Upload a Photo Upload a Video Add a News article Write a Blog Add a Comment
Blog Feed News Feed Video Feed All Feeds

Folders

 

 

Best Of DyeStat: Twenty Women Who Made The Most Of A Difficult Year In 2020

Published by
DyeStat.com   Dec 29th 2020, 5:37pm
Comments

Competition Opportunities Disappeared, But The Pursuit Of Excellence Continued For These 20 Women

By Erik Boal, DyeStat Editor

John Nepolitan (Purrier), Chuck Utash (Hall) and Laura Duffy (Thorvaldson) photos

With no NCAA Championships, no U.S. Olympic Trials, no Olympic Games and very little European season, athletes in the U.S. and around the world were forced to carve out their own opportunities – usually without the benefit of spectators – in order to find moments that revealed all their hard work in training. 

Some women got important things done last winter in the two and a half months before the Coronavirus pandemic initially halted the sports world. Some took advantage of pop-up opportunites that came later or made use of the scant racing events that arrived in the fall. 

One thing is certain: The year did not pass without some very talented female athletes leaving their mark, breaking a record or demonstrating the tenacity to keep improving. 

Here are 20 athletes or teams who excelled in 2020 at the high school, college and professional levels, in alphabetical order:

Valarie Allman: An intimate setting Aug. 1 in Idaho was the ideal environment for Allman to deliver the greatest discus throw, not only of her career, but in U.S. history. After months of training in Austin, Texas, with coach Zeb Sion, Allman traveled north to the Iron Wood Throws Center Invitational and made an immediate impact with a first-round throw of 230-2 (70.15m) to achieve both the American record and the top performance in the world this year. It was an improvement of almost 10 feet from her previous-best 220-3 (67.15m) achieved last year.

Bowerman Track Club: When Karissa Schweizer set the American indoor 3,000-meter record Feb. 27 by clocking 8:25.70 in Boston, along with Vanessa Fraser running 14:48.51 for the No. 2 indoor 5,000 performance in U.S. history, it was clear the group coached by Jerry Schumacher was headed for an exceptional year. But it was a group of amazing outdoor performances at a series of summer intrasquad meets at Jesuit High in Portland that continued to showcase the strength and depth of the Bowerman athletes, including a world record 16:27.02 in the 4x1,500 relay achieved July 31 by Elise Cranny, Shelby Houlihan, Colleen Quigley and Schweizer. That remarkable effort came three weeks after Houlihan produced the American record in the 5,000 with a 14:23.92 performance, followed by Schweizer in 14:26.34.

Keira D’Amato: The recognition for most improved athlete of the year turned out to be a runaway, with the 36-year-old D’Amato taking her career to a new level following several significant races. Her new personal-best efforts of 15:04 in the 5,000 meters and 32:33.44 in the 10,000 during the summer provided an indication that the fall would be a spectacular one for the American University graduate and she didn’t disappoint. Following a 15:08 5-kilometer road race earlier in the month, D’Amato set the American 10-mile record Nov. 24 by clocking 51:23, then culminated her year with a runner-up finish Dec. 20 at The Marathon Project in Arizona, ascending to the No. 7 all-time U.S. performer in 2:22:56.

Tamari Davis: Before deciding to pursue a professional track career and signing with adidas at the end of January, the sprint standout from East Ridge High in Florida celebrated World U-18 and national high school records Jan. 17 in South Carolina. Davis clocked 7.19 seconds in the indoor 60-meter dash, matching the 2004 prep standard achieved by Ashley Owens of Liberty High in Colorado. She also eclipsed the World U-18 all-time mark of 7.24 established in 2007 by Victoria Jordan of Fort Worth Dunbar in Texas and elevated among the top 10 competitors in World U-20 history.

Taylor Ewert: A year that was supposed to be highlighted by her quest to make the U.S. Olympic team in the 20-kilometer racewalk still ended up being a productive one for the versatile athlete from Beavercreek High in Ohio. Ewert improved on her own American U-20 and national high school records in the indoor 3,000-meter racewalk with a 13:00.56 effort Jan. 17 at The Virginia Showcase, concluding the season ranked No. 14 globally, including second among all World U-20 competitors. She also prevailed Feb. 8 in the indoor mile racewalk in 6:34.53 against a field of professional athletes at the NYRR Millrose Games, then made a smooth transition to Arkansas for the fall cross country season, winning her collegiate debut Sept. 19 with a 5-kilometer performance of 16:53.7, before finishing 10th at the Southeastern Conference Championships on Oct. 30 to earn freshman of the year honors.

Tori Franklin: There were few opportunities to watch the top two American triple jump competitors perform at the highest level during the outdoor season, but the battle Feb. 14 involving Franklin and Keturah Orji at the U.S. Indoor Championships in Albuquerque was one of the most dramatic showcases of the year. After Orji produced the top mark in U.S. indoor history in the second round by jumping 47-10.75 (14.60m), Franklin finally connected all three phases on her last jump, adding the American indoor record to her all-time U.S. outdoor mark with a sixth-round effort of 48-0.50 (14.64m) to prevail in head-to-head competition with Orji for the first time in her career.

Letesenbet Gidey: There were few indications that the shy athlete would end up in the global spotlight during the fall, especially following a runner-up finish Aug. 14 in a 5,000-meter race in Monaco. But the showcase Oct. 7 in Spain known as NN World Record Day created an incredible opportunity for Gidey and she took full advantage. The 22-year-old Gidey ran 14:06.62 to not only eclipse the all-time mark of 14:11.15 established in 2008 by fellow Ethiopian competitor Tirunesh Dibaba, but improve her previous-best effort by more than 16 seconds to celebrate on the same day Uganda’s Joshua Cheptegei achieved the men’s 10,000-meter world record.

hallSara Hall: Running two marathons at an elite level during an 11-week span was an outstanding achievement in itself for Hall. But following a runner-up effort Oct. 4 in 2:22:01 in London, Hall was still hungry to achieve more history, and she capped the year with a magnificent race Dec. 20 at The Marathon Project in Arizona. Hall, 37, ran the second-fastest 26.2-mile race in American history by clocking 2:20:32, trailing only the 2:19:36 standard produced in 2006 in London by Deena Kastor. Hall also improved to the No. 6 all-time U.S. competitor Aug. 7 at the Row River Half Marathon in Oregon with a 68:18 effort.

Sifan Hassan: After winning World Championship gold medals in the 1,500 and 10,000 meters last year, the Dutch star demonstrated there were still more opportunities to expand her range Sept. 4 in Belgium by setting the world one-hour record. Hassan covered 18,930 meters to surpass the 2008 standard of 18,517 meters achieved by Ethiopia’s Dire Tune, joining the men’s one-hour record set at the same event by Great Britain’s Mo Farah. She also ran a world-leading 29:36.67 in a driving rainstorm Oct. 10 in Hengelo to elevate to the No. 4 all-time 10,000 competitor.

Jessica Hull: After being reunited with coach Pete Julian and her Oregon-based teammates in Europe following her time spent at home the first half of the year in Australia, the 24-year-old Hull thrived throughout the summer and into the early fall to become the only female athlete in her country’s history to simultaneously hold national records in the 1,500, 3,000 and 5,000 meters. Hull, a Nike athlete, clocked 14:43.80 in the 5,000 on Aug. 14, followed by 4:00.42 in the 1,500 on Sept. 13 and completed the trifecta Sept. 25 by running 8:36.03 in the 3,000.

Jenna Hutchins: Setting a national junior class record 9:49.83 in the 3,200 meters Aug. 15 at the Music City Distance Carnival wound up being the catalyst for one of the most remarkable fall seasons by any prep competitor in history, as Hutchins became the first high school female athlete to run under 16 minutes in both 5,000-meter cross country and track races. The junior at Science Hill High in Tennessee produced the fastest all-time 5-kilometer cross country performance Nov. 21 by clocking 15:58.42 at the RunningLane National Championships in Alabama, then achieved the absolute national high school record and American U-20 all-time mark Dec. 11 by running 15:34.47 in the 5,000 at the Five and Dime Athletics Meeting in South Carolina.

Peres Jepchirchir: After not completing her first half marathon race of the year in February, the Kenyan athlete finished her competition schedule with a string of impressive performances, including the top women’s marathon effort of the year by clocking 2:17:16 on Dec. 6 in Valencia. Jepchirchir twice eclipsed the all-time global mark for the fastest half marathon in a women’s-only race, running 65:34 on Sept. 5 in the Czech Republic and then improving on her own standard to triumph Oct. 17 in 65:16 at the World Half Marathon Championships in Poland. Ethiopia’s Ababel Yeshaneh (64:31) and Kenya’s Brigid Kosgei (64:49) both ran faster in a mixed competition in February in United Arab Emirates, but Jepchirchir prevailed in one of the strongest women’s fields in World Half Marathon championship history.  

Yaroslava Mahuchikh: Reigning World champion Mariya Lasitskene was unbeaten in five high jump competitions during the year, but it was the 19-year-old Mahuchikh who gained plenty of notoriety for twice improving on the World U-20 record in January. The rising talent and silver medalist last year in Doha cleared 6-7 (2.01m) on Jan. 18 in her home country Ukraine, then elevated to 6-7.50 (2.02m) on Jan. 31 in Germany. Mahuchikh also produced the top global mark during the outdoor season Aug. 23 with a clearance of 6-6.75 (2.00m) in Stockholm.

Tonea Marshall: The desire to complete unfinished business has brought Marshall back to LSU for another year, and her return could also result in a collegiate indoor record in the 60-meter hurdles. Marshall built plenty of momentum with the No. 3 all-time NCAA mark by clocking 7.86 seconds Jan. 18 at Texas Tech and achieved three of the top 11 indoor performances in collegiate history by also running 7.89 on multiple occasions. Only the remarkable 2013 run of consistency produced by Clemson’s Brianna McNeal, who still holds the collegiate indoor record of 7.78, surpassed the excellence enjoyed earlier in the year by Marshall.

Leah Pasqualetti: Despite the absence of national indoor and outdoor prep championships to showcase the outstanding depth present in the girls pole vault, there were still several historic achievements celebrated during the year, none bigger than the American U-20 and all-time national high school marks produced June 27 by Pasqualetti in Southern California. The graduate of Orchard Park High in New York and current Kent State freshman cleared 14-8.25 (4.48m) to prevail in a memorable showdown with national junior class record holder Paige Sommers, a Duke signee from Westlake High in California. Pasqualetti had a combined five 14-foot clearances during the year, more than any prep competitor, including a fourth-place finish July 15 against professional athletes at the Acadia Invitational in South Carolina, an event hosted by Sandi Morris.

Elle Purrier: One of the most significant breakthrough performances of the year came Feb. 8 at the NYRR Millrose Games when Purrier not only secured victory against an elite international field in the Wanamaker Mile, but she did so by clocking an American indoor record 4:16.85 to smash the 1982 standard of 4:20.5 held by Mary Slaney. Purrier also ran the fastest indoor 2-mile effort during the year with her Jan. 25 mark of 9:29.17 in Boston. Her momentum continued outdoors, running 2:00.70 in the 800 and 4:00.77 in the 1,500, despite a limited schedule of competitions, as fellow New Balance professional and American distance standout Cory McGee achieved the world-leading mark in the outdoor mile July 25 by clocking 4:21.81 in Indiana.

Yulimar Rojas: The Venezuelan star shined brightest Feb. 21 in Madrid, eclipsing the 2004 world indoor triple jump record with her 50-7.50 (15.43m) effort, soaring past the mark of 50-4.75 (15.36m) established by Russia’s Tatyana Lebedeva. Rojas’ next target is the all-time global outdoor standard of 50-10.25 (15.50m), set in 1995 by Ukraine’s Inessa Kravets. After producing a performance of 50-6.75 (15.41m) last year to ascend to the No. 2 outdoor competitor in history, Rojas needed only to jump 48-3.25 (14.71m) to maintain her grip on the world-leading effort this fall.

Grace Stark: After France’s Sasha Zhoya achieved the World U-20 record in the men’s indoor 60-meter hurdles Feb. 22 by clocking 7.34 seconds, Stark not only matched the historical accomplishment a week later, but did so twice at the Southeastern Conference Championships. In what wound up being the final competition of her impressive freshman season at Florida, Stark eclipsed the World U-20 all-time women’s 60-meter hurdles mark by running 7.93 in the Feb. 28 prelims to improve on the 2018 standard of 7.98 set by Tara Davis, then returned the next day to lower the time to 7.91 to place second in an outstanding matchup with LSU’s Tonea Marshall (7.89).

thorv

Sydney Thorvaldson: Without a Nike Cross Nationals or Foot Locker final this year to recognize the top high school cross country athletes across the nation, the senior from Rawlins High in Wyoming ran every race as if it were a championship showcase, especially in her final two competitions in Indiana and Texas. The Arkansas signee ran seven sub-17 performances in 5-kilometer cross country races, including the all-time prep record 16:38.3 to win the XC Town USA Meet of Champions race Nov. 15 at the LaVern Gibson course in Terre Haute. Thorvaldson also prevailed in 16:23.85 at the High School Cross Country National Invite on Dec. 5 in Lubbock, Texas, to cap an incredible year that included running 10:06.58 in the indoor 3,200 meters Feb. 15 at the Simplot Games in Idaho.

Ajee’ Wilson: There was no uncertainty this time around at the NYRR Millrose Games for Wilson, who officially secured the American indoor 800-meter record Feb. 8 by clocking 1:58.29 in New York. Wilson had run 1:58.27 at the 2017 event, only to have the mark later overturned when a post-race drug test revealed the presence of prohibited substance Zeranol in a urine sample, which came as a result of unknowingly consuming contaminated meat. Wilson captured another U.S. indoor title a week later in Albuquerque, highlighting a short, but successful competition schedule for her during the year.



Hashtags#top #women #2020
 

More news

History for DyeStat.com
YearVideosNewsPhotosBlogs
2024 1091 353 13738  
2023 5382 1361 77508  
2022 4892 1212 58684  
Show 25 more
Hashtags#top #women #2020
 
 
+PLUS highlights
+PLUS coverage
Live Events
Get +PLUS!