Baylor Track & Field Hosts Star-Studded Michael Johnson Invitational
WACO, Texas – Baylor track & field welcomes an elite field Friday and Saturday for the annual Michael Johnson Invitational, hosted at Clyde Hart Track & Field Stadium.
“We are excited,” head coach Todd Harbour said. “It’s just been such a long time for us to be able to compete in front of fans, it’s a big deal. I know we’ll have a good crowd this weekend, and we had a good crowd for the Baylor Invite.”
The Bears are ranked No. 23 in the latest men’s USTFCCCA ratings index and are currently unranked in the women’s index. The men’s field includes competitors from No. 7 Texas, No. 8 Texas A&M, No. 9 Iowa State, No. 16 Kansas and No. 21 TCU. On the women’s side, No. 3 Texas, No. 4 Texas A&M, No. 8 Texas Tech and No. 19 Kansas State will all be represented.
In addition to a star-studded collegiate field, several former Baylor and world-class professional athletes are scheduled to compete at the MJ. The likes of Wil London III, Deon Lendore, Mike Rodgers, Brandon Carnes, Kendall Baisden, Dalilah Muhammad, Jodie Williams, Natasha Hastings, Morolake Akinosun, Gabrielle Thomas, Tynia Gaither, Rushelle Burton, Ashley Spencer, Sparkle McKnight, Jenn Suhr and Shane Brathwaite, among others, are set to make an appearance.
“We have world record-holders, American record-holders, Olympians, medalists, world champions,” Harbour said. “It’s an incredible group, almost across the board in every event. If you could just go event by event and look at the athletes that are competing, you’d go, ‘Oh, Wow, this is impressive!’ People that love track and field, it’s going to be a great meet.”
Heading into this weekend, Baylor has eight individuals/relay teams ranked in the NCAA top 25, with several more within striking distance. On the men’s side, the list includes Kamden Jackson (No. 14 – 100 meters), Howard Fields III (No. 14- 400 meters), the 4x100-meter relay (No. 9) and the 4x400-meter relay (No. 4).
From the women’s team, Kavia Francis (No. 18 – 200 meters), Ackera Nugent (No. 15 – 100-meter hurdles), the 4x100-meter relay (No. 15), the 4x400-meter relay (No. 13) and Tuesdi Tidwell (No. 3 – pole vault) hold top-25 spots.
Live results from Waco can be found at https://tf.deltatiming.com/baylor/2021-michael-johnson-invitational.