Chambana Sun

The men's track and field team from the University of Illinois concluded their participation in the NCAA West Preliminaries on Friday, May 24, in Fayetteville, Arkansas. Three athletes from the team have qualified for the NCAA Outdoor Championships.

Senior Robert Williams will compete in the 400-meter hurdles at the national level for the second consecutive year. He achieved this by running a time of 50.27 seconds, which is noted as the seventh-fastest in the program's history. Williams secured his spot with the fastest at-large qualifying time after automatic bids were given to the top three finishers in each heat.

Sophomore Viktor Morozov earned his first qualification to the NCAA Outdoor Championships in the triple jump event. He recorded a leap of 15.89 meters (52-1 3/4), marking it as the eighth-best in program history. The top twelve athletes from both East and West preliminaries advance to Eugene, Oregon, for the championships.

Junior Kam Garrett also advanced to his first NCAA Outdoor Championships in high jump by clearing a height of 2.17 meters (7-1 1/2) on his second attempt. Garrett secured his place through a tiebreaker due to fewer fouls compared to other competitors.

Tadeas Placek ended his sophomore season with a 21st-place finish in the 800-meter quarterfinals, clocking a time of 1:49.95. Senior Tyler Sudduth fouled out during discus but will still participate in shot put events at Eugene.

The women's team is set to continue their NCAA West Preliminaries on Saturday, May 25, with field events starting at 1 p.m., followed by track events at 5 p.m. Central Time. Fans can watch live coverage on ESPN+ beginning at 5 p.m.