At 15, most teenagers are grappling with calculus homework or dreaming about getting their driver’s license. Cooper Lutkenhaus, however, is making history on the track. This high school freshman from Justin, Texas, shattered the American U18 800m record on Wednesday at the Brooks PR Invitational in Renton, Wash., clocking an astonishing 1:47.58, the fastest time ever recorded by a U.S. high school freshman.
Cooper Lutkenhaus wins the 800M at the Brooks PR Invitational! His time of 1:47.58 breaks his own freshman national record! He now has the 7th best time in high school history! We are so proud of you @CooperLutk68303 pic.twitter.com/wsADtQu1wz
— NISD Athletics (@NISDAthletics) June 13, 2024
Lutkenhaus broke the previous American U18 record of 1:47.96 set by Michael Granville in 1995, (thirteen years before Lutkenhaus was born.) He now ranks seventh all-time among U.S. high schoolers, (and only in ninth grade.)
Lutkenhaus reportedly opened with a 54.36-second first lap and closed with a negative split of 53.21 seconds over the final 400m.
This season, he is undefeated in the 800m, and his new personal best time is only eight-one-hundredths of a second off the world U16 record held by British 800m runner Max Burgin.
Cooper Lutkenhaus of Justin Northwest set the high school freshman 800 meter record at Brooks PR in a time of 1:47.58 pic.twitter.com/DNsi6eb2ug
— West Coast XC (@westcoast_xc) June 13, 2024
According to the Dallas Morning News, Lutkenhaus began his track career as a 400m runner but showed great potential when he moved up to the 800m. In the last three months, he has lowered his personal best by seven seconds (from 1:54 to 1:47), a massive margin for the distance.
Lutkenhaus will have three more years to pursue the U.S. high school record of 1:46.45 set by Granville in 1996. This achievement marks the third time this year that he has broken the national record for freshmen, with his previous best being 1:49.12 at the RunningLane Track Championships in May.
