EUGENE, Oregon -- With a field brimming with Olympians and an atmosphere where sellouts are a near-guarantee, the 41st Nike Prefontaine Classic is set for impressive performances and previews of the USATF Outdoor Championships and IAAF World Championships.
The fourth outdoor stop of the USATF Championship Series and the first domestic Diamond League meeting of 2015, the Nike Prefontaine Classic pits the best in the world against one another in 16 disciplines for Diamond League scoring, along with 13 additional events.
45 U.S. Olympians will take to Historic Hayward Field Friday and Saturday, May 29 and 30 with live coverage on broadcast television and online. The Nike Prefontaine Classic will be available on a host of networks, as USATF.TV will provide full webcast coverage for Distance Night beginning at 11 p.m. ET/8 p.m. PT Friday. Broadcast coverage of the Nike Prefontaine Classic begins Saturday at 3:30 p.m. ET/12:30 p.m. PT Saturday on NBCSN and picks up the action at 4:30 p.m. ET/1:30 p.m. PT on NBC.
Tianna Bartoletta will perform the lone double among U.S. athletes this weekend, competing in the women’s long jump on Friday evening before taking to the track Saturday for the women’s 100 meters.
Reese Hoffa is going for his fifth Pre Classic title in six years but will see stiff competition from compatriots Joe Kovacs, Christian Cantwell, Kurt Roberts and Ryan Whiting. Kovacs, Cantwell and Roberts went 2-3-4 behind Hoffa at last year’s event, while Whiting was a late scratch due to injury. With all athletes looking to nab one of three spots for Team USA later this summer in Beijing, Friday night’s title is anyone’s for the taking.
The women’s 1,500 meters boasts one of the most stacked non-Diamond League entry lists of the weekend, if not this early international season. Emma Coburn, Alexa Efraimson, Katie Mackey, Treniere Moser, Aisha Praught, Shannon Rowbury and Jenny Simpson will battle for supremacy in one of the biggest events of the 2015 Pre Classic, especially considering the epic battle Rowbury and Simpson engaged in during their last 1,500 meters head-to-head in Zurich last August.
The men’s high jump will be an exciting affair, as Olympians Erik Kynard and Jesse Williams are set for battle with Mutaz Essa Barshim, one of the biggest names to emerge from last year’s Diamond League season.
The marquee race is always the Bowerman Mile, closing the 41st Nike Prefontaine Classic. Matt Centrowitz and Leo Manzano are entered in this year’s men’s mile and will continue their friendly rivalry this season, where they’ve battled in the mile multiple times in 2015.
Full start lists can be found here. Fans can join the conversation by following USATF on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram and using the hashtag #PreClassic.
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Nike Prefontaine Classic - All times local (PT)
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Friday, May 29
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8:00 p.m. - USATF.TV Webcast Begins
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8:03 p.m.
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Men's Discus Throw
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Jared Schuurmans
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8:06 p.m.
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Women's Long Jump (West Outer Runway)
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Tianna Bartoletta, Janay DeLoach, Funmi Jimoh, Brittney Reese
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8:09 p.m.
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Women's USATF High Performance 800m
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Kendra Chambers, McKayla Fricker, Charlene Lipsey, Dana Mecke, LaTavia Thomas, Maggie Vessey
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8:17 p.m.
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Girls High School Elite 200m
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Symone Darius, Karimah Davis, La'Kayla Harris, Candace Hill, Julia Madubuike, Symone Mason, Micaiah Ransby, Diamond Spaulding
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8:24 p.m.
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Boys High School Elite 200m
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Rai Benjamin, Ian Braxton, Ryan Clark, Corey Dauphine, Reggie Garner, Obi Igbokwe, Khai Mclin, Malik Wright
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8:28 p.m.
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Men's Shot Put (West Ring)
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Christian Cantwell, Reese Hoffa, Joe Kovacs, Kurt Roberts, Ryan Whiting
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8:40 p.m.
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Girls High School Elite Mile
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Christina Aragon, Kaley Ciluffo, Devin Clark, Jordyn Colter, Ella Donaghu, Ryen Frazier, Lauren Gregory, Stephanie Jenks, Danielle Jones, Katie Rainsberger, Allie Schadler
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8:50 p.m.
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Boys High School Elite Mile
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Elijah Armstrong, Kai Benedict, Mikey Brannigan, Dajour Braxton, Matt Maton, Thomas Ratcliffe, Sam Ritz, Jack Salisbury, Michael Slagowski, Carlos Villarreal
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9:00 p.m.
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Men's 5,000m
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Ryan Hill, Bernard Lagat, Galen Rupp
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9:20 p.m.
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Men's 10,000m
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Diego Estrada, Hassan Mead
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Saturday, May 30
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12:21 p.m.
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Women's Triple Jump (Outer West Runway)
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Amanda Smock
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12:26 p.m.
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Men's Pole Vault (East Outer Runway)
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Sam Kendricks
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12:30 p.m. - NBCSN Broadcast Begins
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12:32 p.m.
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Men's International Mile
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Ben Blankenship, Pat Casey, Mac Fleet, Garrett Heath, Will Leer, Lopez Lomong, Andrew Wheating
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12:41 p.m.
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Women's 400m
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Allyson Felix, Phyllis Francis, Natasha Hastings, Sanya Richards-Ross
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12:49 p.m.
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Men's 800m
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Charles Jock
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12:56 p.m.
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Men's High Jump (East Apron)
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Erik Kynard, Jesse Williams
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1:03 p.m.
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Men's 400m Hurdles
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Johnny Dutch, Bershawn Jackson, Michael Tinsley
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1:11 p.m.
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Men's Steeplechase
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Donn Cabral, Daniel Huling
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1:24 p.m.
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Women's 100m (International)
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Kimberlyn Duncan, English Gardner, Barbara Pierre, Jeneba Tarmoh, Kaylin Whitney
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1:30 p.m.
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Women's Javelin Throw
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Kara Winger
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1:30 p.m. - NBC Broadcast Begins
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1:33 p.m.
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Women's 100m
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Tianna Bartoletta, Tori Bowie, Carmelita Jeter
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1:42 p.m.
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Men's 100m
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Ryan Bailey, Tyson Gay, Michael Rodgers
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1:49 p.m.
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Men's 400m
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Tony McQuay, LaShawn Merritt
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1:55 p.m.
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Women's 800m
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Brenda Martinez, Alysia Montano, Chanelle Price, Ajee’ Wilson
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2:05 p.m.
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Men's 110m Hurdles
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Aleec Harris, Aries Merritt, David Oliver
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2:12 p.m.
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Women's 5,000m
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Gabriele Grunewald, Marielle Hall, Molly Huddle
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2:32 p.m.
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Men's 200m
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Justin Gatlin, Curtis Mitchell, Gil Roberts, Isiah Young
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2:40 p.m.
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Women's 1500m
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Emma Coburn, Alexa Efraimson, Katie Mackey, Treniere Moser, Aisha Praught, Shannon Rowbury, Jenny Simpson
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2:49 p.m.
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Men's Bowerman Mile
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Matt Centrowitz, Leo Manzano
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