University of Illinois
NCAA Outdoor Championships
School Record 18 Illinois Field Entries Set for NCAA Outdoor Championships
June 7, 2026 | Women's Track & Field, Men's Track & Field
PREVIEW
| NCAA Outdoor Championships | |
|---|---|
| Date | Wednesday-Saturday (June 10-13) |
| Location | Hayward Field, Eugene, Ore. |
| Meet Information | Live Results // Championships Central |
| Watch (ESPN Networks) | Broadcast Schedule |
| Performance Lists | Men // Women |
| Shop | Fighting Illini Store |
| Social Media | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook |
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – Illinois track and field has entered a combined program record 18 field entries to the NCAA Outdoor Championships on Wednesday-Saturday (June 10-13) at Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore. 17 individual athletes will don the Orange and Blue at the national meet with 18 entries across 11 events.
Indoor long jump national champion Sophia Beckmon has her sights set on the season sweep where she'd be the first Illinois women's field athlete to win a national championship both indoors and outdoors in the same event. Perdita Felician is currently the program's only indoor-outdoor sweep when she won both the 60m hurdles and 100m hurdles in 2002.
Katharina Graman is the only athlete this year to qualify in multiple events qualifying in the long jump and triple jump. She's the first Illini woman to qualify in two field events since Carmel Corbett did so in 1993 with the heptathlon and high jump. Beckmon was the program's last multi-event qualifier when she made it in both the long jump and 4x100m in 2025.
Three women's hammer throwers qualified to the national meet in Oluwatomilayo Akintunde, Jordan Koskondy and Phethisang Makhethe all for the first time in their careers. JaiCieonna Gero-Holt and Meagan Humphries qualified in the heptathlon after a productive Big Ten Championships where Gero-Holt took home the gold and Humphries claimed bronze.
Rose Yeboah has made it to her third-consecutive NCAA Outdoor Championships where she's had great success in the past being the national champion in 2024 and the national runner-up in 2025.
Mia Morello is back at the NCAA Outdoor Championships for the third-straight season in the pole vault as well as Cody Johnston on the men's side replicating this feat. Elizabeth Ndudi qualified to the national outdoor meet for the first time in her career in the long jump.
Three decathletes will compete for Illinois in Eugene being Jip de Greef, Luuk Pelkmans and Andreas Hantson. Pelkmans is fresh off his Big Ten gold medal a few weeks ago and de Greef was the program's highest finisher ever in the heptathlon indoors with his bronze medal.
Fellow Big Ten Champion high jump Jonathan Kapitolnik will make the trip to Eugene as well as shot putter Jacob Cookinham. Viktor Morozov rounds out the men's qualifiers in the triple jump for his third-consecutive national outdoor meet.
NCAA CHAMPIONSHIPS QUALIFIERS (LAST ILLINOIS QUALIFIER)
WOMEN (10 across six events, 11 entries)
- Oluwatomilayo Akintunde – Hammer Throw (Amber Simpson, 2024)
- Sophia Beckmon – Long Jump (Beckmon, 2025)
- JaiCieonna Gero-Holt – Heptathlon (Melissa Wullschleger, 2025)
- Katharina Graman – Long Jump (Beckmon, 2025) and Triple Jump (Darja Sopova, 2024)
- Meagan Humphries – Heptathlon (Wullschleger, 2025)
- Jordan Koskondy – Hammer Throw (Simpson, 2024)
- Phethisang Makhethe – Hammer Throw (Simpson, 2024)
- Mia Morello – Pole Vault (Morello, 2025
- Elizabeth Ndudi – Long Jump (Beckmon, 2025)
- Rose Yeboah – High Jump (Yeboah, 2025)
MEN (Seven across five events, seven entries)
- Jacob Cookinham – Shot Put (Tyler Sudduth, 2024)
- Jip de Greef – Decathlon (Aiden Ouimet, 2024)
- Andreas Hantson – Decathlon (Ouimet 2024)
- Cody Johnston – Pole Vault (Johnston, 2025)
- Jonathan Kapitolnik – High Jump (Kam Garrett, 2025)
- Viktor Morozov – Triple Jump (Morozov, 2025)
- Luuk Pelkmans – Decathlon (Ouimet, 2024)
