Your Complete Guide To The 2024 Millrose Games: Athletes, Storylines To Watch On Sunday

This Sunday is shaping up to be a huge day for sports fans – I’m talking, of course, about the 116th Millrose Games. What snacks will you bring to your viewing party? (No wrong answers.) Which brands will have the funniest commercials? (My money’s on Peacock.) Will Taylor Swift be there? (No.) These questions are surely top of mind for all of us as we gear up for the most important sporting event of mid-February.

There’s no Usher halftime show planned, but the historic New York-based track meet and its marquee event – the Wanamaker Mile – still promise plenty of entertainment. Recent Millrose Games have seen epic records, upset victories, and previews of future World champions – and all those stars are back in action this year.

We unpack all the top races to watch below, and we’ll also be going live with our pre-race analysis and hot takes on The CITIUS MAG Pre-Race Show.

The pro races kick off at 1 p.m. E.T. on Sunday, February 11th. You can watch it live on NBC (real TV!), on the Peacock app (subscription required), or via the World Athletics YouTube channel for most international viewers.

You can check out the full schedule, entry lists, and follow the action on the live results page. 

CITIUS MAG’s coverage of the 2024 Millrose Games is presented by Bandit.

Bandit is a performance running brand based in Brooklyn, New York. Founded in 2022, they just had 9 athletes compete in the Marathon Trials and told those stories via their documentary-style YouTube series "Dialed": Check those out here. They also just relaunched their Membership, a program that enhances your relationship with Bandit via early access, discounts, and exclusive events/gear/content/you-name-it. For a limited time, get 20% off The Membership (and any product if it's your first order) using code Citius20.

Here are the top events, storylines, and athletes to watch at the 116th Millrose Games by David Melly.

Yared Nuguse vs. The Clock In Wanamaker Mile

The big story out of Millrose last year was Yared Nuguse. His blazing-fast kick and 3:47.38 American record turned heads – and he also ran cleanly away from Neil Gourley and teammate Ollie Hoare, who got their national records in the process. One year later, Nuguse has run almost four seconds faster (albeit outdoors), and with both the indoor and outdoor American records in his pocket, there’s only one target left: Yomif Kejelcha’s 3:47.01 world record. Coming off a 13:02.09 5000m in January, there’s no doubt that Nuguse is fit and has to be considered the heavy favorite.

But that doesn’t mean he won’t face pressure from a stacked field of guys who’ve also demonstrated recent fitness. Hobbs Kessler looked phenomenal besting the field en route to a new 1500m PB last weekend at the New Balance Indoor Grand Prix in 3:33.66, a time worth roughly 3:50.7 for the full mile. Cooper Teare looked similarly strong winning the 2024 U.S. cross-country championship in January. Last year’s runner-up Gourley appears to have withdrawn based on entry lists, but fellow Brit George Mills has a 3:47.65 PB to his name, beat Nuguse head-to-head in Boston over 5000m, and may be the biggest threat to a repeat.

Hull vs. St. Pierre Rematch In Wanamaker Mile

The Wanamaker mile also features the reigning American record holder, who also set the mark in this exact race. However, Elle St. Pierre set her 4:16.85 PB in 2020 and defended her title in 2022 before missing the most recent edition to give birth to her son, Ivan. The 2023 champ, Laura Muir, is hitting up the 2 mile this time around, so instead the big battle will be between St. Pierre and the woman who defeated her last weekend at New Balance, Jessica Hull. 

Hull eked out a victory in the 3000m with a strong finishing kick and has shown fitness across a range of distances, also setting the Australian record in the 1000m earlier in January. But St. Pierre won’t be keen to lose two races in a row to her rival, and it’ll be interesting to see if the typically front-running American switches up her tactics in an attempt to turn the tables on her rival.

The field also features strong milers like OAC’s Josette Andrews, Canada’s Lucia Stafford, and Taylor Made’s Anna Camp Bennett, the latter of whom won the mile at the BU Terrier Classic a few weeks earlier. And with NCAA 1500m champ Maia Ramsden in the race coming off a mile PB last weekend, keep an eye on the collegiate top-10 list.

OAC vs. The Milers In Two-Mile

A steeplechaser, a 10k runner, and a podcast host walk into a bar… and immediately challenge a whole bunch of milers to a race. That’s the setup we have for an explosive 2 mile at Millrose, headlined by World 1500m champion Josh Kerr who’s talked a big game about targeting a historically fast time. His national record also happens to be the world indoor record – 8:03.40 set by Mo Farah in 2015 – and if he’s really in that kind of shape the rest of the talented field will be hard-pressed to stay with him. A strung-out race would certainly help the likes of OAC’s Morgan McDonald or Joe Klecker, coming off solid 5000m performances in January, but a kicker’s race would open the door for Geordie Beamish to pull a “textbook George” kick to the win. And if Cole Hocker can recapture his 2021 magic, he’ll be a serious threat as well.

We’ll also get our first look at Grant Fisher in a race since announcing his departure from Bowerman Track Club. Fisher, who’s currently training on his own in Park City, Utah, and being guided by his high school coach, could certainly be in the mix with Klecker or Hocker to take a crack at Galen Rupp’s 8:07.41 American record, but we haven’t seen him race yet this year and who knows what kind of changes his new training setup have in store.

World Champions In 60m Hurdles

In the sprint events, the most stacked field may be the 60m hurdles, which feature outdoor World champions Nia Ali and Danielle Williams as well as 2022 World Indoor champ Devynne Charlton. The field also features American record co-holder Sharika Nelvis, who hasn’t quite been in the same form in recent years that saw her set her 7.70 PB in 2018, but she can’t be fully counted out.

Despite all the strong resumes in the field, the woman to beat might be Tia Jones, who took down Charlton, 2022 World outdoor champ Tobi Amusan, and much of this same field last weekend in a world-leading 7.72 at New Balance. If she’s in similar form, she’ll be tough to take down and the hurdle record books – which have already been rewritten so much recently – may get some more rewriting.

Coleman Back In Action In 60m Dash

World 100m champ Noah Lyles made a whole bunch of noise last weekend with his world-leading 6.44 at New Balance. But that time is a full tenth of a second slower than world record holder Christian Coleman, arguably the greatest 60m runner of all time with a 6.34 PB, a gold medal from 2018, and a silver from 2022. Lyles is not in this race, but the man who was barely a step behind him is: Ackeem Blake, the Jamaican with a 6.42 lifetime best who notably took down Coleman head-to-head twice over 100m last outdoor season.

If Coleman looks particularly strong here, the presumption that Lyles is the crown prince of American sprints won’t be quite as safe as it seems at the moment. That said, given how much faster Coleman is historically at the shorter event, it would take something like bettering his own world record to really reinsert himself into the conversation about who is the favorite for gold in Paris. 

American Record Under Threat In Two-Mile

The reigning Wanamaker mile champ is doubling her distance this time around: Scottish superstar Laura Muir switched from the mile to the 2 mile for Millrose after her 3000m qualifying mark was not ratified by World Athletics due to a ratification issue with the meet she ran in December. Muir wants to go for 3000m gold at the World Indoor Championships in Glasgow, where she attended university and is something of a local hero. If she goes for an easy qualifier, that won’t matter much for the front of the race, as she only has to split 8:37, but Muir rarely does things the easy way and she’ll likely be looking to run much faster.

That’s great news for the Americans in the race who may want to take a crack at Elle St. Pierre’s 9:10.28 national record. Alicia Monson already has three American records (3000m indoors, 5000m, and 10,000m) and she’s the most natural candidate to pick up a fourth as her 8:25.05 PB is 4:30.88 mile pace and the 2-mile record is “only” 4:35.14 pace and just ~218 meters longer. But there are two reigning U.S. champions in the field as well – steeplechaser Krissy Gear and 1500m runner Nikki Hiltz – so especially if it comes down to a kick, nothing is safe.

Yaroslava Mahuchikh Headlines High Jump

NBC will surely focus on media darling Vashti Cunningham, the 13-time U.S. champion (indoors and out) and the 2016 World Indoor champ, but the betting favorite in the high jump has to be reigning World indoor, World outdoor, and Diamond League champ Yaroslava Mahuchikh of Ukraine. In 17 competitions last year, Mahuchikh only lost twice, and she’s the world leader already in 2024 with a 2.04m leap.

It should be a great head-to-head battle between Cunningham and Mahuchikh, but the real question is how much of it will end up on television. With two heavy-hitters on the bill, we can only hope that the field events finally get the airtime they deserve!

Who Wins A Holloway-less 60m Hurdles?

With no Grant Holloway in the 60m hurdles, the race feels much more open. And that’s a good thing because places 2-5 from the New Balance Indoor Grand Prix are lining back up to face off in New York. Of this bunch, Trey Cunningham came out on top, but only by a hair: he beat Daniel Roberts by 3/1000ths of a second. Cunningham is currently world #2 behind Holloway with a 7.44 season’s best, so he’s probably the slight favorite. With the field entirely consisting of Americans (5) and Jamaicans (3), we’ll get another round of the greatest sprint rivalry between two countries in all of track and field.

Crowded Field Set For 800m

Sadly, Millrose fan favorite Ajee’ Wilson is a no-show for this edition of the 800m, but the quality of the field is still top-tier and the race is up for grabs. At the Dr. Sander Invitational held last month on the Armory track, Olivia Baker edged out former teammate Allie Wilson for the win, and both women are back in action here looking forward to another matchup. But they’ll have to go through Jamaican record holder Natoya Goule and fellow American Raevyn Rogers first.

Rogers raced down in distance last weekend, closing hard in the 400m to finish second among the long sprinters, and she’s always a threat to come out on top in a bunched-up race. Goule, on the other hand, tends to take things out hard, and with a 1:58.46 indoor PB, it’ll likely play out in her favor to try and drop as much of the field as possible before the final lap. But the indoor 800m is one of the most physical and unpredictable races in the sport, and anything can happen when the turns get tight and positioning is paramount.

We’re in for a barn-burner of an afternoon in NYC, and as the indoor track season really heats up, we can’t wait to see what’s next. So tune in with us and follow along with CITIUS MAG on Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube to make sure you don’t miss a minute of the action!

Get ready for another big year of track and field. Stay up to date on all of it via CITIUS MAG. Be sure to follow us on Instagram, X, Threads, YouTube and across all podcast players.