Corrigan surges late, wins 3,000-meter steeplechase national title

The junior ran the fastest winning time in 47 years.

Author Tyson Jex
Corrigan surges late, wins 3,000-meter steeplechase national titleCorrigan surges late, wins 3,000-meter steeplechase national title

EUGENE, Ore. – BYU’s James Corrigan became the fifth in Cougar history to win a 3,000-meter steeplechase title on Friday evening at Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore.

The Cougars finished in a tie for 11th overall at the championships with 19 points, marking the third time since 2019 they have finished in the Top 15 at the national meet.

Corrigan ran his last 400-meters in 61 seconds to secure BYU’s second title in the event in the past three seasons. After finishing ninth last year, Corrigan joins Kyle Perry, Josh McAdams, Kenneth Rooks and Bob Richards as Cougars to win a steeplechase crown.

“It feels amazing. Two days ago, I was asked why I chose the NCAA and why I peaked for this meet and not just focus on a long-term world championship,” Corrigan said. “I think there are goals down the line. To win an NCAA championship is special because it shows that you can show up and win on the day. To me, it was a big goal, and I’m just glad that I was able to pull it off.”

Corrigan kept in contact with the lead pack from the gun but saw himself in third place heading into the final 400m. With the bell ringing, the junior passed Furman’s Carson Williams for second and turned his sights on Louisville’s Geoffrey Kirwa, who led by two seconds with 400-meters remaining. He made his move off the final water steeple and never looked back, crossing the finish line in 8:14.61, the fastest winning time in 47 years.

“The last lap felt very similar to last year’s trials. It caught me off guard when I was passing people, because everyone seemed like they were standing still,” Corrigan added. “No one was accelerating, and it was my time to go. The last 300m I tried to just be calm, controlled and give enough, but still get over the barriers. While I wasn’t going 100 percent, I was certainly giving as much as I could safely.”

The quartet of Eli Hazlett, Jonah Heimuli, Josh Taylor and Trey Jackson broke the school record in the 4x400-meter relay to finish seventh and secure First Team All-American honors. After anchoring the relay in the semifinals on Wednesday, Jackson led the race off before handing the baton to Hazlett. The senior gave way to Heimuli, while Taylor anchored the Cougars to the fastest time in program history, 3:02.51. The Cougars earned First Team All-American honors indoors and outdoors in the mile relay for the first time in program history.

Making his first NCAA appearance, Luke Grundvig finished 23rd in the 5,000-meters running 13:54.70.