Aaliyah Butler is Part of the Next Generation of USA 400m Sprinters

In today’s conversation, I speak with Aaliyah Butler of the United States. She is the 2025 NCAA 400m champion, and was also part of team USA’s 4x400m that won Gold at the 2024 Olympic Games.

Aaliyah is a rising star in 400m sprinting both in the United States and globally. In addition to qualifying for the 2024 Olympics and 2025 World Championships, she has competed on the diamond league circuit, including going toe-to-toe with the Olympic Champion in Monaco last year.

Her personal best of 49.09 seconds makes her one of the fastest women in the world, and now in her first full year as a pro, she has her eyes set on solidifying her spot amongst the best.

In our conversation, we discuss Aaliyah’s 2026 opening races, including a masterful 4x4 relay split of 48.6 seconds. She shares what she learned about competing at the University of Georgia, why she left the NCAA early to go pro and what the process was like.

We also do a full breakdown of Aaliyah’s 3 most notable races from the 2025 season, including her NCAA title and her personal best at the Monaco Diamond League. And finally, she shares her goals for the 2026 season and beyond.

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Chapters:

00:00 Intro

01:15 Initial feelings on 2026 season

03:18 400m Opener

05:37 Competing at Georgia in the NCAA

07:04 Paris 2024 Olympic experience

08:31 202 Season

10:30 Turning Pro in 2025

13:01 How Aaliyah runs the 400m

15:16 2025 NCAA 400 Race Breakdown

16:37 2025 USATF 400 Race Breakdown

18:18 2025 Monaco Diamond League Race Breakdown

20:37 Goals for 2026