High School Record Holder Smashes His Own Best With Jaw-Dropping 19.75; Nikki Hiltz Outkicks Faith Kipyegon In Women's Mile; Cam Myers Runs Off With Men's Mile In 3:46; Jamal Britt Beats Ja'Kobe Tharp

By Doug Binder, DyeStat Editor

Evan Poulsen and John Nepolitan Photos

EUGENE – Tate Taylor took off his eyeglasses and handed them to his coach before going to the call room before the men’s 200 meters on Saturday at the Prefontaine Classic.

“This is not a glasses race,” the teenager said.

Taylor, 18, two weeks after winning the U.S. U20 title in the 200 meters, stepped up to face the pros and ran a stunning time of 19.75 seconds to win the Prefontaine Classic title in front of a sellout Fourth of July crowd at Hayward Field.

"It's a surreal feeling," Taylor said. "I knew I could (eventually) do it. I never thought it would come this early."

Taylor explained that his glasses were falling off during his starting blocks prep and didn't want that to happen in the race. The flip side is that Taylor doesn't see as well without them. 

"I'm not blind-blind," he said.

In addition to running the third-fastest 200 in U20 history, and moving ahead of Usain Bolt on that list, he defeated Olympic champion Letsile Tebogo. 

In a spectacular conclusion to the women’s 100 meters, 2026 world champion Melissa Jeffrson-Wooden edged 2025 world champion Sha’Carri Richardson 10.78 to 10.79 and NCAA champion Adaejah Hodge was third in 10.80.

Earlier, Hodge beat Richardson in first semifinal in 10.82; Jefferson-Wooden ran a conservative 10.95 in the second semi to secure her spot in the final. 

Nikki Hiltz notched one of the biggest wins of their career, out-sprinting Faith Kipyegon over the final 40 meters to win the women’s mile in a meet record time of 4:17.49. (The meet record stretched all the way back to 1988 and Mary Decker). 

Australian Cam Myers closed out the meet with a dominant performance in the Bowerman mile, running away from the field to win in 3:46.06. Yared Nuguse led three chasing Americans for second place and he was more than a half a second behind Myers in 3:46.61.

World record holder Ja’Kobe Tharp got out to a lead in the men’s 110-meter hurdles but he was overtaken by Jamal Britt, who ran a lifetime best and personal record 12.86 seconds. Tharp, who ran an historic 12.75 at the NCAA Championships last month, was next in 12.91.

Britt’s time moved him into a tie for No. 5 in world history.

Masai Russell won the women’s 100-meter hurdles in 12.23 seconds, fighting off a challenge on her left side from Devynn Charlton. Russell’s time tied the meet record and it fell right in the average of her collection of impressive Diamond League wins this year.

World champion Busang Collen Kebinatshipi of Botswana won the men’s 400 meters in 44.00 seconds.

Rai Benjamin, taking a break from the 400-meter hurdles, ran a personal best time of 44.11 seconds in second place.  

Four Ethiopians broke away on the final lap and two of them, Aleshign Baweke and Hirut Meshesha went 1-2 in the women's 2-mile. Baweke’s time was 9:20.02, a world lead.

Shelby Houlihan closed strong to move up into third in 9:21.42.

Kenyan Lilian Odira made her first trip to the U.S. a memorable won when she won the Mutola women's 800, running away from Olympic champion Keely Hodgkinson to cross the line in 1:56.19.

Kanyinsola Ajayi, the NCAA champion, won the men’s 100 meters and tied the Nigerian national record with 9.84 seconds. He beat the reigning world champion, Oblique Seville of Jamaica, who was second in 9.89.

Americans Christian Coleman (9.95) and Kenny Bednarek (9.96) were third and fourth.

Tara Davis-Woodhall responded to an early challenge from Italy’s Larissa Iapichino in the women’s long jump an prevailed by a single centimeter. Iapichino jumped a national record mark of 7.12m in the first round and Davis-Woodhall jumped 7.13m in the second round. That mark held up for the win.

NCAA champion Alyssa Jones finished fourth with a best of 6.99m.

In meeting of the women’s steeplechase superpowers, Faith Cherotich of Kenya defeated her peers in a time of 8:51.74.

Winfred Yavi of Burundi was second in 8:52.84.

Doris Lemngole of Kenya (and Alabama), lowered her collegiate all-dates record with 8:57.89 for fourth place, one spot ahead of current world leader Peruth Chemutai of Uganda.

Chase Jackson hit a big throw of 20.56m in the first round and that held up for a victory in the women’s shot put.

Jessica Schilder of The Netherlands also went beyond 20 meters and finished second with 20.11m. Fanny Roos of Sweden threw a personal best 19.70m for third place.

Chinese 19-year-old Zhang Jiale won the women’s hammer on her sixth-round attempt when she hit 77.94 for a new lifetime best and moved past world champion Camryn Rogers of Canada, who was leading the competition, by 13 centimeters.

DeAnna Price threw 76.95m for third place and Rachel Richeson finished fourth with 76.18m.

Mykolas Alekna, throwing for the first time in an Oregon Ducks uniform after undergoing surgery on March 18 for a fully torn pectoral muscle, grabbed an early lead in the men’s discus with 68.81 meters in the first round.

Kristjan Ceh of Slovakia took the lead in the third round with 69.94m.

But then Alekna came back, and in the fifth round he hit 71.06m to retake the lead.

Leonardo Fabbri of Italy unleashed a world-leading mark of 22.74m in the shot put on his first attempt, a massive throw that won the competition.

In the para events, Brittni Mason won the women’s mixed class 100 meters in a time of 12.05 seconds, a season’s best for her.

Noah Malone won the men's mixed class 100 meters in 10.54 seconds.