Olympic stars Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone and Noah Lyles headline a star-studded line-up as the US Track and Field Championships get underway on Thursday with places at the Tokyo World Championships up for grabs.
Four days of high-calibre competition begin at Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon, with an array of Olympic gold medallists and reigning world champions on duty.
Many of the biggest names in the field — such as Olympic 100m champion Lyles — have already secured their tickets to the World Championships in September due to their status as reigning world champions.
However, there remain plenty of unanswered questions as the competition at the spiritual home of US athletics begins.
Arguably, the most intrigue surrounds two-time Olympic 400m hurdles champion McLaughlin-Levrone, who has not lost in her signature event since 2019.
The 25-year-old cemented her status as the greatest women’s 400m hurdler in history a year ago in Paris as she stormed to her second Olympic gold in the event in a world record 50.37sec.
But McLaughlin-Levrone has raised eyebrows heading into this week’s meeting by electing to skip the 400m hurdles and concentrate on the 400m flat instead.
It means that McLaughlin-Levrone, who missed the 2023 Budapest world championships with a knee injury, risks missing out on competing in the hurdles in Tokyo, although she could still qualify for the event with victory in the Diamond League finals in August.
All eyes on Richardson
In the women’s short sprints, meanwhile, all eyes will be on reigning 100m world champion Sha’Carri Richardson.
Richardson’s victory in Budapest two years ago means she is assured of a place in the field in Tokyo.
But this week’s event offers observers a good barometer of Richardson’s form and fitness as he prepares to defend her title in Japan.