If you’re a Penn student, chances are that you’ll run into an influx of runners on your Thursday morning walk to class this week. Don’t be surprised, because one of the biggest events in track and field is returning to Franklin Field.
For those unfamiliar with track and field or the Penn Relay Carnival, but are curious enough to tune in, here’s a breakdown of the sport and what to watch once Penn Relays commences.
Back to basics
Before we get to Penn Relays, let’s start with some track and field fundamentals. Watching the athletes zoom around the track, it’s normal to think, “Almost one minute to get around the track? I could do that.” But no, you probably cannot.
One time around the oval, or 400 meters, is equal to running the length of four football fields. In Penn terms, it is the distance between Rodin College House and College Hall, which is a distance freshman sprinter Jailyn Milord can run in 53.16 seconds.
As you can imagine from the name, Penn Relays mainly consist of relays. A relay is a running event that is made up of four athletes, or four “legs,” per team. Runners carry a baton, run a predetermined distance, and hand the baton off to their teammate who is next in line to run.
For most relays, every athlete runs the same distance. For example, in a 4x100-meter relay, all athletes run 100 meters. But there are medley relays, like the sprint medley, where every leg does not run the same distance. In the sprint medley relay, distances range from 200 meters to 800 meters.
Now, the real core of the Penn Relays are the different categories of competition. The Penn Relays are known for fierce competition in the Championship of America events. For high school and college athletes, this category is reserved for the strongest competitors. High school athletes must qualify for COA in the preliminary stages of the Penn Relays by finishing within the top eight to 15 runners depending on the event.
The Penn Relays are not specific for students, but also includes the Olympic Development and Masters categories. Olympic Development events draw professional athletes from around the world, including past and future Olympic champions to compete. The Masters categories feature athletes aged 40 and older, with past competitors being up to 100 years old.
So what’s in it for the athletes? Not only does placing in a race at the Penn Relays give athletes bragging rights and TikTok content, but winners also receive a keepsake. First-place winners go home with gold watches instead of medals to keep as a reminder of their victory. Winners also have the opportunity to take a photo with the famous Penn Relays “wheel,” which has been part of the races since 1925. Second-place finishers receive silver medals, and those who place third through fifth go home with bronze medals.
Quakers to look out for
Freshman distance runner Joseph “Tiago” Socarras is making his outdoor collegiate debut at the Penn Relays. Although Socarras was spotted with a boot on the Quaker Nation podcast at the beginning of April, he’s entered in the Quakers’ 4x800m relay as the anchor leg. The Miami native had a historic indoor season, culminating in a fourth-place finish in the 800m race at NCAA Division I Indoor Track and Field Championships. He has previously anchored the Quakers to an Ivy League title in the meet record-breaking 4x800m relay.
Senior high jumper Kampton Kam stunned when he kept the wheel at home last year by winning the college men’s high jump championship at the Penn Relays. Kam, who recently decided to pursue track and field professionally, has one last bar to clear before he graduates, which is breaking 2014 Wharton graduate Maalik Reynolds’ high jump program record. Reynolds first set the program record at the Penn Relays in 2011 before bettering it at the Ivy League Heptagonal Championships — perhaps the record will fall at Franklin Field once again.
Freshman thrower Jessica Oji has a title to defend. Oji clinched the Penn Relays high school title in 2024 and 2025, becoming the fifth girl in Penn Relays history to capture multiple shot put titles. The Livingston, N.J. native is already one of the best athletes to ever don the Red and Blue, capturing the African indoor shot put record with an 18.50m shot in March. Her personal best would trounce the meet record at Penn Relays, which has stood since 2003 — before Oji was even born.
Senior thrower Angeludi Asaah has a stacked day of competition on Saturday with entries in both the shot put and discus championship fields. Asaah currently sits at No. 2 in program history in both the discus and shot put, behind 2021 College graduate and 2024 Olympian Ashley Anumba and Oji, respectively. The Honolulu native is a force to be reckoned with on the mound, and her All-American status in the discus is a testament to her strength as a thrower.
Senior javelin specialist Atticus Soehren earned the bronze in the javelin championship last year. Soehren recently threw a new personal best javelin mark at the Hurricane Collegiate Invitational in Miami, good for No. 4 in program history. Maybe the home turf advantage will net him a title.
Junior triple jumper Adannia Agbo is going for gold. At last year’s Penn Relays, she earned the bronze with a 12.52m hop, skip, and jump into a headwind. Agbo made her triple jump season debut this year at the inaugural Spec Towns Invitational.
Senior distance runner Lily Murphy is determined to go the distance. Murphy has always been a standout on the Quakers’ distance squad, capturing the Ivy League 10K title in 2024 and earning a bronze medal in the 3K at the Ivy League Heptagonal Indoor Track and Field Championships in March. In addition to the individual 5K championships on Thursday night, Murphy will also be running the distance medley relay and the 4x1500-meter relay.
Events to look out for
For those who will not make it to the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles, there is the chance to witness some Olympians compete in the Saturday session of the Penn Relays. The America 250 Day sessions on Saturday, April 25 feature some of the most competitive races.
Sean Dolan, son of track and field director Steve Dolan, will compete in the 800m Olympic Development race. He was the anchor leg of the current world-record indoor 4x800m relay, and his family ties to Penn may give him home turf advantage.
The Olympic Development triple jump will see Thea Lafond in action, the triple jump gold medalist at the 2024 Olympics. Lafond made history when she brought Dominica its first Olympic medal, and she has the chance to make history as the first Olympic Development champion from Dominica at the Penn Relays.
On Saturday afternoon, men of 80 years and older will battle in the 100m dash. Reigning champ Dominic Stellato will look to extend his win streak at just 83 years old.
Also looking to extend its reign as the Penn Relays champion is Georgetown’s men’s 4x800m relay team, competing in the Championship of America category on Saturday. Georgetown middle-distance runner Tinoda Matsatsa is the only returning member and will look to lead the new squad to victory.
Those who like to leave sports events before they end may want to rethink that habit for the Penn Relays. The last event of the weekend, the high school boys’ 4x400m Championship of America relay is one you will not want to miss. 2024 Olympian Quincy Williams will be running in the same race he competed in at the Olympics — this time, against high schoolers. But, it may not be as easy, since the Kingston College team is expected to give Williams’ Bullis High School a run for their money.
Record watch
Penn Relays hosts a few events that are rarely contested elsewhere, like the women’s 4x1500m relay, the men’s 4xMile relay, and the 4x200-meter relay. The relays typically contested in national collegiate competitions are the 4x400m relay, the indoor distance medley relay, and the 4x100m outdoor relay. The inclusion of rarer events at the Penn Relays means that there is always a chance that a world record could fall.
In 2024, Villanova ran the No. 2 all-time mark in the 4xMile – a blistering 15:51.91 anchored by long distance phenom Marco Langon. Langon and fellow Wildcat Seán Donoghue are the only returning members of that squad, and they’ll be contesting both the men’s distance medley relay and the 4x800m relay. The collegiate outdoor record for the men’s distance medley relay was set by Arkansas at the Penn Relays in 1989.
Arkansas’ long-distance runners stunned in 2022 as well, running the No. 3 all-time mark in the women’s 4x1500m relay to reset the collegiate record at Franklin Field. Although Arkansas will not be competing at the Penn Relays this year, 2025 NCAA D-I Cross Country champion N.C. State and former 4x1500m relay American record holder Stanford look to rewrite the Razorbacks’ mark in the record books.
A collegiate record could also fall in a non-relay event this year. Rowan’s Seth Clevenger recently took down the Division III indoor 5K record. His personal record in the event — a blistering 13:32.09 set during the indoor season — is also nine seconds below the D-III outdoor 5K record. With heightened competition from D-I athletes, it’s likely that Clevenger will lower the mark once again.
It’s safe to say that the 130th running of the Penn Relays will be a historic event. With program, meet, and collegiate records up in the air, anything is possible.
