# 1961 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships

The 1961 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships were organized by the Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) and served as the national championships in outdoor track and field for the United States.
The men's edition was held at Downing Stadium in New York City, New York, and it took place 23–24 June. The women's meet was held separately at the Gilroy Field in Gary, Indiana, on 1–2 July.
At the men's championships, the weather was clear despite threats of rain, and Frank Budd set a world record of 9.2 seconds in the 100 yards. 20,000 people attended on the final day of the race. In the women's competition, a record 51 clubs competed and the Mayor Daley Youth Foundation won the meet overall.

## Results
### Men

| Event | Gold | Gold | Silver | Silver | Bronze | Bronze |
| 100 yards | Frank Budd | 9.2 | Paul Drayton | 9.3 | David James | 9.4 |
| 220 yards | Paul Drayton | 21.0 w | Charley Frazier | 21.0 w | Frank Budd | 21.1 w |
| 440 yards | Otis Davis | 46.1 | Ulis Williams | 46.3 | Adolph Plummer | 46.8 |
| 880 yards | Jim Dupree | 1:48.5 | Jerry Siebert | 1:48.5 | John Bork | 1:48.8 |
| 1 mile | Dyrol Burleson | 4:04.9 | Jim Beatty | 4:06.5 | Jim Grelle | 4:08.0 |
| 3 miles | Laszlo Tabori (HUN) | 13:50.0 | Max Truex | 13:52.4 | Pat Clohessy (AUS) | 13:53.4 |
| 6 miles | John Gutknecht | 28:52.6 | Pete McArdle (IRL) | 29:16.8 | Nicholas Kitt | 29:49.7 |
| Marathon | John J. Kelley | 2:26:53.4 | Garnett Williams | 2:32:10.0 | Bob Carman | 2:36:06.0 |
| 120 yards hurdles | Hayes Jones | 13.6 | Francis Washington | 13.6 | Jerry Tarr | 13.8 |
| 220 yards hurdles | Don Styron | 23.2 | | | | |
| 440 yards hurdles | Clifton Cushman | 50.9 | Dixon Farmer | 51.2 | Lawson Smart | 51.2 |
| 3000 m steeplechase | Charles(Deacon) Jones | 8:48.0 | George Young | 8:50.8 | Bob Schul | 8:53.6 |
| 2 miles walk | Ron Zinn | 14:46.8 | | | | |
| High jump | Bob Avant | 2.13 m | John Thomas | 2.13 m | Robert Gardner | 2.08 m |
| Pole vault | Ron Morris | 4.77 m | John Uelses | 4.67 m | Henry Wadsworth | 4.67 m |
| Long jump | Ralph Boston | 8.22 m | Anthony Watson | 7.95 m | Irvin Roberson | 7.90 m |
| Triple jump | Bill Sharpe | 15.97 m | Kent Floerke | 15.91 m | Luther Hayes | 15.70 m |
| Shot put | Dallas Long | 18.95 m | Parry O'Brien | 18.67 m | Gary Gubner | 18.36 m |
| Discus throw | Jay Silvester | 59.64 m | Alfred Oerter | 58.05 m | Rink Babka | 56.84 m |
| Hammer throw | Hal Connolly | 65.09 m | Albert Hall | 60.20 m | Tom Pagani | 59.33 m |
| Javelin throw | John Fromm | 76.19 m | William Alley | 73.09 m | Chuck Wilkinson | 72.92 m |
| Pentathlon | Bill Toomey | 3484 pts | | | | |
| All-around decathlon | Bill Urban | 7483 pts | | | | |
| Decathlon | Paul Herman | 7142 pts | David Edstrom | 7048 pts | John David Martin | 7005 pts |

### Women

| Event | Gold | Gold | Silver | Silver | Bronze | Bronze |
| 100 yards | Wilma Rudolph | 10.8 | Lacey O'Neal | | Willye White | |
| 220 yards | Lacey O'Neal | 25.0 | Ernestine Pollards | | Vivian Brown | |
| 440 yards | Jackie Peterson | 59.5 | Mary Rose | | Pat Douthitt | |
| 880 yards | Billie Pat Daniels | 2:19.2 | Leah Bennett | | Grace Butcher | |
| 80 m hurdles | Cherrie Parrish | 11.5 | JoAnn Terry | | Leontyne Reif | |
| High jump | Liz Josefsen (DEN) | 1.55 m | Rose Robinson | | Barbara Browne | |
| Long jump | Willye White | 6.08 m | Edith McGuire | | Flossie Wilcher | |
| Shot put | Earlene Brown | 14.54 m | Cynthia Wyatt | | Sharon Shepherd | |
| Discus throw | Earlene Brown | 45.53 m | Sharon Shepherd | | Melody McCarthy | |
| Javelin throw | Fran Davenport | 41.96 m | Karen Mendyka | | Marjorie Larney | |
| Women's pentathlon | Billie Pat Daniels | 4232 pts | JoAnn Terry | 4179 pts | Darlene Everhart | 3930 pts |