LOGAN, Utah – Juniors Landon Bott and Walker Deede and senior Logan Hammer will represent Utah State track and field at the 2026 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships at Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon, from Wednesday to Saturday, June 10-13.

MEET INFORMATION
2026 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships
Date: June 10-13, 2026 
Start: Wednesday @ 2 p.m.; Thursday @ 11:45 a.m.; Friday @ 12:45 p.m.; Saturday @ 12:30 p.m. (MT)
Site: Eugene, Oregon
Venue: Hayward Field
Broadcast: ESPN (Wed.) / ESPN2 (Thurs.-Sat.)
Live Results: Flash Results
Competitions: Meet Schedule
More Information: Championships Central

DIRECTOR OF TRACK & FIELD/CROSS COUNTRY ARTIE GULDEN
"We are really proud of Logan, Walker and Landon. It's a special opportunity to compete at an NCAA championship. I hope they take some time to enjoy the moment and experience, but then combine that with competing like crazy and swinging for the fences."

BOTT TAKEOVER
Bott enters the national championships amid an illustrious junior campaign. On January 30 at the USU-hosted Roman Ruiz Speed and Power Invitational, the North Salt Lake, Utah, native clocked in at 1:47.79 (1:45.72 after adjusting for altitude and track type) to break the Utah State record in the 800 meters, which was set by U.S. Olympian and three-time national champion Mark Enyeart in 1977. Two weeks later at the Tyson Invitational, Bott broke his own 800-meter record with a time of 1:47.55. He led the Aggies' DMR squad to a silver medal at the MW indoor championships on February 26 before missing the conference 800-meter competition due to injury. Bott returned to action at the NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships, where he placed 16th in the field with a time of 1:52.28 to claim second-team All-American honors.

Bott opened the 2026 outdoor season with a bang, winning the 800 meters with a time of 1:48.67 to break the Utah facility record at the Utah Spring Classic on April 11. He followed up that performance by breaking the MW record in the event with a time of 1:45.83 at the Bryan Clay Invitational on April 17. Bott defended his MW outdoor title in the 800 meters on May 16, winning gold with a time of 1:48.18, before making his way through the NCAA West First Rounds with a first-round time of 1:48.19 and a quarterfinal performance of 1:46.96. The Woods Cross HS product enters his first outdoor championships with the 17th-fastest time in the country.

WALKER, AGGIE THROWER
Deede became the first Aggie javelin thrower since Sindri Gudmundsson in 2019 to qualify for the national championships. The Springville, Utah, native's junior-year breakout began at the UVU Collegiate Invitational on March 26, where he set a personal-best mark with a throw of 69.60 meters (228-4). He bested that personal best three weeks later at the Beach Invitational on April 17, throwing 71.04 meters (233-1). On April 24 at the Aggie Invitational, Deede launched a meet-best throw of 74.90 meters (245-9), the second-best throw in Utah State and MW history. The two-time MW silver medalist earned his first career gold medal at the MW outdoor championships on May 14, dominating the field with a throw of 72.91 meters (239-2). Deede enters the national championships with the 11th-best throw in the country in 2026 while also having thrown at least 70 meters in five-straight meets.

RAISING THE BAR
Hammer has continued to build on his historic Aggie career during the 2025-26 campaign. He opened the indoor season by breaking his own Utah State indoor pole vault record with a clearance of 5.63 meters (18-5.75) at the BYU December Invitational on December 10. On January 16, Hammer competed at the National Pole Vault Summit in Reno, Nevada, where he finished best among collegiate vaulters and 10th overall with a jump of 5.60 meters (18-4.5). The Nampa, Idaho, native claimed his third-straight Mountain West indoor pole vault title with a clearance of 5.50 meters (18-0.5) on February 28 before earning second-team All-American honors at the NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships with a 14th-place mark of 5.40 meters (17-8.5).

Hammer carried his success into the outdoor season. On April 16 at the Pacific Coast Invitational, Hammer cleared a season-best 5.60 meters (18-4.5), then matched it two days later at the Beach Invitational. He claimed his fourth-straight MW gold medal, and the seventh MW gold medal of his career, by clearing 5.55 meters (18-2.5) at the conference championships on May 16. Hammer enters the national championships with the 13th-best outdoor pole vault mark in the NCAA.

AGGIES AT THE NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS
Utah State will be sending three athletes to the national championships, the program's most since the six-athlete contingent of Spencer Fehlberg (3,000-meter steeplechase), Brenn Flint (shot put), Sindri Gudmundsson (javelin), Clay Lambourne (800 meters), Dillon Maggard (5,000 meters, 10,000 meters) and Cierra Simmons-Mecham (3,000-meter steeplechase) in 2018. Hammer will be making his third straight appearance at outdoor nationals, having finished 16th with a clearance of 5.22 meters (17-1.5) at the 2024 championships and 13th at the 2025 championships with a height of 5.33 meters (17-5.75) to earn second-team All-American honors both seasons. Bott and Deede will compete at the outdoor championships for the first time in their careers, with Bott also having placed 16th at the 2026 indoor championships with an 800-meter time of 1:52.28.

The men's best-ever team finish came in 1958, when Olympic silver medalist L. Jay Silvester earned All-American honors in the discus and shot put to lead the Aggies to an eighth-place finish. The 1997 women's team earned the program's top team finish at the outdoor nationals, a 38th-place showing powered by Olympian LaDonna Antoine's All-American performance in the 400 meters.

LAST MEET
Utah State track and field advanced three athletes to the national championships and set one school top-10 mark at the NCAA West First Rounds in College Station, Texas. Deede punched his ticket to the national championships with a javelin throw of 70.02 meters (229-9), Hammer qualified for nationals in the men's pole vault by clearing 5.37 meters (17-7.25) and Bott clocked in at 1:46.96 in the 800-meter quarterfinals to take third in his heat, securing a berth to nationals.

FOLLOW ALONG
Fans can follow the Utah State track and field programs on X at USUTF_XC, on Facebook at USUTrack and on Instagram at USUTF_XC. Aggie fans can also follow the Utah State athletic program on X at USUAthletics or on Facebook at Utah State University Athletics.

COMPETITION SCHEDULE FOR UTAH STATE ATHLETES (ALL TIMES MT)
Wednesday, June 10
Track Events
7:58 p.m. - Men's 800 Meters - Semifinals (Landon Bott)

Field Events
6:35 p.m. - Men's Pole Vault - Finals (Logan Hammer)
7:15 p.m. - Men's Javelin - Finals (Walker Deede)

Friday, June 12
Track Events
7:14 p.m. - Men's 800 Meters - Finals (Landon Bott)

-USU-