BUDAPEST, Hungary — The 2023 World Athletics Championships will take place on August 19–27 in Budapest, Hungary, with over 2,000 athletes representing 202 countries.
Three athletes with Vanderbilt ties will travel to Budapest to compete among the sport’s top competitors. Graduate student Veronica Fraley and volunteer assistant coach Joe Kovacs will represent the United States at the World Championships. Alumna Brooke Overholt will compete for Team Canada at the meet.
2023 marks Fraley’s second-consecutive year on Team USA. She represented the United States at the 2022 World Championships in the discus, where she placed 10th in Group B in the qualifying rounds. During the 2023 season, Fraley was undefeated in the discus through seven meets, capturing the SEC and East Region event titles along the way. She is also the East Region champion and was a bronze medalist at the SEC Indoor Championships in the shot put. At the USATF Outdoor Championships, Fraley placed fourth overall in the discus to earn a spot on Team USA for the World Championships.
Olympian and world champion Kovacs finished fourth in the shot put at the USATF Outdoor Championships to punch his ticket to worlds. He has earned two Olympic silver medals and two gold and two silver worlds medals during his professional career. In 2022, he was the runner-up in the shot put at the World Championships. Kovacs is currently ranked second in the world in the shot put behind Ryan Crouser, who is a two-time Olympic gold medalist and the reigning world champion in the shot put.
Overholt is a two-time All-American in the 400-meter hurdles and No. 2 in event history at Vanderbilt. She placed in the top five in the 400-meter hurdles final at the SEC Outdoor Championships and in the quarterfinals at the NCAA East Regional. At the NCAA Outdoor Championships, Overholt PRed during the semifinals and final to finish fourth overall and earn first-team All-America honors for the first time in her career. Placing second at the Canadian Outdoor Championships punched her ticket to Budapest for the World Championships.
The 2023 World Athletics Championships will begin on Saturday at 3:30 a.m. CT, when Kovacs competes in the qualifying rounds of the men’s shot put. Fraley will participate in the discus qualifying rounds on Sunday, and Overholt will run in the 400-meter hurdles heats on Monday. Live coverage of the meet will be available on NBC, CNBC, USA Network and Peacock. The full broadcast schedule can be found online.
