10 Notable Track and Field Records Broken This Weekend

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Happy Valentine’s Day track fans! The runners were surely feeling the love this weekend, as we tuned into indoor track meets scattered across the country to watch our favorite runners run faster than ever before. The most-hyped record attempt of the weekend fell just tenths of a second short of success, but no high school, collegiate, or national record seemed safe this weekend. And although the sticklers of the sport will remind us it wasn’t a “real” record, a quartet of Union Athletics Club runners set a new world indoor best in the distance medley relay at the Lilac Grand Prix.

Here are all the notable records that fell this weekend:

GABRIELA DEBUES-STAFFORD TAKES DOWN HER COACH’S NORTH AMERICAN RECORD

After her performance at the New Balance Indoor Grand Prix, it should come as no shock that Gabriela DeBues-Stafford walked away with another win at the BU Valentine Invitational. Nor should it shock you to hear that she lowered her own Canadian indoor 5000m record to 14:31.38. In doing so, she also moved into No. 5 on the world all-time list and took the North American record from Bowerman Track Club coach Shalane Flanagan (14:47.62 from 2009).

It was an incredible run, but might be even more impressive with a little added context.

She closed the final 3000m of her race three seconds faster than the time she posted to win her 3000m race on Staten Island – 8:30.83 to 8:33.92. And just a week ago, everyone was celebrating how that was impressive on its own as a Canadian record.

In her mind, DeBues-Stafford knew she was going to have to compete against her own teammate to come away with the North American record. After BTC’s Elise Cranny opened up a gap with a mile to go, DeBues-Stafford reeled her back in, and eventually overtook her training partner on the final lap, which she closed in 30.81 seconds.

After her win, the Canadian was quick to point out that while clearly fit, she knew the race was going to be… well, a race: "I think after last weekend most people were assuming that I was the favorite going into this race but people haven't seen Elise absolutely hand my a-- to me in workouts.”

We just released a new episode of Run Your Mouth, where David Melly speaks more at length with Gabriela about her training, success and using her platform for good. DeBues-Stafford plans to dye her hair rainbow colors for the World Indoor Championships, as she did for the Tokyo Olympics. Serbia has, in her words, a “complicated relationship” with LGBTQ rights and DeBues-Stafford, who identifies as bisexual, wants to use this opportunity to represent her community in a country where same-sex marriage and adoption are not yet legal.

She says she will definitely compete in the 3000m and will take a closer look at the schedule and speak with her coaches to see if a double with the 1,500m is possible.

ELISE CRANNY GETS SHALANE’S AMERICAN RECORD

Elise Cranny already has “national champion” and “Olympian” on her résumé, but now she can add “American record holder.” She finished second to Stafford in 14:33.17, bettering Flanagan’s American record by 14 seconds. Her 8:32.43 final 3000m would put her at No. 5 all-time on the U.S. indoor 3000m list.

Courtney Frerichs finished third in the BU race in 14:48.75, which puts her at No. 4 on the all-time list behind Cranny, Flanagan and Vanessa Fraser (14:48.51). The Bowerman Track Club now holds the top five US indoor marks of all time.

Team New Balance Boston’s Millie Paladino and Adidas’s Elly Henes ran 15:02.63 and 15:03.27 in the same race Friday night to also sneak into the U.S. all-time top 10 list at No. 9 and 10, respectively. Both marks were overall PBs and both women now have the World Championship qualifying mark of 15:10.00.

GRANT FISHER DEMOLISHES GALEN RUPP’S INDOOR 5K RECORD

It doesn’t necessarily feel like it, but it’s been eight years since Galen Rupp ran 13:01.26 at BU to set the indoor 5000m American record, in an era way before super spikes. At the time, Grant Fisher was still a high schooler in Michigan and not on too many people’s radars. At least not until later that summer when he won the Adidas Grand Prix (NYC used to have a Diamond League!) Dream Mile, and then went on to represent the United States at the World Junior Championships in Eugene, Oregon.

Since then, Fisher has ascended along a nearly-perfect career progression. He broke four minutes for the mile in high school. Won an NCAA title at Stanford in 2017. Made his first Olympic team in 2021 and finished 5th in the 10000m in Tokyo.

But Fisher — quick to credit his teammates and coaches for his success — is not one to tout his own achievements. His low profile may have made his historic run a surprise for some on Saturday, when he demolished Rupp’s record with a 12:53.73 to win the stacked BU Valentine men’s 5000m race. He was just .13 seconds shy of bettering Bernard Lagat’s American outdoor record of 12:53.60.

Fisher’s PB coming into Saturday’s race was 13:02.53 from March 2021. The nine-second improvement may feel like a lot but it lines up well with the group of people who finished ahead of him in the event at the Tokyo Olympics: three have run under 12:50 and six have dipped under 12:55, and he’s now got a faster time to his name than two of the guys who beat him (Paul Chelimo and Birhanu Temataw).

Fisher has been within range of these guys before, and now the personal best lines up a bit more closely. Did we mention that he beat the reigning Olympic silver medalist on Saturday? Maybe it’s time to put Fisher in the medal conversation for Eugene.

Seriously! Look at where he now ranks on the all-time list (ahead of Eliud Kipchoge!

MOH AHMED LOWERS HIS OWN CANADIAN RECORD BY 8 SECONDS

Moh Ahmed was quick to tell David Melly that indoors really isn’t his thing but that’s hard to take seriously when he’s got the Canadian indoor records over 3000m, two miles and 5000m. This past weekend was his first indoor 5000m race since 2017 when he ran 13:04.60 to break Cam Levins’s 13:19.16 mark (which Levins ran in the same race as Rupp ran his old American record). Ahmed came away with a 12:56.87 but just wasn’t able to catch Fisher for the win.

Ahmed and Fisher have yet to make a decision on whether or not they’ll compete at the World Indoor Championships. It sounds like they’ll most likely shift their focus to a fast 10000m race at The Ten on March 5 in California.

MARC SCOTT LOWERS HIS EUROPEAN RECORD

Marc Scott ran 12:57.08 — a 10+ second PR — to take third behind Fisher and Ahmed, and lowered the indoor British and European records. He now sits at No. 8 on the world all-time list. He said he plans on running at the World Indoor Championships. No British man has medaled in the 3,000m at the World Indoor Championships since Robert Denmark in 1991.

While a slew of fast times inevitably trigger endless debate over “the shoes,” it’s still worth noting that Bowerman Track Club now has five(!) men currently on the roster who’ve run under 13 minutes in the 5000m. Matthew Centrowitz, with a 13:00 PB, is the sixth-fastest man on the team over 5k, and if BTC raced cross-country, Sean McGorty and his 13:06 PB would likely be left off the travel squad. With young, talented runners like Kieran Tuntivate and Tom Ratcliffe on the roster and entering their distance-running primes, the sub-13 list could easily grow even more in the next year or two.

ROISIN WILLIS SHATTERS HIGH SCHOOL 800M RECORD

The first record of the weekend was set before most people left work on Friday afternoon. Stevens Point Area Senior High School (WI) senior Roisin Willis won the fast section of the women’s 800 meters in 2:00.06 to break Sammy Watson’s 2017 record of 2:01.78. The 17-year-old has been threatening the record since running 2:00.78 at last year’s Trials of Miles New York City Qualifier.

Willis beat a field that included collegiate and professional runners. The competition also helped Moses Brown School (RI) junior Sophia Gorriaran get under the record in 2:00.58. The best part of these two high school stars’ recent success is how much they go head-to-head. They’ve raced each other four times this indoor season alone. Willis holds a 8–2 all-time head-to-head advantage but it’s clear they thrive off pushing each other.

Willis wrote the following on Instagram this weekend:

“Since 2020 I’ve had the privilege of being pushed by 2 incredible athletes (and friends) that are constantly raising the bar for high school middle distance running. Sophia Gorriaran and Juliette Whittaker it’s truly an honor to have the opportunity to compete against you two. And special shout out to Sophia who was also in this race and lowered her own World record by TWO SECONDS👏👏 So incredible to share this moment with you. At the end of the day, times are just numbers, but the friendships and memories made in this sport are what make it so special💗”

The next mark to watch for Willis and Gorriaran will be Mary Cain’s U.S. high school outdoor mark of 1:59.51 from 2013. But first, they’ve got some high school-only championships to cap the indoor season.

SHANE STREICH SURPRISES WITH NEW AMERICAN RECORD IN 1K

I have to give credit to Kyle Merber who noticed Shane Streich’s performance at the Millrose Games invitational mile where he won in 3:57.98 and turned to me and said, “Wow. This guy is good.”

Streich backed up that assessment when he won the Dr. Sander Invitational 800m in a personal best of 1:46.07. Then this weekend, he took 0.11 seconds off an American record held by an Olympian, when ran 2:16.16 to win the 1000m at the American Track League’s Eastern Indoors meet in Louisville. The previous record was 2:16.27, set by Bryce Hoppel last year at the New Balance Indoor Grand Prix.

It’s time to put a little more respect, not just on Streich’s name, but also on Atlanta Track Club’s. Coach Amy Yoder Begley tweeted: “We were told the K was canceled because the athlete going for the record was no longer running. My response was ‘there are still 5 guys listed and 2 of ours were going for the record and have every intention of making it happen.’”

Streich is in his rookie season with the Atlanta Track Club, which signed a new sponsorship deal with Adidas in January. He graduated from the University of Minnesota and then ran a pandemic-enabled sixth year at Lipscomb, where he clocked a 1:46.70 personal best. He reached the semifinals for the 800m at the U.S. Olympic Trials. After he was eliminated, he took advantage of the McKenzie International meet just a short drive away to run 1:45.85.

We’re taping an episode of The CITIUS MAG Podcast podcast with Shane soon, so stay tuned and you’ll get to know a bit more about his rise and why things are going so right for him and the team.

ABBY STEINER CLAIMS 200M RECORD FOR HERSELF

While the majority of records broken this weekend were distance marks, University of Kentucky senior Abby Steiner treated the crowd at Clemson’s Tiger Paw Invitational to a display of short-sprint excellence, setting a new NCAA record in the 200m with a time of 22.37 seconds.

The defending NCAA champion in the event claimed her second record of the season, after setting the collegiate record in the 300m in December with a time of 35.80. The indoor 200 is something of a specialty for Steiner — although she didn’t advance out of regionals to outdoor NCAAs in the event in 2021, she hasn’t lost a 200m race indoors in almost two years, making her undefeated since February 15, 2020.

Technically, Steiner broke her own record, as the previous mark of 22.38 was co-owned with Olympic bronze medalist Gabby Thomas, each from their respective NCAA titles in 2021 and 2018. Now the record is solely Steiner’s, with plenty of racing left in the season.

She followed up that performance with a 7.12 in the 60m dash the next day, a mark that places her in a three-way tie for the NCAA lead. Remember the name Abby Steiner because the college senior will surely be inking a contract and making waves in the short sprints, professionally, by the time the U.S. Outdoor Championships roll around.

YARED NUGUSE SOLO EFFORT CRACKS 18-YEAR-OLD NCAA 3k RECORD

Yared Nuguse is no stranger to setbacks. After qualifying for the Tokyo Olympics in the 1500m as a redshirt junior at Notre Dame, the 22-year-old had to pull out of the competition with an injury. Rather than turn pro, he returned to South Bend in the fall and put together a relatively quiet cross-country campaign (by his high standards), finishing 5th in the ACC championships, 5th at the Great Lakes regional, and a disappointing 158th at NCAAs.

So even after a COVID test came back positive last week (Nuguse said he only had mild symptoms and UND policy allowed him to continue training solo), he still decided to fly to Boston once the negative test came back to take a crack at the NCAA 3000m record, which was held by Irish Olympian and current Puma Elite coach Alistair Cragg.

The 3k field was shallower than the 1500m or the 5000m, so Nuguse was alone once the pacers dropped off a little after the 1 mile mark. He still managed to run his final kilometer in 2:30.84, completely solo, and dipped under the old record by a few tenths of a second, finishing in 7:38.13.

Shortly after the race, he was able to FaceTime with Cragg, who congratulated him on the race, Nuguse’s second NCAA record after lowering the 1500m mark to 3:34.68 last spring. He may not be done breaking records, either, as he lines up with a few highly-credentialed teammates, including 1:45 800m runner Samuel Voelz and 3:57 miler Dylan Jacobs, to take a crack at a fast distance medley relay this coming weekend.

UNION ATHLETIC CLUB GETS THE DMR WORLD BEST

You’ve gotta hand it to the Union Athletics Club’s Ella Donaghu, Raevyn Rogers, Sinclaire Johnson and Shannon Osika for taking down a world best that was set by a squad of Olympians with three medalists. At the Lilac Grand Prix, UAC crew ran 10:39.91 to break the distance medley relay world best mark of 10:40.31, which was set in 2017 by a New Balance all-star squad of Emma Coburn, Brenda Martinez, Sydney McLaughlin and Jenny Simpson.

Coming into the race, we expected it to be close. Ella Donaghu, who is in her rookie season with the Nike training group under coach Pete Julian, could be considered the MVP of this one. Her 3:16.02 gave them enough room for error by putting them two seconds under the previous record. But anyone who’s taken on the unfortunate challenge of anchoring a DMR completely solo knows just how hard a task was handed to Shannon Osika, who is also a UAC newbie. Osika delivered, running a composed 4:28.32 1600m to break the old indoor best by 0.40 seconds.

It was also great to see Union Athletic Club lending their clout to the Lilac Grand Prix, which used the relatively new (to track, at least) pay-per-view streaming model to attract viewers and goose up the prize purse for athletes. In last week’s interview in the Lap Count, head coach Pete Julian was vocal in his belief that head-to-head racing and showcasing his stars’ personalities were key to building fan interest in the sport, and this weekend, his athletes made good on that promise.

MISSING FROM THIS ROUND-UP: COLE HOCKER AND COOPER TEARE

One second doesn’t seem like a lot over 1609 meters, but when you run fast enough, it starts to be a pretty significant chunk of real estate. Over the last 3 years, American middle distance runners have come within 1.05 seconds of Bernard Lagat’s 3:49.89 indoor mile record six times (with the closest being Johnny Gregorek’s 3:49.98 in 2019). So when Cooper Teare and Cole Hocker announced that they were taking another crack at the record one year after running 3:50.39 and 3:50.55 while still in college, many younger track fans thought for sure the record was history.

In a small “race” (or glorified time trial, depending on your perspective) at the Windy City Invitational in Chicago, Teare and Hocker again sprinted to the line as the clock ticked through the 3:40s, and again fell just short, each notching small personal bests of 3:50.17 and 3:50.35, respectively. Teare, Hocker, and Michigan State’s Morgan Beadlescomb, who ran 3:52.03, the #4 NCAA all-time mile, all closed under 29 seconds for the final lap. Teare edged out his training partner in the final straightaway.

One can’t help but wonder if the addition of a few more sharp milers, such as Josh Kerr, Colby Alexander, or Olli Hoare, would’ve kept the gas pedal down in the second half enough to put the record in range. Until the next attempt, we’ll never know.

What we do know is that this record — and many of the others broken this weekend — are very stout, so we shouldn’t take it for granted when one falls!

That’s it from me today. As always, thank you for reading! If you enjoyed this, learned something new, or have any questions or commentary on anything featured in this issue, feel free to hit my inbox by replying or writing to [email protected]

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