Former Kentucky track star Masai Russell has made American history

Former Kentucky track star Masai Russell has made American history.

On Friday in Miramar, FL, Russell ran the second-fastest time at the 100-meter hurdles in world history, setting an American record in the process with a time of 12.17 seconds. The Olympic gold medalist narrowly beat out fellow American Tia Jones, whose time of 12.19 seconds is the third-fastest in world history.

Russell overtook another UK alumna, Keni Harrison, for the top speed in this event in American history. Harrison ran the 100-meter hurdles in 12.20 seconds in 2016. Russell’s previous best time was 12.25 seconds at the Olympic trials.

“I didn’t expect that, but I just went out there and competed,” Russell said of her record-setting performance, according to NBC Sports. “It shows when you turn your brain off and compete, you don’t know what you’re capable of.”

Russell’s tailwind speed of two meters per second stayed within the legal parameters to set the fastest time in American history. The 24-year-old’s finish of 12.17 seconds was just five hundredths shy of Nigerian Tobi Amusan’s world record, which was set at the 2022 World Championships.

🇺🇸Masai Russell's reaction when she realized she broke the American record 😤pic.twitter.com/MIGP22BemO

— Travis Miller (@travismillerx13) May 2, 2025

Russell, who graduated from UK in 2023, won a gold medal in the same event for the United States last summer at the Paris Olympics. In a photo finish, her time of 12.33 seconds was only 0.1 seconds faster than the second-place finisher. Jasmine Camacho-Quinn, another UK grad, earned bronze in that race with a time of 12.36 seconds.

Got thoughts? Take advantage of our KSR+ Introductory Offer and continue the conversation on KSBoard, the KSR Message Board. $1 for a week.