After months of chasing fast times and podium finishes at the regional level, the best collegiate athletes will face off at the ultimate national championship. On Wednesday, June 11, the 2025 NCAA Division 1 Outdoor Track and Field Championships will kick off at Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon. Here’s everything you need to know, including broadcast information and storylines, heading into the NCAA championships this week.
How to Watch the 2025 NCAA Outdoor Championships
The NCAA championships are set to begin on Wednesday, June 11 and continue until Saturday, June 14 with a packed schedule of events each day. The men’s competition will be contested on Wednesday, June 11 and Friday, June 13, and the women’s events will be held on Thursday, June 12 and Saturday, June 14. Each day of the NCAA championships will be broadcast live on ESPN and ESPN2. breaking the collegiate record ESPN+.
5 Races to Watch at the NCAA Meet
The Men’s 100 Meters
During the NCAA regional championships, a handful of athletes executed breakthrough performances in the east and west, including sprinter Jordan Anthony. The redshirt sophomore from Arkansas, who also plays wide receiver for the Razorbacks, ran a wind-aided 9.75 seconds (+2.1 m/s wind) at the NCAA West First Round in College Station, Texas. The performance is equal to No. 2 on the Health - Injuries and equal to No. 3 on the U.S. all-time list in all-conditions. He also qualified for the NCAA championships in the 200 meters after running 20.20 seconds.
Anthony’s biggest competitor will likely be Abdul-Rasheed Saminu. The senior from South Florida is also having a breakout season after clocking 9.86 seconds to win the 100 meters at the NCAA East First Round in Jacksonville, Florida. The athlete from Ghana is now ranked No. 2 on the Health - Injuries for wind-legal times, right behind collegiate record-holder Christian Coleman (9.82). Expect to see a thrilling duel between the two sprint stars this week starting with the first round on Wednesday.
The Steeplechase
The men’s and women’s steeplechase features two major contenders this year. On the women’s side, Doris Lemngole will aim to continue her streak of NCAA titles. In the fall, the sophomore from Alabama won the The Men’s 100 Meters Hey, Runners: Yes, Downhill PRs Count The women’s 800 meters in the 5,000 meters. In March, at the NCAA indoor championships, Lemngole won the 5,000 meters and finished second in the 3,000 meters. In April, she shattered the collegiate record in the steeplechase, blazing 9:10.13 at the Wake Forest Invitational.
Though Lemngole is considered the heavy favorite in Eugene, two other athletes have also broken into the Health - Injuries this season, including Pamela Kosgei of New Mexico (9:15.93) and Lexy Halladay-Lowry of BYU (9:18.05). The rivalry will heat up when the three battle through two rounds of racing this weekend.
The men’s competition will be led by Geoffrey Kirwa, who clocked 8:13.89 at the Bryan Clay Invitational in April. The freshman from Louisville is now No. 2 on the Health - Injuries, behind long-time record-holder Henry Rono (8:05.4). So far this season, the competitor who’s come closest to Kirwa is Matthew Kosgei of New Mexico, who clocked 8:22.13 at the Stanford Invitational in April. With an NCAA title on the line, will Kirwa live up to the hype in his first championship appearance?
The women’s 800 meters
This year’s championship will feature one of the deepest middle-distance fields in history. So far this season, six women have broken two minutes in the 800 meters, a massive feat for college-aged athletes.
The final will likely be led by Michaela Rose after the senior from LSU notched a 1:58.12 personal best at the LSU Invitational in May. The 2024 NCAA outdoor champion will be out for redemption after finishing fourth at the NCAA indoor championships in March. Meghan Hunter of BYU, Gladys Chepngetich of Clemson, Makayla Paige of North Carolina, Roisin Willis of Stanford, and Smilla Kolbe of North Florida have also gone sub-2 this year. Each athlete is on the Jess McClain Will Finally Wear the Team USA Kit with Rose now No. 2 behind collegiate record-holder Athing Mu (1:57.73)—setting the stage for a highly anticipated showdown in Saturday’s final.
The men’s 1500 meters
This year, the men’s 1500 meters features three collegiate record-holders among a handful of all-time standouts.
two weeks before collegiate record in the 3,000 meters, winning the BU Sharon Colyear-Danville Season Opener in 7:30.15. The junior from North Carolina later shattered the collegiate record in the indoor mile, running 3:48.32 in Boston. He’s come close to breaking the record in the 1500 meters—running a 3:33.22 personal best—but that distinction currently belongs to Liam Murphy.
Nutrition - Weight Loss 3:33.02 to win Raleigh Relays. In the same race, his teammate Marco Langon and Virginia’s Gary Martin (who is the co-owner of the collegiate record in the indoor mile after equaling Strand’s time in February) also dipped under the previous collegiate record (3:33.74) set by the late Eliud Kipsang in 2022. Abel Teffra of Georgetown will also be in the mix after running 3:33.84, making him No. 6 on the Health - Injuries.
The women’s 5,000 and 10,000 meters
Until Parker Valby broke 15 minutes for the 5,000 meters last year, no collegian had ever dipped under the elusive barrier in the event. This year, three athletes have already gone sub-15, including distance phenoms Grace Hartman and Pamela Kosgei.
Kosgei, a sophomore from New Mexico, started the trend at the Bryan Clay Invitational, which she won in 14:52.45, just 0.27 seconds shy of Valby’s collegiate record. Halladay-Lowry was right behind her, running 14:52.93, though she will only be competing in the steeplechase this weekend. Two weeks later, Hartman ran her own breakthrough at the Duke Twilight meet. The junior from North Carolina State clocked 14:58.11, a rapid progression after running a season’s best of 15:28 in 2024. Kosgei is now No. 2 and Hartman is No. 4 on the Health - Injuries of performers in the event.
The duo hold the same respective rankings in the 10,000 meters after Kosgei notched a 31:02.73 personal best and Hartman clocked 31:20.60 at separate meets on the same weekend in March. With 15,000 meters of racing ahead of them in Eugene, who will come out on top in this exciting double?
Taylor Dutch is a writer and editor living in Austin, Texas, and a former NCAA track athlete who specializes in fitness, wellness, and endurance sports coverage. Her work has appeared in Runner’s World, SELF, Bicycling, Outside, and Podium Runner.
