Festival of Miles + Big Meets This Week

What a couple of weeks we’ve had in track and field.
New interview playlists from CIF State, OSAA, Sound Running Track Fest here:
Includes a great interview from Hanne Thomsen winner of the CIF girls 3200 and a bunch of them. Some highlights from the Washington State 2A-3A-4A meet.

Happening Tonight is the HOKA Festival of Miles. 
Super exciting competition with most of the fastest high school boys and girls going out to St. Louis. Here is a preview by Erik Boal.

One of the deepest boys mile fields in U.S. prep history, along with fastest all-time girls high school competitor headline the fields Thursday at the annual HOKA Festival of Miles at St. Louis University High in Missouri.

Five athletes with sub-4 mile credentials, in addition to another entry who has eclipsed the barrier in the 1,600 meters, are all expected to compete at 9:10 p.m. CDT in the HOKA High School Boys Championship Mile.

Jane Hedengren, a Brigham Young-bound senior at Timpview High in Utah, produced a 4:26.14 indoor mile March 16 at Nike Indoor Nationals in New York to achieve the fastest performance in U.S. prep history.

Hedengren is entered in the HOKA High School Girls Championship Mile, scheduled for 8:40 p.m. CST, looking to eclipse the all-time prep outdoor mark of 4:28.46 established at last year’s event by Sadie Engelhardt of Ventura High in California when she competed against professional athletes in the Drury Hotels Women’s Mile.

The boys championship field includes Crater High of Oregon teammates Tayvon Kitchen and Josiah Tostenson, in addition to Tommy Latham of Marist High in Georgia, TJ Hansen from Freeland High in Michigan and Corbin Coombs of Organ Mountain in New Mexico as sub-4 milers, with junior Quentin Nauman from Western Dubuque in Iowa running 3:59.60 in the 1,600 on May 24 at the Iowa Class 3A State Championships.

Tostenson clocked 3:57.47 and Kitchen ran 3:59.61 indoors Feb. 21 at the Terrier DMR Challenge at Boston University.

Latham achieved a 3:59.79 effort March 28 at the Marist Mile in Georgia, with Hansen clocking 3:59.02 and Coombs running 3:59.23 to take the top two spots May 24 at the RunningLane Track Championships in Alabama.

Charlie Vause of Rio Rancho High in New Mexico, Caden Leonard from Southlake Carroll in Texas, Benji Anderson of Mountain Vista in Colorado, Jackson Spencer from Herriman in Utah, Philip Blum of Riverside-Durham and Jack Anstrom from Seaforth in North Carolina, in addition to Bentonville High of Arkansas teammates Matthew Shelly and Brian Burns are also scheduled to compete in the boys championship mile with Canadian prep standout Robin Lefebvre of College Andre-Grasset in Montreal, Quebec, who has run 4:01.95 in the mile.

Simeon Birnbaum of Rapid City Stevens in South Dakota set the boys mile meet record of 3:57.53 in 2023.

Braelyn Combe of Corona Santiago and Hanne Thomsen from Santa Rosa Montgomery will renew acquaintances as part of the girls championship mile field.

The Stumptown Youth Meet is Saturday June 7th in Hillsboro, OR and in the afternoon we’re speeding up to the Yakima Mile, an evening race in Washington State. Kids to elite racers of all abilities will be on Yakima Avenue for this point to point race. We’re excited about seeing the middle school and high school competitors and the pros.

Sunday morning we’re heading over the mountain to the Brooks PR Invitational in Renton, Washington. We’ve missed just one BPR since it started and the meet has never disappointed. It opens with two pro races, local boys and girls 4×800, then jumps right into it. We’re looking forward to all the races but the Junior Boys and Girls Mile are
at the top of our list.

Portland Track Festival on June 14-15th. Some of the best runners on the planet will be competing there. There is a middle school boys and girls mile that has attracted some fast runners over the years. You can still get in. Go here: The Middle School mile heats will take place beginning at 3:00pm on June 15th.  For athletes would like to compete in other events and meet the entry standards for either the Open Section races or High Performance Section races, register here:

June 19-21st is Nike Outdoor Nationals at Hayward Field in Eugene, New Balance Nationals, AAU West, some JO State meets, and a whole lot of fun.