Wildcats Travel to Eugene for 2026 NCAA Outdoor Championships

LEXINGTON, Ky. – The Kentucky Wildcats are set for the finale to the 2026 collegiate track season this week with the start of the NCAA Outdoor Championships at Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore. on June 10-13.

The Wildcats are sending 22 total athletes to Eugene for this year’s championship event, including 13 women’s qualifiers. SEC Champions Emmi Scales and Kemarah Howard, who was recently named the SEC Women’s Freshman Field Athlete of the Year, highlight the list of national qualifiers on the women’s side.

Along with Scales, the UK qualifiers include the 4x400m relay team, consisting of A’Laji Bradley, Hannah Douglas, Vanice Kerubo Nyagisera and Cha’iel Johnson, Camden Bentley (100m Hurdles), Rukia Nusra Omulisia (100m Hurdles), Douglas (400m), Janet Jepkemboi Amimo (800m) and Kerubo Nyagisera (400m Hurdles) for the track events. The Cats will also compete in two field events this week, featuring Sarah Ferguson in pole vault and Howard in high jump, as well as Julia Gunnell in the women’s heptathlon. JahQueen McClellan and Briana St. Louis will serve as relay alternates.

On the men’s side, nine Wildcats made the trip to Eugene after punching their ticket to the NCAA at the East First Round in Lexington. The Kentucky qualifiers include the 4x100m relay team, featuring Anthony Waterman, Miles Jones, Oscar Baltan Vivero, TK Pahuwa and alternate Denzel Simusialela, Waterman (110m Hurdles), Grayson Brashear (Shot Put), Kingi McNair (Long Jump), Theo Mudzengerere (Triple Jump) and Collins Kiprop Kipngok (3000m Steeplechase).

Wednesday’s schedule will open the championships with the semifinals of the men’s track events, featuring the 4x100m relay, 3000m steeplechase and the 110m hurdles. Tomorrow night will also include the men’s long jump and shot put finals.

Thursday will feature the penultimate round of the women’s events, starting with the pole vault final at 8:35 p.m. EST, followed by the 100m hurdles, 400m, 800m, 400m hurdles and 4x400m relay semifinals.

Friday will conclude the men’s portion of the schedule, determined by the qualifiers from Wednesday’s semifinal round, along with the Theo Mudzengerere competing in the triple jump final. Gunnell is also set to get underway in the opening event of the women’s heptathlon Friday afternoon, starting with the 100m hurdles event.

The NCAA Championships will conclude on Saturday will the final rounds of the women’s events, along with Gunnell completing her run in the heptathlon and Howard competing for a national title in the women’s high jump final.

The opening event of the 2026 NCAA Outdoor Championships will kick off tomorrow with the men’s 4x100m relay semifinal at 8:05 p.m. EST.

The full event schedule for the Wildcats across the four-day championship meet can be found below.

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Event Schedule