Alicia Monson is all smiles after finishing first during the 2019 Millrose Games Women’s 3000m. Monson recently won the USATF Cross Country Championships, and she’ll expect a strong challenge from USATF Cross Country runner-up Weini Kelati during the 114th Millrose Games at The Armory New Balance Track & Field Center. Monson photo by John Nepolitan; Kelati photo by Kirby Lee.
NEW YORK, NY, Jan. 18, 2022 – The 114th Millrose Games are less than two weeks away, scheduled for Saturday, January 29th at The Armory’s New Balance Track & Field Center. Dozens of Olympians and world-class fields have already been announced for this historic event, and several more will join them in the Women’s 3000m.
Leading this outstanding field will be Alicia Monson and Weini Kelati, fresh off their January 9th duel at the USATF Cross Country Championships where they finished first and second, respectively.
Monson is a 2020 Olympian in the 10,000m and the 2019 Millrose Games champion in the 3000m. While competing for the University of Wisconsin, Monson won five Big Ten titles and was the 2019 NCAA champion in the 5000m. Most recently, she won the USATF cross country title in convincing fashion, earning her first victory since turning professional.
“I’m so thankful to be competing again at Millrose,” Monson said. “Winning the 3000m at my first Millrose Games was a pivotal moment in my running career, and I’ve enjoyed returning and feeling the amazing energy at The Armory. I’m excited to compete and watch some of the loaded fields.”
Kelati finished second behind Monson in San Diego, following an extremely impressive 2021 season where she became the USATF Road 5k champion. The former New Mexico Lobo won two NCAA championships and was a 13-time All-American during her college career. The Eritrean-born Kelati recently earned her U.S. citizenship, making her a major factor on the national scene for years to come.
Monson and Kelati will be challenged by a formidable group that includes four additional NCAA champions. Whittni Orton will be a contender after winning the 2021 NCAA cross country title, and the former BYU Cougar is looking to jumpstart her post-collegiate career. Her teammate Courtney Wayment Smith won the 3000m and anchored the victorious DMR at the 2021 NCAA indoor championships.
Dani Jones was a three-time NCAA champion at the University of Colorado and is one of the fastest collegiate 1500m runners in recent history. Elly Henes, formerly of North Carolina State, recently turned professional after winning the 2021 NCAA outdoor 5000m.
Another major contender will be 5000m Tokyo Olympian Rachel Schneider. In 2021, Schneider also became the fifth-fastest miler in American history. Three additional Olympians will also toe the line: Portuguese mile record holder Marta Pen Freitas, fourth-place finisher in the Tokyo Olympics’ 3000m steeplechase and Africa Games champion Mekides Abebe of Ethiopia, and Canadian 5000m runner Julie-Anne Staehli.
Other athletes set to compete include European indoor champion Amy-Eloise Markovc of Great Britain, Australian Olympic steeplechaser Amy Cashin, and two fifth placers at the most recent Olympic Trials in Allie Buchalski and Helen Schlachtenhaufen.
The Millrose Games is the most storied event in indoor track and field. Stay tuned over the coming weeks as more athletes are announced for the 114th Millrose Games. The Millrose Games is anticipated to be the most thrilling edition of the meet to date, with dozens of Olympians competing on The Armory's “Fastest Track in the World.”
Athletes confirmed for the 114th Millrose Games include:
· Defending champion Elle Purrier St. Pierre and 2019 champion Konstanze Klosterhalfen will highlight the WHOOP Women’s Wanamaker Mile. This signature race includes all three athletes who represented the United States in the Tokyo Olympic 1500m.
· Olympic bronze medalist Josh Kerr and Olympic finalist Ollie Hoare lead the charge in the WHOOP Men’s Wanamaker Mile.
· The top two shot put athletes and Tokyo Olympic gold and silver medalists, Ryan Crouser and Joe Kovacs, are entered in the Thorne Men’s Shot Put.
· World record holder in the 60m Christian Coleman, the fastest man in the world in 2021 Trayvon Bromell and Jamaica’s 2016 Olympic gold medal winner in the 110m hurdles Omar McLeod will challenge for the Millrose Games Men’s 60m title.
· Olympic gold medalist and American outdoor record holder Athing Mu, American indoor record holder and Olympian Ajee' Wilson and Jamaica middle-distance sensation and Olympian Natoya Goule-Toppin who will be competing in the highly anticipated Jack and Lewis Rudin Women’s 800m.
· Cole Hocker, Edward Cheserek, and Conner Mantz headline a Who’s Who of NCAA champions and Olympian distance runners in the Men’s 3000m.
· World record holder Keni Harrison leads a Women’s 60m Hurdles field that features six Olympians.
· Olympic bronze medalist Gabby Thomas is the headliner in the Women’s 60m
· Olympic gold medalist Katie Nageotte will face off against defending champion Sandi Morris in the Women’s Pole Vault.
Tickets can be purchased by going to https://www.millrosegames.org/get-tickets
For more information on all Armory Track events go to www.armory.nyc.
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About The Armory Foundation
The Armory Foundation is a New York City non-profit institution, with the mission of "Keeping Kids on Track." Each season The Armory – the proud home of the Millrose Games – hosts more than 100 track & field meets and welcomes more than 220,000 visits. Among its many youth sports and educational programs, including the acclaimed Armory College Prep program, The Armory runs the leading collegiate indoor track meets with the Dr. Sander Invitational Columbia Challenge and the HBCU Showcase, and hosts the largest high school indoor track meets with the U. S. Air Force Hispanic Games, The New Balance Games, New Balance Nationals Indoor, the Energice Coaches Hall of Fame Invitational and Marine Corps Holiday Classic. New York Road Runners is a proud sponsor of all athletic events at The Armory. The Armory runs the Columbia & NewYork – Presbyterian Indoor Marathon Team Relay presented by New York Road Runners, which is the world’s largest indoor marathon relay. The Armory is also the home to the National Track & Field Hall of Fame and dozens of very large education-focused events. For more: Please visit Armory.NYC and ArmoryTrack.com.
