* Tyrone Gorze finished sixth at the Eastbay Cross Country Championships
Photo Credit: Raymond Tran/MileSplit
Over the history of high school track and field, the 10K hasn't been an event discipline that many high school boys have taken a run at. The percentages of young men running the distance over the course of most outdoor seasons has annually been close to zilch.
There's a very good reason for that. The distance is not sanctioned at the high school level by state associations, nor do the various national championships tend to offer the distance over their specific programs. The distance is not run in cross country, either.
Historically, the move up to the 10K has solely been for collegiate athletes and professionals, as it requires maturation and strength to truly excel at the discipline.
But that hasn't stopped a few boys in high school from trying their hand at it. Historically, the 10K is offered at the U20 championship level. Back in 2018, for instance, Trevor Foley was the lone high school boy to run the distance at the USATF U20 Championships.
Which brings us to the weekend. On Saturday, a bit of history took place at the Portland Track Festival.
Tyrone Gorze, one of the country's more under-the-radar stars from Crater (OR) High School -- an athlete who quietly clocked some big-time national performances in cross country -- put together a chest-thumping performance in Portland, clocking a time of 29:29.92 in the first heat of the High Performance section.
According to the MileSplit database, two high school boys -- in particular -- have run the distance faster all-time -- Rudy Chapa (28:32.70) in 1976 and Galen Rupp (29:09.56) in 2004.
Historically, Gorze clocked a faster time than the high school versions of Edward Cheserek (29:42.31) and Conner Mantz (31:01.25), the reigning NCAA champion in cross country.
For Gorze, it's the latest success story over a season that's seen him run 4:08.24 for the full mile this outdoor season, on top of a runner-up finish in the 1,500m at the Oregon Class 5A Championships in 4:00.04.
The cross country season was officially his breakout moment, as he finished sixth at nationals, won the Eastbay West Regional and accumulated a total of seven wins over the campaign, including his first Oregon Class 5A title.