INDIANAPOLIS -- A dominant victory at the USATF 15K Championships presented by Toyota carried Emily Sisson (Phoenix, Arizona) to the 10th USATF Athlete of the Week award for 2021. Sisson went to the front from the starting gun at the Gate River Run in Jacksonville, Florida, establishing a 15-second lead by the two-mile mark. She extended that lead to 42 seconds as she passed 10K in 31:34, chasing the American 15K road record of 47:00 set by Shalane Flanagan in 2014. Sisson was never seriously challenged as she fought windy conditions on the way to a 48:09 finish time that gave her the title by 1:05 over Lindsay Flanagan. The two-time World Championships 10,000m top-10 finisher picked up $15,000 for her win, her third on the USATF Running Circuit presented by Toyota. Sisson won the traditional Gate River gender battle, which was worth $5,000, by finishing ahead of the men’s winner after the women’s elite field was given a six-minute head start. More top performances from the past week:
Clayton Young won the men’s title at the USATF 15K Championships presented by Toyota in 43:52.
DeAnna Price threw a world-leading 76.82m/252-0 to win the women’s hammer at the Cornell Invitational in Carbondale, Ill. Price and Gwen Berry are the only Americans ever to have thrown farther.
Paul Chelimo moved to No. 9 on the all-time U.S. men’s indoor performer list for 5,000m with his 13:09.90 at Virginia Beach.
Now in its 20th year, USATF’s Athlete of the Week program is designed to recognize outstanding performers at all levels of the sport. USATF names a new honoree each week when there are high-level competitions and features the athlete on USATF.org. Selections are based on top performances and results from the previous week. 2021 Winners: January 21, KC Lightfoot; January 28, Ryan Crouser; February 4, Bryce Hoppel; February 11, Athing Mu; February 18, Elle Purrier; February 25, Jaylen Slade; March 4, Grant Holloway; March 11, Emmanuel Bor; March 18, Tara Davis; March 25, Emily Sisson. We welcome your nominations! To nominate an athlete for USATF Athlete of the Week, please send a detailed email about his/her performance to communications@usatf.org. Fans can follow along with #USATF on Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat and Facebook.