EUGENE, Ore. – Kara (Patterson) Winger won a silver medal in the javelin at the World Athletics Championships as four Purdue track & field alums competed at the world championships in Eugene, Oregon, at Hayward Field.
Winger, who represented the United States, was joined by Devynne Charlton (Bahamas, 100 meter hurdles), Samson Colebrooke (Bahamas, 100 meters) and Chukwuebuka Enekwechi (Nigeria, shot put) at the world-championship event.
At her sixth World Athletics Championships, Winger won silver with a throw of 64.05 meters. That came on her sixth and final attempt. That moved her up from fourth place and into a medal spot. The medal is the first ever won by an American woman in the javelin at a World Championships.
Winger's medal-winning throw was on her final attempt at her last World Championships. It is Winger's first global medal.
Charlton placed seventh in the 100m hurdles with a time of 12.53 in the final. That mark came less than two hours after she ran a 12.46 in the semifinal to break the Bahamas record. Charlton was racing at her third World Championships.
Enekwechi was 11th overall in the shot put thanks to a mark of 20.65m in the final. A throw of 20.87m in the qualification was what sent Enekwechi to the final at his third World Championships.
Colebrooke, making his World Championships debut, was 38th overall in the 100m. He finished in 10.23 to place fifth in his heat.
One of the most decorated Purdue athletes in any sport, Winger is four-time Olympian and eight-time USATF national champion. She is a 2009 Purdue graduate and owns the Purdue (61.56m in 2008) and had the American (66.67m in 2010) records in the javelin. At the NCAA Championships, Winger won silver in the javelin in 2009 and was fifth in 2008, and she is a two-time Big Ten Outdoor Athlete of the Year. She won Big Ten javelin titles in 2005, 2008 and 2009.
The school record-holder in the 100m hurdles (12.70) and 100m (11.22) and a nine-time All-American, Charlton was a Boilermaker from 2014-18. Along with her Purdue records, she also holds the sixth-fastest time in the 200m (23.61). Charlton was the NCAA runner-up in the 100m hurdles in 2018 and in the 60m hurdles in 2017. She is an 11-time Big Ten champion and was named the Big Ten Track Athlete of the Year three times.
Currently a volunteer assistant coach with the Boilermakers, Enekwechi was a 12-time All-American and five-time NCAA medalist at Purdue from 2013-16. He owns the school record in the shot put (20.37m) and hammer throw (72.77m) outdoors and shot put (19.95m) and weight throw (24.39m) indoors. Enekwechi's NCAA medals include two silvers in 2016, and he won 12 Big Ten medals, including four golds, and was a three-time Big Ten Field Athlete of the Year.
A 2021 Purdue graduate, Colebrooke was a six-time All-America honoree and five-time Big Ten medalist. He owns the second-fastest 200m (20.46) and third-fastest 100m (10.18) times in school history.
For more on the Purdue track & field and cross country program, visit PurdueSports.com/TrackField and follow and connect with the Boilermakers on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
Winger, who represented the United States, was joined by Devynne Charlton (Bahamas, 100 meter hurdles), Samson Colebrooke (Bahamas, 100 meters) and Chukwuebuka Enekwechi (Nigeria, shot put) at the world-championship event.
At her sixth World Athletics Championships, Winger won silver with a throw of 64.05 meters. That came on her sixth and final attempt. That moved her up from fourth place and into a medal spot. The medal is the first ever won by an American woman in the javelin at a World Championships.
Winger's medal-winning throw was on her final attempt at her last World Championships. It is Winger's first global medal.
Charlton placed seventh in the 100m hurdles with a time of 12.53 in the final. That mark came less than two hours after she ran a 12.46 in the semifinal to break the Bahamas record. Charlton was racing at her third World Championships.
Enekwechi was 11th overall in the shot put thanks to a mark of 20.65m in the final. A throw of 20.87m in the qualification was what sent Enekwechi to the final at his third World Championships.
Colebrooke, making his World Championships debut, was 38th overall in the 100m. He finished in 10.23 to place fifth in his heat.
One of the most decorated Purdue athletes in any sport, Winger is four-time Olympian and eight-time USATF national champion. She is a 2009 Purdue graduate and owns the Purdue (61.56m in 2008) and had the American (66.67m in 2010) records in the javelin. At the NCAA Championships, Winger won silver in the javelin in 2009 and was fifth in 2008, and she is a two-time Big Ten Outdoor Athlete of the Year. She won Big Ten javelin titles in 2005, 2008 and 2009.
The school record-holder in the 100m hurdles (12.70) and 100m (11.22) and a nine-time All-American, Charlton was a Boilermaker from 2014-18. Along with her Purdue records, she also holds the sixth-fastest time in the 200m (23.61). Charlton was the NCAA runner-up in the 100m hurdles in 2018 and in the 60m hurdles in 2017. She is an 11-time Big Ten champion and was named the Big Ten Track Athlete of the Year three times.
Currently a volunteer assistant coach with the Boilermakers, Enekwechi was a 12-time All-American and five-time NCAA medalist at Purdue from 2013-16. He owns the school record in the shot put (20.37m) and hammer throw (72.77m) outdoors and shot put (19.95m) and weight throw (24.39m) indoors. Enekwechi's NCAA medals include two silvers in 2016, and he won 12 Big Ten medals, including four golds, and was a three-time Big Ten Field Athlete of the Year.
A 2021 Purdue graduate, Colebrooke was a six-time All-America honoree and five-time Big Ten medalist. He owns the second-fastest 200m (20.46) and third-fastest 100m (10.18) times in school history.
For more on the Purdue track & field and cross country program, visit PurdueSports.com/TrackField and follow and connect with the Boilermakers on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.