PHILADELPHIA – The Penn Relays presented by Toyota is excited to announce a star-studded women's 600m Olympic Development field set for Saturday, April 30 at Franklin Field, highlighted by three Olympians.
 
The field will feature: Athing Mu, Ajeé Wilson, Natoya Goule, Sadi Henderson, Olivia Baker, Nia Akins, Jazmine Fray, and Sophia Gorriaran.
 
"The spirit of the Penn Relays' crowd and our spectator's appreciation of great competition are why competing in Franklin Field is such a special experience," said Steve Dolan, the Frank Dolson Director of the Penn Relays. "We are all in for a real treat as this world class group of women's 800m runners drop down to test themselves and each other over 600m. This could be one for the history books!"

Purchase your tickets to the 2022 Penn Relays to witness this historic race by clicking HERE.
 
Mu, Wilson, and Goule each made the trip to Tokyo last year, competing against each other in the 800m.
 
Mu, who won the 800m at the Olympics, also earned a second gold medal for the United States in the 4x400m relay. Her gold medal time of 1:55.21 in the 800m broke the American record and ended a 53-year Olympic win drought for the USA – the last American woman who won the 800m was Madeline Manning at the 1968 Mexico Olympics. Currently ranked second in the world in the 800m, she clocked a time of 1:55.04 back in the end of August 2021 at the Prefontaine Classic in Oregon to improve the American record. A local from Trenton, New Jersey, Mu will be racing for the first time in her career at the Penn Relays.
 
Wilson has one of the most decorated careers in the 800m, bolstering 12 USA Indoor/Outdoor championships, as well as earning three World Championship medals. Her most recent victory came at the World Athletic Indoor Championships back in March, clocking a 1:59.09 to take gold in Serbia. A personal best time of 1:55.61 in the 800m, she ranked atop the world ranking for over 100 weeks in the event. The Philadelphia native is familiar with the Penn Relays and Franklin Field. Her most recent trip to the stadium was last July, running a time of 1:57.85 in the 800m at the Penn Relays Summer Series.
 
Mu and Wilson currently hold the American 600m records, as Mu set a mark of 1:23.57 for indoor and Wilson hit a time of 1:22.39 for outdoor.
 
Goule, a Jamaica native, was also an Olympic finalist in the 800m, taking eighth with a time of 1:58.26. Currently ranked fourth in the world in the 800m, she hit her personal best of 1:56.15 in Monaco in 2018, a mark that earned her the Jamaican record. In 2019, she was a Pan-Am Games gold medalist in the 800m and earned bronze in the 4x400m relay. Her latest performance was against Wilson in the 800m finals at the World Athletics Indoor Championships in Serbia, taking fourth with a time of 2:01.18.
 
Henderson and Baker both make the trip to Franklin Field, representing Atlanta Track Club. Henderson's top 800m time sits at 1:58.62, taking second at the Sunset Tour in Sacramento, California in July 2021. The Boise State graduate is coming off a successful US Indoor Nationals performance in the 800m, taking fifth with a time of 2:03.92. Baker also joined Henderson at the US Indoor Nationals in February, taking second place with a time of 2:02.14. She qualified for the World Athletics Indoor Championship in Serbia, marking her last performance in the 800m with a time of 2:02.35. Her personal best time in the event is 2:00.08.
 
Akins is making her long-awaited return to Franklin Field, graduating from Penn in 2020. A runner for Brooks Beasts now, she has continued her success on the track after being a 2021 USA Olympic Trials finalist in Oregon. The last time she competed at the Penn Relays in 2019, she was named the College Most Outstanding Performer as a key piece to the Quaker's victory in the DMR Championship of America. She was the 2019 800m NCAA Indoor and Outdoor runner-up and graduated as second in NCAA history in the indoor 800m with a time of 2:00.71. When she left Penn, she left her name atop the program record book in eight different events between indoor and outdoor. Akins' personal best in the 800m is 2:00.11.
 
Jazmine Fray, another Jamaica native and running for District Track Club, defeated Akins back in 2019 to be crowned the 800m NCAA Outdoor champion. Her top mark in the 800m currently sits at 2:00.69, a time she hit back in February 2017 in Clemson while she was running for Texas A&M. While performing for the Aggies, she became an 11-time All-American, including six in the 800m.
 
Gorriaran is bursting onto the scene, being the youngest runner at the 2021 US Olympic Trials at the age of 16. Her top time in the 800m currently sits at 2:00.58. As only a high school junior, she broke the World U18 800m indoor record earlier this year in Boston and was a part of a trio of high school girls that rewrote the high school 800m record books this winter.
 
Ticket prices will increase on April 12, so head to www.PennRelays.com now!