FAYETTEVILLE – Razorback freshman Kaylyn Brown was among six athletes named to the relay pool for Team USA at the Olympic Games in Paris as USA Track & Field announced its full roster on Tuesday.
In addition to Brown, the relay pool for the United States includes Shamier Little, who has been a volunteer assistant with the Razorbacks while training with Arkansas head coach Chris Johnson.
Incoming transfer Isabella Whittaker was also selected for the relay pool and will join her sister, Juliette Whittaker, on the Olympic team. Juliette finished third in the 800m during the U.S. Olympic Team Trials.
The second fastest American 400m runner in 2024 with a career best of 49.13, Brown placed fourth in the 400m final at the U.S. Trials. Little placed fourth in the 400m hurdles, and finished ninth in the 400m. Whittaker, competing for the University of Pennsylvania, placed sixth in the 400m.
Andrenette Knight, a professional training in Fayetteville, was selected to Jamaica’s relay pool after placing sixth in the 400m and fourth in the 400m hurdles during the Jamaica National Trials.
The relay pools add depth for teams with both a mixed 4 x 400m relay and a women’s 4 x 400m relay taking place during the Olympic Games.
During her initial collegiate season, the 19-year-old Brown produced seven sub-50 times among 10 races during the outdoor season. Her progression of career best times from a prep outdoor best of 53.11 (2022) included 53.04 during her collegiate indoor debut, followed by additional indoor efforts of 51.49 and 50.83.
Brown’s outdoor campaign opened with a stunning 49.95 victory at Florida’s Tom Jones Memorial in mid-April, laying claim to the outdoor world leading time.
Returning to Gainesville for the SEC Championships in mid-May, Brown improved to 49.86 in the prelims and produced a 49.47 in the final as part of a 1-2-3-5 finish by Arkansas.
With the Razorbacks generating a historic 1-2-3-4 super sweep in the NCAA 400m final, Brown equaled the previous collegiate record of 49.13, set in 2023 by Arkansas’ Britton Wilson, as the silver medalist behind a 48.89 winning performance from teammate Nickisha Pryce.
Brown and Wilson now share the No. 5 performer position on the all-time U.S. list. The 49.13 also made Brown the fastest 19-year-old in world history, bettering the 49.42 set in 1999 by Germany’s Grit Breuer.
Last season, the Razorbacks had a trio of relay medalists during the World Athletics Championships in Budapest, Hungary.
Rosey Effiong earned a gold medal as the United States set a world record in the mixed 4 x 400m relay. Pryce ran on Jamaica’s silver medal 4 x 400m relay while Amber Anning was a member of Great Britain’s bronze medal team.
In 2024, they combined with Brown to create a dynamic season for Arkansas that included a pair of NCAA Championship team titles.
With the 2024 NCAA Outdoor team title on the line as schools raced in the final event, the 4 x 400m relay, the Razorback trio with World Championship experience ran the first three legs – Anning (50.52), Effiong (49.21), Pryce (49.19) – and then handed off the baton to Brown.
A 49.04 anchor leg by Brown delivered an amazing final time of 3:17.96, shattering the collegiate record Arkansas set in the NCAA West First Round with a 3:21.92. Only three countries – Soviet Union, United States, and East Germany – have ever run faster than the Razorbacks.
