University of Illinois
USATF Outdoor Championships
Five Illini Track & Field Athletes Set To Compete At USATF Outdoor Championships
July 24, 2019 | Women's Track & Field, Men's Track & Field
Quinn, Wells, Kendziera, Lewis-Smallwood and McAsey compete in Des Moines.
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – Five Fighting Illini track and field athletes – Devin Quinn, Jonathan Wells and former Illini David Kendziera, Gia Lewis-Smallwood and Joe McAsey – will compete against the best athletes in the United States at U.S. Outdoor Track and Field Championships in Des Moines, Iowa. Held at the site of the annual Drake Relays, the meet begins on Thursday, July 25 and continues through Sunday, July 28.
| 2019 U.S. Outdoor Championships | |
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| When | Thursday, July 25 - Sunday, July 28 |
| Where | Drake Stadium // Des Moines, Iowa |
| Meet Information | Tickets | Schedule | Live Results | Entries | Qualifying Standards |
| Watch | NBC (Sat. at 3 p.m. CT and Sun. at 7 p.m. CT) // NBCSN (Fri. and Sun. at 6 p.m. CT) // NBC Sports Gold |
| Social Media |
@IlliniTrackXC |
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Quinn and McAsey kickoff competition for the Illini at U.S. Outdoor Championships on Thursday, with Quinn competing in the 100m first round and McAsey contesting the 800m first round. Kendziera will first compete Friday night in the 400m Hurdles semifinal. Quinn runs in the 200m first round on Saturday. Wells (High Jump) and Lewis-Smallwood (Discus) will compete in their event finals on the last day of competition on Sunday.
NBC will broadcast two hours of the meet on Saturday from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. central time as well as one hour on Sunday from 7 p.m to 8 p.m. CT. NBC Sports Network (NBCSN) will broadcast two hours of the meet on Friday from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m., and one hour on Sunday from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m. CT. The meet can also be streamed throughout the weekend through NBC Sports Gold.
Devin Quinn enters the USATF Outdoor Championships following a record breaking senior season with the Illini. He clocked the fastest 100m time in Big Ten history in the national semifinal with his finish time of 10.01. He clinched First-Team All-America honors in the event, and placed seventh in the 100m NCAA Final. He also earned Second-Team All-America honors with the Illini men's 4x100m relay at this year's NCAA Outdoor Championships, running as the anchor leg. In the 200m national semifinal, Quinn re-set his own program record with a finish time of 20.31.
Quinn's 10.01, 100m finish time ranks tied for the 18th fastest in the world this year, and seventh among American athletes. His 200m time is tied for the 42nd fastest time in the world this year and ties for the 13th fastest among American sprinters. He competed in his first professional meet on Friday, July 5 in Lausanne, Switzerland, clocking a finish-time of 10.19 in the 100m Dash.
David Kendziera heads into the U.S. Outodoor Championships set to compete in the 400m Hurdles. He currently is tied for the 18th fastest 400m Hurdles finish time in the world this year, a time of 48.99 he recorded at the Roma Diamond League meet on June 6. The 48.99 finish is the sixth fastest 400m Hurdles finish clocked by an American this year. Last year at U.S. Outdoor Championships, Kendziera became the first athlete to advance to both the 400m and 110m Hurdles Finals since Arky Erwin in 1945.
In his illustrious Illinois career, Kendziera was a 10-time All-American and four-time NCAA Medalist. In his senior season he took the silver medal in the NCAA 110m Hurdles Final, and a bronze in the 400m Hurdles. He owns the Illinois record in the 400m Hurdles with a time of 48.42.
Jonathan Wells will contest the High Jump on Sunday in Des Moines. At the 2018 Outdoor Championships, Wells took sixth place in the High Jump with a height of 7'4.5" (2.25 meters).
Wells, who will return to Illinois next year for his redshirt senior season, is a six-time All-American. He earned Second-Team All-America honors in both the High Jump in Long Jump at 2018 NCAA Outdoor Championships. He won the Big Ten Title in the High Jump at 2018 Outdoor Championships, and was named the Field Athlete of the Championships. He owns the Illinois program record in the High Jump with a mark of 7'5" (2.26 meters).
Four-time U.S. women's Discus champion Gia Lewis-Smallwood (New York Athletic Club (NYAC) will compete in the Discus Final on Sunday at Outdoor Champions. Lewis-Smallwood marked 205'6" (62.65m) in 2017 in Sacramento, California to advance to the 2017 IAAF World Championships.
Lewis-Smallwood is a Champaign, Illinois native and won the 2001 Big Ten discus title on the way to a fifth-place finish at NCAA Championships. Professionally, the former Illini has competed for Team USA at the 2012 Olympic Games, Pan Am Games and the IAAF World Championships.
McAsey (Retired Broz) was a four-time All-American while competing at Illinois from 2011 to 2016. McAsey's best 800m season came in 2014 when the Illini middle distance runner qualified for NCAA Outdoor Championships and placed 14th. McAsey also earned All-America accolades as a member of Illinois' 4x400m relay team. McAsey qualified for 2019 U.S. Championships with a time of 1:47.24
Illinois U.S. Outdoor Championships Schedule
Thursday, July 25
5:05 p.m. - Men's 100m First Round
6:47 p.m. - Men's 800m First Round
Friday, July 26
6:02 p.m. – Men's 100m Semifinal
6:32 p.m. – Men's 800m Semifinal
7:28 p.m. – Men's 400H Semifinal
7:53 p.m. – Men's 100m Final
Saturday, July 27
1:58 p.m. – Men's 200m First Round
4:25 p.m. – Men's 400H Final
Sunday, July 28
3:00 p.m. – Women's Discus Final
4:35 p.m. – Men's High Jump Final
5:00 p.m. – Men's 200m Semifinal
6:02 p.m. – Men's 800m Final
7:51 p.m. – Men's 200m Final
For complete coverage of Fighting Track & Field, visit FightingIllini.com, follow the Illini on Twitter (@IlliniTrackXC) and Instagram (illinitrackxc) and like Fighting Illini Track and Field & Cross Country on Facebook.
