USC Sophomore Returning To Form After Two Years Of Injury; Bol Breaks National Record In First Try At 800

By Doug Binder, DyeStat Editor

Luca Gillis Photo

Nearly three years to the day after breaking the high school national record in the indoor 200 meters, Mia Brahe-Pedersen celebrated a new personal best in the event at the New Mexico Collegiate Classic. 

Brahe-Pedersen ran a time of 22.85, later converted to 22.92 due to altitude, and moved up the NCAA rankings to No. 6 this season. 

It was a long time coming for the former Lake Oswego OR star who had the all-time sprint records in her sights before an injury wiped out her senior year and led to a difficult freshman campaign at USC. 

Brahe-Pedersen's injury issue dates to the VA Showcase during her senior year. By then she was already No. 4 all-time in the 100 meters outdoors and tied for No. 3 in the 200. She made the U.S. final in the 200 at the conclusion of her junior year in 2023. 

The meet at New Mexico was Brahe-Pedersen's third of the winter and provided the clearest indication yet that she is regaining her speed. 

USC teammate Dajaz Defrand, who won the meet with 22.79 (22.86 converted) is No. 4 on the NCAA list. 

Incidentally, at the 2023 Don Kirby Elite meet in Albuquerque, where Brahe-Pedersen ran 22.89, Defrand was right behind her in 22.92 as a freshman at Florida State. 

Super Bol Sunday: World champion in the 400-meter hurdles, Femke Bol of The Netherlands, followed through on her announced shift to the 800 meters in 2026 by racing the event for the first time on an elite level at the Meeting Metz Moselle Athlelor in France. 

Bol, who owns the indoor (short track) world record in the 400 meters with 49.17, ran a time of 1:59.07 to break the national record of The Netherlands. 

The record was on the books for 25 years and was 2:00.01 by Ester Goossens. 

The outdoor national record will be a bit more challenging: 1:55.54 by Ellen van Langen, who ran that time for gold at the 1992 Barcelona Olympic Games. 

Fastest 4x800: At the Penn Classic in Philadelphia, the quartet of Clay Pender, Luke Houser, Luciano Fiore and Sean Dolan ran a time of 7:10.29 to break the world indoor record on Friday at the Ott Center. 

The American team took more than a second off the 2018 record of 7:11.30. 

The University of Pennsylvania team, led off by Joseph Soccaras, led the U.S. group after the first leg. World indoor medalist Houser took the lead on the second leg and helped get the team in position to shoot for the record. 

Penn finished in 7:22.43 and broke a school record that had been on the books since 1977.

High School Leads: Blair Bartlett of Lawrenceville NJ, who led the U.S. U20 team at the World Cross Country Championships last month in Tallahassee, ran a huge US#1 time of 9:42.38 in the 3,200 meters at the MAPL Indoor Track and Field Championships on Saturday. 

Barlett's time, when converted to 2 miles, is No. 5 in prep history. 

She won the race by nearly three minutes. 

Jameson Pifer Jr of Collins Hill GA nearly became the first prep sub-four miler of the year when he ran 4:00.61 at the Camel City Distance meet at JDL Fasttrack in Winston-Salem, N.C.

Pifer is the reigning Class 6A state champion in Georgia in the 1,600 meters.