Kentucky track star Abby Steiner breaks collegiate record to win national title

UK track and field star Abby Steiner is a national champion again.

The Wildcat sprinter earned her first outdoor title by finishing first in the 200-meter dash in collegiate-record time (21.8 seconds) Saturday at the NCAA outdoor championships in Eugene, Oregon.

Steiner and teammates Karimah Davis, Dajour Miles and Alexis Holmes also won the title in the 4x400-meter relay.

The UK women's track and field team finished third overall.

Steiner, who had twice won the indoor title in the 200-meter dash, beat LSU's Favour Ofili, the Southeastern Conference champion in the event, to win the race. Ofili had set the previous collegiate record (21.96 seconds) earlier this season.

Steiner's time was the fastest women's 200-meter dash in the world this year.

Her time was also the 21st fastest women's 200 meter ever. American Florence Griffith-Joyner owns the world-record time of 21.34 set in the 1988 Olympics.

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“I don’t think it’s sunk in yet,” Steiner said, according to a UK news release.

"Just looking back on the meet from last year, I was watching it from my couch, and so much has gone into just being at this meet in the first place. I’m just surrounded by so many amazing people at Kentucky, my family was able to be here, so these are moments I’m going to hold onto forever."

Steiner was held from the 2021 championships for Achilles tendinitis that also kept her from participating in qualifying for the Tokyo Olympics.

The Dublin, Ohio, native ran the third leg in UK's 4x400-meter relay team, which won its title in 3:22.55.

She also won a bronze medal in the 100-meter dash (11.08 seconds), just missing a second title when she was outleaned by Texas sprinter Julien Alfred (11.020) and Oregon sprinter Kemba Nelson (11.014).

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The Wildcat 4x100-meter relay team of Shadajah Ballard, Steiner, Masai Russell and Davis won a silver medal (42.55 seconds). Russell won her first individual outdoor medal with a bronze in the 100-meter hurdles (12.81 seconds).

Email Jon Hale at jahale@courier-journal.com; Follow him on Twitter at @JonHale_CJ. 

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Abby Steiner: Kentucky track star wins 200-meter outdoor title