Track and Field Starts 2024 Outdoor Season At Yellow Jacket Invitational

COLUMBIA, Mo. — University of Missouri track and field opens the 2024 outdoor season with a trip to Atlanta, Georgia, for the Yellow Jacket Invitational hosted by Georgia Tech on Saturday, March 16. 

MU will be one of 15 schools to send competitors to George C. Griffin Track this weekend. The Tigers will be joined by SEC compatriots Auburn, Georgia and Ole Miss. Saturday’s competition spans from 8 a.m. until 4 p.m. CT.

• At the 2024 NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships, Mizzou maintained its streak of yielding multiple indoor All-Americans that stretches back to 1997.
• Alicia Burnett picked up her first career All-America recognition in the women’s 60m, taking 12th to become a Second Team All-American. She became the first Tiger sprinter to become an All-American since Markesh Woodson and Kahmari Montgomery at the 2016 NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships.
• Sterling Scott earned the top freshman placement in the men’s triple jump, finishing 11th to take home All-America Second Team recognition. 

• At the Yellow Jacket Invitational, the Tigers will see a trio of competitors make their Mizzou debuts.
• Emanuele Bellanova will suit up in the Black and Gold for the first time in preparation for his debut as a decathlete. The competitor from Vercelli, Italy, will represent MU in the 200m, high jump and long jump.
• ULM transfer Callan Saldutto joins the Tigers in the javelin after a successful stint with the Warhawks. The Toronto, Ontario, native scored a pair of podium finishes at the Sun Belt Conference Outdoor Championships, qualified for the NCAA East Preliminary Round in each of his two seasons and represented Canada at the U20 World Championships in 2021.
• Tarique George comes to Columbia after a stellar stint at Wyoming. The thrower from Kingston, Jamaica, earned a bronze medal at the Mountain West Outdoor Championships and qualified for the NCAA West Preliminary Round in 2023.

• Under the guise of head coach Brett Halter, the javelin event group looks to continue its consistent success.
• Last season, the Tigers featured five javelin throwers who advanced to the NCAA West Preliminary Round — Valentina Bornacelli, Skylar Ciccolini, Atina Kamasi, Sophia Rivera and Erin Zimmerman. 
• Ciccolini and Rivera each advanced to the NCAA Championships, where they both earned All-American First Team recognition.
• Mizzou adds a pair of conference champions from the transfer portal. Marysa Flieg joins the women’s roster as a two-time Ohio Valley Conference javelin champion at SEMO. Callan Saldutto comes to MU as the 2023 Sun Belt Conference men’s javelin champion at ULM.

• Last season, the Tigers yielded seven All-Americans at the 2023 NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships, the program’s most since 2016.
• Roberto Vilches earned a bronze medal at the NCAA Championships in the men’s high jump, marking MU’s highest finish since Karissa Schweizer claimed a pair of top-three results at the 2018 NCAA Championships.
• Claudina Diaz notched her first All-America accolade, becoming a First Team All-American in the women’s high jump by finishing fifth.
• A pair of javelin throwers claimed All-America First Team honors. Skylar Ciccolini picked up her second All-America finish in fifth place, and Sophia Rivera rounded out her stalwart career with her third All-America result in sixth place.
• Euphenie Andre became a two-time All-American, taking 12th in the women’s triple jump to secure a Second Team All-America placement.
• Christopher Conrad took home his second All-America finish, taking 13th in the men’s 800m to become a Second Team All-American.
• Kaia Harris rounded out Mizzou’s All-American roster in 2023, finishing 16th in the women’s discus throw to clinch All-American Second Team status.

For all the latest on Mizzou Track & Field, stay tuned to MUTigers.com and follow the team on Facebook, X, and Instagram (MizzouTFXC).