The USATF 1 Mile Road Championships, in concert with the Drake Relays Grand Blue Mile, have announced their elite fields.
For the women, an impressive field is ready to take on the mile course in downtown Des Moines. Three-time Champion Emily Lipari will take on Rachel Smith and Allie Wilson along with a stout field of NCAA Champions and USA Championship medalists. Annie Frisbie, with two top-5 finishes already this year at USA Championships (10 Mile and 15k) and Emma Grace Hurley, this year’s runner-up at the USA Cross Country Championships, will also be on the starting the line.
Coming perhaps as the hottest contender on the men’s side is 2022 Champion Vince Ciattei who ran a personal best 3:50.56 already this season at the Trials of Miles. He will look to hold off last year’s fifth and sixth place finishers, Kasey Knevelbaard and Jake Gillum respectively, along with Mikey Brannigan. Brannigan is a Paralympic gold medalist in the 1500m, and is the first Paralympic athlete to break four minutes in the mile.
Notably absent from the announced fields are last year’s champions, Sam Prakel and Nikki Hiltz, who not only earned the USA Championship trophy, but both were inaugural road mile world record holders, as it had recently been recognized as an official world record eligible event.
Full fields for the 2024 Grand Blue Mile USATF Road Mile Championship, set to take place on April 23, are:
MEN
- Abe Alvarado
- Alec Basen
- Mikey Brannigan
- Vince Ciattei
- Macauley Franks
- Jake Gillum
- Kasey Knevelbaard
- Tanner Maier
- Nick Randazzo
- John Reniewicki
- Sair Salgado
- Shane Streich
- Tim Thacker
- Ben Veatch
- Caleb Webb
WOMEN
- Anna Camp Bennett
- Michael DeGenero
- Angelina Ellis
- Annie Frisbie
- Emma Grace Hurley
- Emily Lipari
- Rachel McArthur
- Cailee Peterson
- Rachel Smith
- Maria Seykora
- Melissa Tanaka
- Alex Teubel
- Emi Trost
- Allie Wilson
WATCH: 2023 Grand Blue Mile Highlight
