.”
“Coming in and using indoors as practice for outdoors, I didn’t want to be fast out of the gate and die off later in the season. It’s a building block. So as I’m using my indoor season as a building block.”
Maria Michta-Coffey, women’s 2-mile race walk champion
“I always try not to think about defending my title, because then the title is yours to lose. But really, it’s mine to earn again. Every time I do a one or two mile, I want to do a 20K. Every time I do a 20K, I want to do a one or two mile. I’m kind of the worst at pushing myself mentally, so today I dedicated a lap to someone to keep me going. It helped a lot. I’m, of course, working towards making the team for Beijing and this is another step towards that.”
Miranda Melville, women’s 2-mile race walk second place
“I’m really pleased with my performance today. It seems like lately, it’s been me and Maria going head-to-head. There’s a lot I can take away from my performance today. My next race is in Tokyo, so I leave next Sunday for that. Really looking forward to that and everything I’m doing is working toward making the team for Beijing.”
John Trautmann, Men’s Masters 1,500m winner
“The best track on the East Coast is here and being here is amazing. I think the last time I raced here was 1991. This is the fastest track around. I wanted to get the record. I was out there after it. I was tired. Hopefully I can keep trying for it. I have a few years left in this age group.”
Anselm LeBourne, Men’s Masters 1,500m M55 WR holder
“I just gave it all I had. It’s so fun to run with these guys, guys like John Trautmann who have been in the Olympics. They guys motivate me. I’m the oldest guy in the race. I can’t ask for more. I’m really happy. There is no substitute for hard work. You have to work hard and I'll keep doing that.”
Chaunte Lowe, women’s high jump winner
“I want to make sure that every meet I did this year and I felt like I could’ve jumped higher. I’m excited about that. Everything is going to plan. I’m nervous and excited about what’s next.”
“I want to remember how I felt today and try to replicate that. Just build upon every meet. Seeing that Amy was going to be here, I was so excited. It’s good to see familiar faces because there are so many new faces. I’m going for my fourth Olympics and she’s going for her sixth. It’s exciting.”
Michelle Carter, Women’s shot put winner
“There’s always a little pressure because when you’re defending champion, everyone is trying to take your spot. You’re doing your best to come out on top.”
“My first throw is never my best throw. I’m trying to work on that but I’ve been working on my technique and trying to stay consistent. Just trying to build on each throw.”
“Any time you can have your top three throws of a competition be the best three throws in the world, you can’t complain about that.”
Omar Craddock, men’s triple jump champion
“It feels good. It’s a national title. It’s a blessing. In terms of distance, I’m not proud of it. I wanted to jump over 17 meters and take the top spot. I just couldn’t do it. I was out here by myself, without a coach and making my own adjustments. It feels great. I can’t complain.”
Chris Benard, men’s triple jump second place
“All things considered, I’m going from a short approach and I wasn’t really feeling it today. From the beginning, I feel a lot better that I placed. When it started, I kind of just wanted to get out of here. So I’m glad that I finished it out and that I got second again. I got third in long jump, so all around it wasn’t that bad of a weekend.”
Matthew Centrowitz, men’s 1-mile champion
“I’m not disappointed but I’m a little bummed that maybe I couldn’t take advantage of the shape I’m in and run under 3:51. I know I was capable of it if the race was set up for it but the whole indoor season, if you’d ask me if I’d rather run sub-3:51 or win a Millrose title, I’d choose the Millrose title. If you asked if I’d rather be U.S. champ or run sub-3:51, I’d say U.S. champ. I did what I wanted to do but if we’re splitting hairs, I would’ve wanted to run faster. This season was all about just getting out there and running well.”
Ben Blankenship, men’s 1-mile second place
“The race was good. I learned some stuff from last night about being more aggressive. I wanted it to pay off and it didn’t today. I’d like to say that I should’ve been more aggressive in the last 300m but Centro is a good guy to lose to. If I have to lose to someone, I’d rather it be him.”
Alysia Montano, women’s 600 meter champion
“I was hoping that it would be Ajee and I going at it. Not discounting the other girls, of course, but I’m just knew Ajee. It was disappointing to hear the crash. I had a feeling it was one of a game-changer. I looked up and did see the blue uniform. To be honest, I was like, ‘argh, oh well.’ I think that with the speed that she and I have matched up, that the championships could be mine.”
“I didn’t see the 400/200 mark. I was hoping there would be a challenge at the end so it’d be a little bit faster.”
“I did my very best to stay fit during my pregnancy. It wasn’t about training, it wasn’t about 800 meters, it was about being healthy for me and my baby. I think that that did well for me. Rather than trying to push hard or push through anything, it kept me healthy to be able to bounce back the way that I did.”
Phoebe Wright, women’s 600 meter run second place
“I think that everybody in the stands and on the line got robbed of the 600 meter race. Half the field went down, one of them included the favorite. I’m just heartbroken for Ajee (Wilson) and Bethany and Kendra. It’s not how I wanted to get second.”
Casimir Loxsom, Men’s 600 meter champion and American record holder
“It feels awesome. The title means a lot more to me than the time. If I could run more rounds, I think I could break the world record but that’s something we can look at another year. I’ve never won a U.S. title before and to be with all these great guys and awesome competitors and get a win, that’s a huge deal to me. I always seem to find a way to get a runner-up finish from a potential victory and it was cool to look up at the board and see I had room to clear and so I definitely made sure I finished, but I made sure I enjoyed the end of the race. It was really fun and I’m so glad Mark got second. We put in the work every single day together. So it’s awesome to see that pay off at a championship meet. I think it’s a testament to our training program, our coach and our group. It’s such an amazing feat to come out here and compete like this.”
Mark Wieczorek, Men’s 600 meter second place
“It feels really good. I’m happy. I knew Cas was the guy to beat today. I train with him every day and I couldn’t be happier for him. I wish I would’ve given him a bit of a run. I think I left too much in the tank. I just got a little too timid. I had to do a lot of work in the back and by the time I got up, Cas was gone. There’s not much better than going 1-2 with your own teammate and one of your best friends. That was really cool.”
Lauren Wallace, women’s 1000 meter champion
I knew that everyone was going to swing wide, that seems to be the tactic on an indoor track. Unfortunately, I learned that the hard way a couple of weeks ago in Birmingham. Last night when I was going over my race plan, I just decided to stay comfo in lane one. I knew there’d be a gap opening up, so I took advantage of the gap and gave it my all the last 50 meters.
“It’s unreal, it hasn’t set in yet. The coolest part was running through the tape. I’ve never been able to do that before. The tape was really, really cool.”
Treniere Moser, women’s 1000 meter second place
“Tactics are a part of indoor track because the track is so small, so your moves have to be definite. It gets me ready for outdoors. When I go to Europe, it helps me. You have no room for error. I’m glad I stepped down to the 1,000m because it forced me to work on some of my weaknesses. I’m looking forward to outdoor season now.”
Robby Andrews, Men’s 1000m winner
“It feels great. I have been runner-up the last two years. They finally put my favorite distance in there, and I couldn’t be happier. It was a hard fought race for sure, but it was a lot of fun out there.”
Kyle Merber, Men’s 1000m second place
“I’m happy with silver. Indoor season is great because you only have things to gain, really. If it goes well, it’s great. That was a solid race and it only helps heading into outdoors.”
Shannon Rowbury, women’s 2 mile champion
“I’ve had a cold since before Birmingham. I was stuffed up in my nose last night and not feeling so great. I felt kind of flat and knew it would be tough out there. I think yesterday made me feel better today. Getting a hard 600 in my legs. I was kind of boxed in for a bit and I was supposed to share the lead with Jordan at the end. She just kept accelerating and accelerating and I owe a lot of this win to her. She’s in great shape and has been running really well.”
Jordan Hasay, women’s 2 mile second place
“It was good. The plan was, if the pace was dilly-dallying, to go with 1,200 to go. Not sprint, but just go at an honest pace. We were going fast and I just played it by feel. With 600 to go, Shannon was supposed to go and I was supposed to move out a bit but I looked at the big screen and she was in third or fourth. So I didn’t want to move out for someone else. At that point, just keep grinding and gradually increase my speed. With 400 to go, I got into sprint form and just wanted to focus on me. Honestly, Shannon made the move that I was visualizing and honestly, second for me is winning because Shannon is running so well right now. She’s undefeated in the U.S. this year. I’m lucky enough that she’s my training partner. I’m very pleased and this isn’t even my event. I’m focusing on 5K/10K outdoors, so if I can close a 10K like that, I can make the world team and that’s my main goal this year.”
Marvin Bracy, men’s 60 meter winner
“It’s so great. I’ve been a little shaky this year. I was here a few weeks ago, stumbled out of the blocks and got sixth place. To go into Millrose and put up a W, then come here with a great field and win, especially to repeat my national title, it’s a great accomplishment.”
Joe Morris, men’s 60 meter second place
“Not too shabby. It’s a move up from last year. I thought I did well for how far the final and the prelim were. To race against Bracy, my teammate, and have us go 1-2, I think it was a successful weekend.
Tianna Bartoletta, women’s 60 meter champion
“I’m really elated that I could defend my title. Title defense is one of the hardest things to do. Everybody is gunning for your spot but I wanted to focus on executing my race. I had trouble with that during the season and I wanted to focus on my race today under such pressure.”
Jessica Young, women’s 60 meter second place
“I’m very disappointed. It was all a blur. I can’t really the start and the finish. I need to look at the tape.
Aleec Harris, men’s 60 meter hurdles champion
“It feels really good to be the USATF champion. To achieve the goal, which has been my goal all indoor season, it feels great. The prelims, I didn’t get a good start. I wanted to get a good start. My first couple steps were kind of off. The rest of the steps were on and it turned out pretty well for me.”
Jarret Eaton, men’s 60 meter hurdles second place
“It feels good. It’s the best race I’ve had all season. Can’t complain about that. I was just trying to stay focused and keep my mind clear. Gun goes off and my mind goes blank. You just hope your muscle memory kicks in to take you through the rest of the hurdles. You just try to push through the line and it was really quick.”
Jasmin Stowers, women’s 60 meter hurdles champion
“It feels really exciting. This is my first USATF Indoors. I’m ecstatic to pull off a win. I knew I had to get out because there were great athletes beside me that had a great chance to win. When I finished, words can’t express how happy I was.”
Tenaya Jones, women’s 60 meter hurdles second place
“It really means a lot. This is such a competitive field, especially in the U.S. It’s a pleasure and a blessing to perform well and get on the podium at a USATF Championship meet.”