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- #102 - Kessler, Fisher Under World Record!
#102 - Kessler, Fisher Under World Record!
State Records For Blue, Brocks
Jeff Hollobaugh
February 12, 2026
Inside This Issue
World Record At 2000 For Kessler
In a stirring race at the New Balance GP in Boston, Hobbs Kessler ran a classic sit-and-kick strategy to overtake Grant Fisher and break the World Record in the rarely-run 2000 meters. Kessler, a Skyline grad, ran 4:48.79 and Fisher ran 4:49.48. The old World Indoor Record was 4:49.99 by Ethiopian great Kenenisa Bekele in 2007. (The outdoor best, for comparison, is Jakob Inbgebrigtsen’s 4:43.13.
After the pacer dropped, Fisher, already the World Indoor Record holder at 3000 and 5000, led until Kessler shot by with 100 to go.
If you’re not familiar with what a 2000m mark really means, here some math. Kessler basically ran a 3:52.40 mile and added another two laps at the same pace! His 400 splits: 56.62, 58.12, 59.07, 59.23, 55.75. When blended with the world outdoor all-time list, Kessler and Fisher are now Nos. 9 and 10 ever.
Kessler told NBC, “That felt so good. It was bitter, not performing what I though I was capable of last year.” Of his kick he said his coach advised him, “Don’t squeeze, explode, so that’s what I tried to do.”
I interviewed Kessler yesterday. Read it at Track & Field News.
“I just want to race and try to push up my fitness and push up my skills, so that I set myself up really well for ’27 and ’28. Just having a year where I can take risks and try new things and just try to gain experience, gain confidence, and all that is pretty exciting.”
Michigan at Millrose
The Millrose mile did not go Hobbs Kessler’s way, after he got squeezed out of the lead pack in the early going. He fought back to 2nd place on the final lap, but his kick faded and he ended up 3rd in 3:48.68. His 1500 split of 3:32.99 is the fourth-fastest ever by an American.
Watch the men’s mile (minus the chunk NBC cut out of the middle).
Other Michigan highlights — Donavan Brazier (newly married) placed 4th in the 800 in 1:45.63. Gabriela Leon vaulted to 4th at 14-5.25. And in the prep mile, Natasza Dudek placed 4th in 4:42.59, a state record for 10th graders.
The Motor City Track Club was all over at the Armory. Ron’Dre Austion was 2nd in the 400 (48.18). The women’s 4×4 was 2nd (3:51.03) and the 4×2 was 3rd (1:39.00). Also, Track Life’s Peyton Trammer was 4th in the 60 at 6.79.
Brocks Crushes Record At UM Showcase
Lot of great marks at the the UM Showcase on the 200 banked track at Michigan, but the one that outshined them all came from Catholic Central senior Zaccheus Brocks in the 60 hurdles. Already the national leader and state record holder with his little-publicized 7.68 at Bowing Green the week before, Brocks blasted a 7.76 in the heats, then crushed a jaw-dropping 7.57 in the final. Only three U.S. high schoolers have ever run faster.
Rondre Austion nailed a 47.72 in the 400, to become the No. 2 ever in state history on a record-legal track. And Payton Trammer continued to burn the track, hitting 6.69 in the 60 (No. 2 in history) and 21.76 in the 200.
The speed events also highlights the girls side. Illinois-bound Kamryn Tatum sprinted state leaders of 7.46 and 24.03. Cayla Hawkins, now a frosh at East Lansing, ripped 55.03 in the 400. And Layla Hawkins topped Payton Gee in the hurdles, 8.58-8.64. Note also the runner-up mark in the girls shot, where Traverse City Central’s Lorelai Zielinski threw 45-11.25 and is now No. 9 in state history.
Blue Topples Vault Record
Grand Valley meet No. 4 (Jan 24) saw a lot of eyes on the dream miles, but the big record came in the pole vault. MSU signee Katie Blue made history with her 13-10. Later, she showed the speed that helped, winning the hurdles in 8.98. Watch the record jump!
As for the Dream Miles, Luka Hammond won the boys race in 4:13.12 over Brandon Cloud (4:15.21). Emma Hoffman took the girls in 4:49.77 over Katie Berkshire (4:50.91), Alexandra Scappaticci (4:51.88) and El McMahon (4:52.38).
LAB #7: Doubles For Austion & Seeberger
January 24—Lincoln’s Greg Myers continues to look like a national force in the making. He won the 400 in 49.50 then split a stunning 1:49.8 in the distance medley.
Rondre Austion won the sprints at 6.96 and 21.63. Portage Northern’s Mauriel Seeberger (Motor City in the winter) took the long ones in 24.69 and 56.72. In the 800, 8th-grader Aubrey Burt of Motor City won in 2:12.87.
Other Great Results
Michigan’s Utica alum, Trent McFarland, demolished some of the best milers in the NCAA with his breakthrough 3:52.73 win at the Arkansas Invitational (1/31). That makes him the No. 8 American collegian ever. Northville grad Brendan Herger finished 7th in a PR 3:55.80.
Cayla Hawkins: Get used to seeing her name here a lot. At the SPIRE Scholastic Showcase on the 300 track in Geneva, Ohio (Feb. 7), she blistered a 53.34 for 400. The 9th grade state record is 53.24 (200 track) by the legendary Kendall Baisden. Regardless of track size, that’s the only indoor performance in state history faster than Hawkins’ monster run.
Remember Jessica Mercier? At Waterford Kettering she was the 2018 D1 vault champ. After spins at Michigan and Indiana, she is now a pro, and she is improving rapidly. At an invitational in Indianapolis, the 25-year-old won her event with a PR 15-0 (4.57). That makes her No. 13 on the current world list.
Preps at a college meet: Great to see University of Michigan feature two invitational prep 400s as part of their recent Michigan Invitational. Nevaeh Burns won the girls race in 55.21 over Willow Mason (55.65), Mauriel Seeberger (56.07) and Malise Brown (56.09). Ron’Dre Austion missed the state record by a mere 0.01 with his 47.63 win ahead of De-Mani Roberts (48.11).
Other Things
ATOM’s Gordie Richardson presents the award. (Kim Spalsbury photo)
Thanks to ATOM, the Association of Track Officials of Michigan, for recognizing our work at Michtrack with their Award of Recognition.
MITS Circuit: Here’s the full schedule.
MITS Finals: Tentative Schedule
Team State at the MHSAA? I’m working on a story regarding recent developments here. Stay tuned.
Charitable Giving: Keep in mind that Michtrack is a federally approved 501c3 and that donations to keep our historical work going, as well as this newsletter, are tax deductible. For how to give, visit here.
There’s a lot of news… that we missed here. Time crunch and we needed to get this out the door before we fall another weekend behind. More later.
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