Two runners attending the University of Oregon broke the record for the fastest mile run in NCAA history. This previous record was also set in 2017 by Edward Cheserek. 

Cooper Teare and Cole Hocker are two runners that attend Oregon; both athletes run indoor track and race yearly. This year, at the Tyson Invitational, Teare and Hocker both broke the record for fastest mile with two times of 3:50.39 and 3:50.55 respectively, beating the old record by 1.9 seconds. Due to their accomplishments, Teare and Hocker have qualified for the 1500 meter Olympic Trials in June, hosted by Oregon on Hayward Field. 

Two weeks prior to these records being broken, the same two runners broke a relay record in late January on the same track. Although the record did not count, the two’s attempts were well covered by the media. The record didn’t count because two of the runners on the relay team were competing for a different country during that relay. 

If there is one thing to take away from this coverage, COVID has given these runners more time to train in between the seasons. This has caused many records to be broken at universities across the country. Congrats to these runners, and good luck in June.