At The U.S. Outdoor Championships, Cambrea Sturgis Proved She Belonged

The U.S. Outdoor Track and Field Championships were nearing their end at Icahn Stadium on Sunday in New York City when Cambrea Sturgis stepped to the line. 

The Central Texas resident made sure to make it count. 

Racing in her first national outdoor final since 2022, the 27-year-old former North Carolina A&T University star and two-time NCAA champion finished second overall in the 200 meters, clocking a time of 22.22 seconds to claim her first podium finish since becoming a professional that same year. 

Melissa Jefferson-Wooden, the reigning world 100- and 200-meter champion, won in 21.69 seconds. Gabby Thomas, an Olympic champion in 2024 who also trains in Central Texas with Sturgis, opted out of the meet.

Sturgis highlighted a trio of women at the U.S. Championships from the Central Texas-based training group led by Tonja Buford-Bailey. Bianca Stubler, an Austin real estate agent and professional hurdler, was fourth in the women’s 400-meter hurdles in 54.85 seconds. Rayniah Jones was fourth in the women’s 100-meter hurdles on Saturday in 12.59 seconds.

A Breakthrough At The U.S. Outdoor Championships

Sturgis spoke with Citius Mag after her breakthrough performance. 

“The confidence isn’t 100-percent there,” she said, “but it’s slowly getting there. Me competing and training with Gabby Thomas, it does put me in that (lane of), ‘OK, I can be with them and I can be the best of the best,’ like anybody else. I have to keep my mind focused on my race, what I need to do; to perform when it’s needed to be.”

Sturgis revealed afterward that she nearly quit the sport in recent years, fearing her career was behind her. Her season-best times in 2023 and 2024 went backward before resurgences came in 2025 and 2026. This year, she finished fifth in the 200 meters at the Monaco Diamond League and eighth in London. She’s raced in nine countries this year alone.

This year, Sturgis dipped under 22 seconds for the first time, hitting 21.93 during a nearly two-week competition tour in April spanning meets in Ethiopia, Kenya, Botswana and South Africa. She also nearly met her 100-meter PR, clocking a time of 10.92 seconds – just five-hundredths off her best from 2022.

Stubler, 27, a former University of Wisconsin standout, joined Sturgis on that trip. Her performance at Icahn Stadium in the long hurdles was a career-best performance and it ranks her 31st in the world. 

The Season Continues For Cambrea Sturgis

Sturgis’ season, meanwhile, isn’t over. 

Because she’s ranked No. 7 in the world over 200 meters, she’s booked a trip to the brand new Ultimate Championships, a first-year global track and field competition held by World Athletics in Budapest from September 11-13.

The world’s fastest 16 athletes in each event qualify for the competition, regardless of national affiliation – typically, only three athletes are selected to represent their nations at the Olympics or World Championships across their specific disciplines. The new competition – which will feature 16 track and 10 field events – brings a total prize pot of $10 million and $150,000 on the line for each event winner. 

It will come just a week after the Diamond League final, which is another professional track and field circuit. 

If Sturgis reaches a final, her season will be more than rewarded for her efforts. 

On Sunday, she was reminded of that hard work.

“The last couple of years, it was gone,” Sturgis told Citius Mag of her love for the sport. “I didn’t want to do track. But my coach said, ‘You’re not quitting.’ We sat down and made a plan, and the plan is coming to play this year. 

“So I’m slowly getting it back and remembering that I’m Cambrea Sturgis. I belong here.”