Jess Woodard popped her best shot put throw of the year on her final attempt to place 4th at the U.S. Championships in Albuquerque Friday.
Woodard has entered the U.S. indoor or outdoor championships 11 times and finished in the top 10 each time. She’s now placed 5th or better in the last five U.S. championships.
Woodard, a 2013 Cherokee graduate, had a best throw of 58-5 ¾ through five rounds but threw 60-11 ¼ to move into 3rd place. Adelaide Aquilla followed with a 61-5 ¾ to bump Woodard back into 4th, but it was still Woodard’s best throw since September, when she finished her outdoor season with a 61-8 ¾ throw at the Memorial van Damme in Boudewijnstadion in Brussels, Belgium,
It was Woodard’s best indoor throw since her indoor PR 61-4 ¼ to place 3rd at the 2022 USATC Indoor Championships in Spokane, Wash.
Woodard opened with a 57-10 ½, 55-11 ¾, a foul, 58-5 ¾ and another foul before closing with her 42nd lifetime 60-foot throw.
Woodard’s 60-11 ¼ is No. 11 in the world this year.
Woodard is No. 15 in U.S. history with her 63-7 ¾ in Eugene in June of 2022.
Here’s a look at Woodard’s year-by-year finishes at U.S. Nationals:
2017 Outdoors [Sacramento]: 8th, 57-5 ½
2018 Indoors: DNC
2018 Outdoors [Des Moines]: 9th, 58-0 ¾
2019 Indoors [New York]: 7th, 57-11 ½
2019 Outdoors [Des Moines]: 6th, 57-10 ¾
2020 Indoors [Albuquerque]: 6th, 57-10 ¾
2020 Outdoors [cancelled]
2021 Indoors [cancelled]
2021 Outdoors [Eugene], 7th, 57-11 ¾
2022 Indoors [Spokane], 3rd, 61-4 ¼
2022 Outdoors [Eugene]: 3rd, 63-7 ¾
2023 Indoors [Albuquerque]: 3rd, 57-11 ½
2023 Outdoors [Eugene]: 5th 60-3 ¼
2024 Indoors [Albuquerque]: 4th, 60-11 ¼
Here’s a look at all of Woodard’s 60-foot throws:
Jessica Woodard All-Time 60-Foot Throws
63-7 ¾ … U.S. Championships, Hayward Field, Eugene, Ore., June 26, 2022
62-7 … World Championships [qualifying], Hayward Field, Eugene, Ore., July 15, 2022
62-3 ¾ … Tucson Elite Classic, Roy P. Drachman Stadium, Tucson, Ariz., May 20, 2021
61-10 ¼ … USATF Throws Festival, Roy P. Drachman Stadium, Tucson, Ariz., May 22, 2021
61-8 ¾ … NACAC Championships, Freeport Stadium, Grand Bahamas, Aug. 21, 2022
61-8 ¾ … Memorial van Damme, Boudewijnstadion, Brussels, Belgium, Sept. 7, 2023
61-7 ¾ … U.S. Championships, Hayward Field, Eugene, Ore., June 26, 2022
61-7 ¾ … U.S. Championships, Hayward Field, Eugene, Ore., June 26, 2022
61-7 … USATF Golden Games, Hilmer Lodge Stadium, Walnut, Calif., April 16, 2022
61-6 ½ … Ed Murphey Classic, Memphis, Tenn., July 30, 2022
61-5 ¼ … NACAC Championships, Freeport Stadium, Grand Bahamas, Aug. 21, 2022
61-5 ¼ … Diamond League Meeting de Paris, Stade Charléty, Paris, June 9, 2023
61-4 ¼ … Tucson Elite Classic, Roy P. Drachman Stadium, Tucson, Ariz., May 19, 2023
61-4¼i … U.S. Indoor Championships, Spokane, Wash., Feb. 26, 2022
61-3 ¾ … Ed Murphey Classic, Wolfe Track Complex, Memphis, Aug. 4, 2023
61-3½ … NCAA Championships, Hayward Field, Eugene, Ore., June 7, 2018
61-3 … World Championships [final], Hayward Field, Eugene, Ore., July 16, 2022
61-2 ¼ … Meeting International Mohammed VI d’Athletisme de Rabat, Complexe Sportif Prince Moulay Abdellah, Rabat, Morocco, May 28, 2023
61-1 ¾ … Diamond League Meeting de Paris, Stade Charléty, Paris, June 9, 2023
61-1 ¼ … World Championships [final], Hayward Field, Eugene, Ore., July 16, 2022
60-11 ¼ … U.S. Championships, Albuquerque Convention Center, Feb. 16, 2024
60-10 ¾ … Tucson Elite Classic, Roy P. Drachman Stadium, Tucson, Ariz., May 19, 2023
60-10i … U.S. Indoor Championships, Spokane, Wash., Feb. 26, 2022
60-10 … USATF Throws Festival, Roy P. Drachman Stadium, Tucson, Ariz., May 22, 2022
60-9½ … USATF Golden Games, Hilmer Lodge Stadium, Walnut, Calif., May 9, 2021
60-7¼ … USATF Golden Games, Hilmer Lodge Stadium, Walnut, Calif., May 9, 2021
60-7½i … Don Kirby Elite, Albuquerque (N.M.) Convention Center, Feb. 12, 2022
60-6 ¾ … Tucson Elite Classic, Roy P. Drachman Stadium, Tucson, Ariz., May 19, 2023
60-6 ½ … USATF Throws Fest, Roy P. Drachman Stadium, Tucson, Ariz., May 20, 2023
60-5¾ … Tucson Elite Classic, Roy P. Drachman Stadium, Tucson, Ariz., May 20, 2021
60-4¾ … USATF Throws Fest, Roy P. Drachman Stadium, Tucson, Ariz., May 22, 2021
60-4 ½ … USATF Throws Fest, Roy P. Drachman Stadium, Tucson, Ariz., May 20, 2023
60-4 … Goteborg Grand Prix, Goteborg, Sweden, Aug. 16, 2019
60-3¼ … U.S. Olympic Trials, Hayward Field, Eugene, Ore., June 24, 2021
60-3 ¼ … U.S. National Championships, Hayward Field, Eugene, Ore., July 8, 2023
60-3 … Big 12 Championships, Lawrence, Kans., May 13, 2017
60-3 … Ed Murphey Classic, Memphis, Tenn., July 30, 2022
60-4½ … USATF Golden Games, Hilmer Lodge Stadium, Walnut, Calif., April 16, 2022
60-3 … NACAC Championships, Freeport Stadium, Grand Bahamas, Aug. 21, 2022
60-1¼ … Chula Vista High Performance #3, Elite Training Stadium, Chula Vista, Calif., May 2, 2021
60-0 ½ … Chula Vista High Performance #1, Elite Training Stadium, Chula Vista, Calif., April 3, 2021
60-0 ½ … Tucson Elite Classic, Roy P. Drachman Stadium, Tucson, Ariz., May 19, 2022
From the Backstretch by Reuben Frank 