Photo by: GoDucks.com
Bair Named National Field Athlete of the Year
03/23/26 | Track and Field
Peyton Bair won the NCAA title in the heptathlon with 6,503 points.
EUGENE, Ore. – Peyton Bair has been named the 2026 USTFCCCA National Field Athlete of the Year as announced Monday afternoon by the U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association. Bair won a second-consecutive NCAA title in the heptathlon while becoming just the third-ever collegian to score 6,500 points in the event.
Bair, in his first season at Oregon, becomes the second man in program history to win Indoor National Field Athlete of the Year, joining Ashton Eaton who won back-to-back honors in 2009 and 2010.
In winning the NCAA title, Bair posted a lifetime best of 6,503 points to break Eaton's 16-year-old UO school record (6,499) and become the No. 6 performer in world history. Bair had lifetime bests in the long jump, shot put, pole vault and 1,000 meters during the NCAA Championships. He won the NCAA title by nearly 400 points.
The Kimberly, Idaho, native ran 6.67 in the opening event at the meet, good for a new meet and NCAA record for the heptathlon 60 meters. Earlier in the year, Bair clocked a lifetime best of 6.61 at the Don Kirby Invitational (Feb. 14) which is tied for fourth on the UO all-time list.
Bair added another program top-10 effort in the long jump when he got out to 7.70m/25-3.25—No. 8 UO—on his final attempt of the day. Overall, he established new lifetime bests in all seven heptathlon events during his standout indoor season.
Bair is now a three-time NCAA champion having won the heptathlon and decathlon at Mississippi State last year.
With Bair's performance and Liisa-Maria Lusti winning the NCAA title in the pentathlon, Oregon is the first school to sweep national indoor titles in the combined events since Georgia did so in 2017.
The Men and Women of Oregon were both the national indoor runner-up at the NCAA Championships.
Bair was the top overall national qualifier in the heptathlon with his 6,371 points during the Razorback Invitational in late January. He opened his postseason with a fourth-place finish in the long jump at the Big Ten Indoor Championships in Indianapolis.
Oregon will host an open practice Tuesday at Hayward Field. The first session featuring the UO sprints, jumps and multis groups is scheduled to start at 9:45 a.m. Fans will be able to enter through Hayward Hall starting at 9:15 a.m.
Ticket packages for the Ducks' outdoor home schedule are currently on sale. The team is set to host the Oregon Team Invitational (April 18) and Oregon Twilight (May 8), along with the NCAA Championships in June.
For more news and information about Oregon cross country and track and field, follow @OregonTF on Facebook, Instagram and X.
Bair, in his first season at Oregon, becomes the second man in program history to win Indoor National Field Athlete of the Year, joining Ashton Eaton who won back-to-back honors in 2009 and 2010.
In winning the NCAA title, Bair posted a lifetime best of 6,503 points to break Eaton's 16-year-old UO school record (6,499) and become the No. 6 performer in world history. Bair had lifetime bests in the long jump, shot put, pole vault and 1,000 meters during the NCAA Championships. He won the NCAA title by nearly 400 points.
The Kimberly, Idaho, native ran 6.67 in the opening event at the meet, good for a new meet and NCAA record for the heptathlon 60 meters. Earlier in the year, Bair clocked a lifetime best of 6.61 at the Don Kirby Invitational (Feb. 14) which is tied for fourth on the UO all-time list.
Bair added another program top-10 effort in the long jump when he got out to 7.70m/25-3.25—No. 8 UO—on his final attempt of the day. Overall, he established new lifetime bests in all seven heptathlon events during his standout indoor season.
Bair is now a three-time NCAA champion having won the heptathlon and decathlon at Mississippi State last year.
With Bair's performance and Liisa-Maria Lusti winning the NCAA title in the pentathlon, Oregon is the first school to sweep national indoor titles in the combined events since Georgia did so in 2017.
The Men and Women of Oregon were both the national indoor runner-up at the NCAA Championships.
Bair was the top overall national qualifier in the heptathlon with his 6,371 points during the Razorback Invitational in late January. He opened his postseason with a fourth-place finish in the long jump at the Big Ten Indoor Championships in Indianapolis.
Oregon will host an open practice Tuesday at Hayward Field. The first session featuring the UO sprints, jumps and multis groups is scheduled to start at 9:45 a.m. Fans will be able to enter through Hayward Hall starting at 9:15 a.m.
Ticket packages for the Ducks' outdoor home schedule are currently on sale. The team is set to host the Oregon Team Invitational (April 18) and Oregon Twilight (May 8), along with the NCAA Championships in June.
For more news and information about Oregon cross country and track and field, follow @OregonTF on Facebook, Instagram and X.
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