Masai Russell (/məˈsaɪ/ ⓘ mə-SY; born June 17, 2000) is an American track and field sprinter and hurdler. She won the gold medal at the 2024 Summer Olympics in the 100 m hurdles event. Russell is the U.S. NCAA Record holder in the 100 m hurdles.

Russell holds personal bests of 12.17 seconds over 100 m hurdles which is second-fastest of all time and the American Record, 7.74 seconds over 60 metres hurdles, which is tied for thirteenth-fastest of all time and 54.66 seconds over 400 metres hurdles.

Career

In 2021, Russell ran her first sub-13s 100 m hurdles in placing second in her heat at the SEC Championships. She went on to place sixth in the final. Later that year, Russell ran 12.93s to make the final of the NCAA Division I Championships, where she finished sixth.

At the 2022 NCAA Division I Outdoor Championships, Russell placed third in the 100 m hurdles and fourth in the 400 m hurdles.

In 2023, Russell broke the collegiate record for the 60 m hurdles, running 7.75s to beat Grace Stark's time of 7.78s set the year before. In April, she ran a collegiate record of 12.36s over 100 m hurdles at the Texas Relays. In June, she placed second in both the 100 m hurdles and 400 m hurdles at the 2023 NCAA Division I Outdoor Championships. At the 2023 USA Outdoor Championships, Russell finished third qualifying to represent the United States at the World Championships in Budapest. She made the semi-finals, but did finish there after hitting a hurdle.

Russell finished fourth in the 60 m hurdles at the 2024 World Indoor Championships. She placed first at the 2024 U.S. Olympic Trials in the 100 m hurdles in a personal best time of 12.25 to qualify her for the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris. At the Olympics, Russell won gold with a time of 12.33s, narrowly beating Cyrena Samba-Mayela. She ended her 2024 season by finishing third at the inaugural Athlos meet.

In September 2024, it was announced that she had signed up for the inaugural season of the Michael Johnson-founded Grand Slam Track.

In May 2025, Russell ran the 100-meter hurdles in a time of 12.17 seconds, an American record.

Education

Russell graduated from Bullis School in 2018. She graduated from the University of Kentucky with a degree in Health Science in 2023.

Professional

Circuit performances

Grand Slam Track results
SlamRace groupEventPl.TimePrize money
2025 Kingston SlamShort hurdles100 m hurdles5th12.78US$15,000
100 m5th11.86
2025 Miami SlamShort hurdles100 m hurdles1st12.17US$50,000
100 m4th11.40

National championships

YearCompetitionVenuePositionEventNotes
2021US Olympic TrialsEugene, Oregon6th (sf)400 Meters Hurdles58.00
2022USA Outdoor Track and Field ChampionshipsEugene, Oregon6th400 Meters Hurdles55.66
2023USA Outdoor Track and Field ChampionshipsEugene, Oregon3rd100 Meters Hurdles12.46
2024USA Indoor Track and Field ChampionshipsAlbuquerque, New Mexico3rd60 Meters Hurdles7.80
US Olympic TrialsEugene, Oregon1st100 Meters Hurdles12.25
2025USA Indoor Track and Field ChampionshipsNew York, New York1st60 Meters Hurdles7.74
USA Outdoor Track and Field ChampionshipsEugene, Oregon1st100 Meters Hurdles12.22

International competition

Representing the  United States
YearCompetitionVenuePositionEventTimeNotes
2017Pan American U20 ChampionshipsTrujillo, Peru3rd400 m hurdles57.55
2023World ChampionshipsBudapest, Hungary9th (h)100 m hurdles12.601
2024World Indoor ChampionshipsGlasgow, United Kingdom4th60 m hurdles7.81
Olympic GamesParis, France1st100 m hurdles12.33
2025World ChampionshipsTokyo, Japan4th100 m hurdles12.44

1DNF in the semi-finals.

Awards

External links