There has been a lot of talk in the lead up to the 2018 USATF Outdoor Championships. Several big names aren't competing, and there's no doubt some of the usual buzz around the event is quieter this year. After all, it's an "off year" for track and field. There are no major international competitions to qualify for in 2018, as there will be in 2019 when the World Championships take place in Doha.

That said, every athlete that toes the line is there to compete, and the racing promises to be of the quality that we see at USA's every year.

We're fortunate this year to have esteemed photographer Jason Suarez capturing all the action for us. If you're not familar with Jason's work, he's shot major marathons around the world, a host of USA's in years prior, and even been to Africa to shoot the likes of Mo Farah and Eliud Kipchoge.

DAY ONE - THURSDAY 21ST JUNE

The opening day in Des Moines gave us plenty of stars of the sport, and unfortunately a couple of boilovers. We got to witness some special 10,000m races, a surprise or two in the men's 1500m (Robby Andrews missing the final was a huge shock - check his interview afterwards), and unfortunately we didn't get to witness Syd McLaughlin make her pro debut

For the complete play-by-play, hit up Flotrack or follow live at the USATF official site (it's actually super fast and well run).

DAY TWO - FRIDAY 22ND JUNE

Today was a day for the sprinters, especially Florida local Noah Lyles. Lyles came out in his 100m heat and equalled the 2018 world best with a 9.89. Not satisfied with that, he took the outright 2018 world best with a 9.88 on his way to the victory.

The women's 800m final on Sunday is going to be one to watch. Ajee Wilson was the standout performer in today's heats, but it's a final full of big names and anything can happen.

DAY THREE - SATURDAY 23RD JUNE

Day Three sees the most amount of finals so far in this meet, as the qualifiers from Thursday return to Drake Stadium to go for the win. The women's steeple came down to a head-to-head showdown between Emma Coburn and Courtney Frerichs, with Coburn winning her 5th national title in the event. Other highlights included Shelby Houlihan in the women's 1500m, and Centro's win in the men's 1500m. Check Centro's IG post for some post-race savagery.

DAY FOUR - SUNDAY 24TH JUNE

The final day of the Championships features some huge names. In the 5,000m races, arguably it's the women's race which will be most exciting, as Shelby Houlihan looks for her second title of the meet.

In the women's 800m, Ajee Wilson did what many thought she would do, and edged out Raevyn Rogers for the win, her 3rd outdoor title in the 800m.

Clayton Murphy shocked no one by taking the win in the men's 800m. No one.

The women's 5,000m saw Marielle Hall scratch from the race, leaving Houlihan and Under Armour athlete Rachel Schneider as two of the top contenders (they also went at it in the 1,500m - Houlihan winning and Schneider collecting 4th).

Houlihan took the win from Schneider, with Missouri star Karissa Schweizer coming home in 3rd.

Finally, after a lengthy rain delay held up the last couple of events (Des Moines was under water), Paul Chelimo went back-to-back in the 5,000m. Boss.

The images above were from the heats of the 110m hurdles. The image below is from the final. Who won?

Thanks for checking out our coverage from Des Moines. Jump on Jason Suarez's social feed here.