When the sun set on the 2024 Olympics last August, Team USA left Paris with 34 medals in track and field, including 14 golds, and a renewed sense of dominance over the rest of the world. Stars like Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone, Noah Lyles and Gabby Thomas were crowned and celebrated, minted as representatives of the next great generation for a nation with a rich history in the sport.
But when the closing ceremonies came to a close and the Olympic rings on the Eiffel Tower went dark, back into relative obscurity they went. Devout followings aside, there was little clarity as to when the next time all of track’s most famous figures would compete together and against one another, apart from the 2028 Games in Los Angeles.
