By Citius Mag Staff
June 2, 2023
Ahead of Thursday night’s races at the Festival of Miles in St. Louis, high school seniors Connor Burns and Simeon Birnbaum made it clear that they wanted to break Alan Webb’s 3:553.43 U.S. high school mile record. The record survived the night but four high school boys got under the four-minute barrier – including two for the first time.
Here’s what you need to know:
– Southern Boone (MO) senior Connor Burns told The Lap Count that he was planning to attack Webb’s record and attached himself to pacer Erik Sowinski from the start before hitting the halfway point in 1:59.13. Burns started fading with 500m remaining in the race and ended up finishing seventh in 4:03.25. Burns entered the day with the fastest personal best and previously held the high school 5000m record.
– Simeon Birnbaum, a University of Oregon signee and a senior at Rapid City Stevens High School (SD), took the lead heading into the final lap and closed in 57.68s to win in 3:57.53. Birnbaum moves up to No. 4 on the all-time high school boys mile list. Only Alan Webb (3:53.43), Jim Ryun (3:55.3) and Colin Sahlman (3:56.24) have gone faster.
– Rocky Hansen, the senior from Christ School (NC) and Wake Forest commit, broke four minutes for the mile last month but managed to drop his personal best from 3:59.56 to 3:58.23 with a runner-up finish.
– St. Andrew’s Episcopal School (MD) senior Tinoda Matsatsa finished third in 3:58.70 to become the 19th U.S. high school boy to break four minutes for the mile. He is the first Black high school boy to accomplish the feat. Matsatsa is also the New Balance Nationals Indoor 800m champion and will be competing at New Balance Nationals Outdoor later this month. He is headed to Georgetown in the fall.
– The high school girls championship mile race was won by Cuthbertson High School (NC) junior Charlotte Bell in 4:41.33. In a race with pros, Onley Richland County (IL) senior and Virginia commit Tatum David ran 4:37.79.
– Jackson Heidesch, a senior at Dowling Catholic High School (IA), finished fourth in 3:59.08. He is the 20th U.S. high school boy to break four minutes for the mile. He won the New Balance Nationals Indoor two-mile title in March. He will be headed to Duke in the fall.
What they said afterward:
Simeon Birnbaum: “Even once I got behind the pacer, we were lagging behind pace. That’s just how it goes sometimes. You shouldn’t always think about times and go for the win so I’m really happy to do that.”
Tinoda Matsatsa: "Everything I've done up until this point has been leading up until today...From my first mile race running 4:15 indoors to now – my last (HS) mile."
Jackson Heidesch: “I broke 4 minutes for the mile & I got 4th in this race. It just shows the depth that high school running has right now – especially in the mid-distance and at the mile.”
Rocky Hansen: “It was a competitive race and it was fun to be out there with one of the most talented fields ever in high school running. We’re really privileged to be living in a time when there are this many guys running this well.”
Our Take:
I don’t think anyone is breaking Webb’s record in a high school-only race but the thing I love about young runners is that they’re not scared to come out and say bold things. This sport is humbling and unfortunately that often creates boring professionals. Keep that energy kids!
We knew Simeon, Jackson, Rocky, and Connor were all stud milers but I am really excited about the future of Tinoda Matsatsa. Go down the list of the high school sub-four milers and just about every name on their came at the event from the angle of being a strong 2 mile/XC runner. The last 800 guy? Jim Ryun. – Kyle Merber
I was just with Hobbs Kessler in Los Angeles who joked that he was the first high schooler to turn pro and take off during the super shoes/super spikes era. It's been wild to see. From 1964 to 2017, we had 10 high school boys break four minutes for the mile. That list has doubled in the last three years with 10 new additions since 2020. – Chris Chavez
I hope these guys look to Hobbs Kessler and Cooper Teare as a reminder that progress isn’t linear and there’s no “right” path for a runner to develop. It can be really hard to parlay high school stardom into NCAA or pro success right away and it’s important for the best athletes to keep a long-term perspective even when things are going well in the short term. – David Melly
Citius Mag Staff
