Last To First: Virginia's Shane Cohen's Path From Division II to NCAA Championship Glory

"You never know what you can do until you're going out and doing it. You have no shot at running fast unless you give yourself an opportunity to run fast. If you go out in a race slow, how are you going to run fast if you’re already not going out hard enough? I think that’s just kind of given me the confidence that, ‘You can do it.’"

The University of Virginia star stole the show on the final day of the NCAA Championships with a crazy kick in the 800 meters. Cohen went from last to first in the final 100 meters, clocking a personal best of 1:44.97.

Cohen’s journey is nothing short of inspirational. Just a year ago, he was virtually unknown, running for Division II University of Tampa and struggling to regain his form after a stress fracture in his femur. Despite a personal best of 1:48, he never broke 1:53 in six 800-meter races last spring. With results like these, Division I interest for his fifth year wasn’t extreme. But University of Virginia coaches Vin Lananna and Trevor Dunbar saw something special in Cohen’s kick and decided to take a chance on him.

Throughout the 2024 season, Cohen showed remarkable improvement, running 1:47 in April and third at the ACCs with a 1:46 in May. He ran 1:45 at regionals. Even after these impressive times, he was still largely overlooked heading into the NCAA Championships. That all changed during the prelims, where Cohen showcased an insane burst of speed, going from last to first in the final straight. That video caught my attention and some of the track internet community.

In the final, Cohen replicated his prelims strategy and ran close to even splits and finishing in 1:44.97. His racing style drew comparisons to Robby Andrews, who won the 2011 NCAA 800 title in similar fashion for the same school. Although Cohen was only ten years old during Andrews’ iconic race, he now finds himself following in those legendary footsteps.

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