After a standout freshman track season, Lutkenhaus now owns the eighth-fastest high school 800m time and state record in the same event. He’ll make his...
After a standout track season, Lutkenhaus owns the eighth-fastest high school 800m time and state record in the same event. He’ll make his sophomore season cross country debut this weekend.Justin Northwest freshman Cooper Lutkenhaus pumps his fist as he sees his winning time of 1:49.84 on a digital scoreboard in the Class 5A Boys 800 meter run event.
that had been held by Olympian Jonathan Johnson from Abilene. That is also a new national record for freshmen, the third time that Lutkenhaus broke a record that was previously held by Miller. Running 1:44 over the next three years would be the equivalent of the untouchable high school national record that three-time Super Bowl champion Michael Carter set in the shot put in 1979, when the former Thomas Jefferson star threw 81 feet, 3.5 inches and became the only high schooler to ever surpass 78 feet. That could also put Lutkenhaus among the best in the world, as the qualifying standard for this summer’s Olympics was 1:44.70.
“Next year is a world championship year. It would be amazing if he could qualify for the U.S. championships and get that experience,” said Burke Binning, who works closely with Lutkenhaus while helping coach track and cross country at Northwest. “His senior year is another world championships year. Then the Olympics are the following year. If you would have talked to me about it last summer, it wouldn’t have been a thought. But now it certainly is.
Lutkenhaus said the Olympics are his ultimate goal, but he doesn’t want to look too far ahead. There are cautionary tales of extraordinary high school 800 runners — such as Granville, George Kersh and 2019 world champion Donavan Brazier — who never made it to the Olympics.“That would be awesome if it happened,” Lutkenhaus said, “but you never know. The 800 is the hardest event. Just because a guy runs 1:49 one year doesn’t mean you will run faster.
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