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With thousands of athletes in action across the country -- including at the VA Showcase, Jimmy Carnes Invitational, Arkansas High School Invitational and more -- that made for some entertaining performances.
Some athletes made statements in their indoor track and field debuts, while others lowered personal bests and put themselves among the best competitors in their grades.
We feature four of those many athletes that reached new achievements over the weekend.
Below are honorees on The Podium from some of the most recent indoor competition.
The Podium (Jan. 17):
Kyla Skinner, Mandarin (FL): Finished fourth in 15-16yo 400m at the Jimmy Carnes Invitational in her first-ever indoor competition with a time of 59.96, ranking her at US No. 35 among 10th graders in the event. Skinner also competed in the 60m and 200m to make for quite the impressive indoor debut.
Damon Ferguson, Calvert Hall College HS (MD): Placed third in both the open long jump and 500m at the VA Showcase, registering PRs of 21-5.5 and 1:07.77. Ferguson's new long jump personal best also makes him the second-best freshman long jumper in the nation so far, and it was only his second time ever contesting the event.
Temi Ariyo, Overlea (MD): Won the 1,600m at the Montgomery Invitational with a 5:02.78 PR. Not only did Ariyo clock a new event PR, but she absolutely smashed her previous best from the 2022 indoor season of 6:43.83.
Noah Valyo, Athens Drive (NC): Took the win in the open two mile section at the VA Showcase in 9:12.26. That would've put Valyo at 6th overall if he had contested the invitational division of the two mile, and he even took over 20 seconds off his lifetime indoor best in the event.
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