Auburn junior Ja’Kobe Tharp ran the fourth fastest time in history in the men’s 60-meter hurdles, finishing in 7.36 seconds during the semifinals at the NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships on March 13 at the Randal Tyson Center in Fayetteville, Arkansas. Tharp, along with two other Auburn sprinters, advanced to Saturday’s finals.
Tharp is the defending national indoor champion and broke his own school record with this performance. His time is also the fastest recorded worldwide so far in 2026 and was just one hundredth of a second short of Grant Holloway’s collegiate record. Tharp overcame a slow start but surged ahead between the second and third hurdles to win his heat and secure an automatic spot in Saturday’s final.
“The start was horrendous, but as Coach Ken (Harnden) says, ‘stay calm, stay collected and focus on what we do’,” said Tharp. “I stayed calm and collected. The win was great, the time was a bonus. I love it.”
In other events, sophomore Israel Okon ran a personal best of 6.48 seconds to win his heat in the men’s 60-meter dash, marking the second fastest time in Auburn history and qualifying for Saturday’s final. Junior Kayinsola Ajayi also qualified for the final with a time of 6.51 seconds after winning his heat; senior Omari Lewis finished fourteenth overall with a time of 6.63 seconds.
On the women’s side, junior Ana-Liese Torian advanced to the finals in the women’s 60-meter hurdles by running an 8.06-second non-automatic qualifying time. Torian became Auburn’s first finalist in this event since Vonette Dixon won a national championship in 2000. Senior Danae Nembhard finished tenth overall with a time of 8.09 seconds but missed advancing by two hundredths of a second.
Saturday’s competition will begin for Auburn with senior Megan Hague and junior Camryn Massey competing in the women’s shot put.
