 | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Nationality | American |
| Born | (2002-07-27)July 27, 2002 (age 23) |
| Home town | Camarillo, California |
| Sport | |
| Country |  United States |
| Sport | Track and field |
Events | |
| University team | Northern Arizona Lumberjacks |
| Club | Adidas |
| Coached by | Sean Brosnan (2016–2020) Michael Smith (2020–present) |
| Achievements and titles | |
| National finals |
|
| Personalbests | All information from athlete'sWorld Athletics profile. |
Medal record | |
Nicolas Young (born July 27, 2002)[1] is an Americanlong-distance runner who holds theAmerican record in the outdoor5000 meters, with a time of 12:45.27. He is a two-time NCAA champion having won both the 3000 m and 5000 m at the 2024 NCAA Indoor Championships while competing forNorthern Arizona University. He also holds the collegiate records in the 5000 m (12:57.14) and 10,000 m (26:52.72), both set in 2024.[2] He is the current American champion in the 10,000 meters, winning at the2025 USA Championships.
Young ran forNewbury Park High School inNewbury Park, California. He broke the 3 mile cross country American high school record at the 2019 Woodbridge Classic, running a time of 13:39.7,[3] and lowered the American high school indoor 3000m record (previously held byDrew Hunter), running a time of 7:56.91.[4] At the 2019Nike Cross Nationals, Young won the race and set the course record with a time of 14:52[5] and led Newbury Park to the team victory. Young was named the 2019-20XC National Gatorade Player of the Year[2] and the 2019-20Track and Field National Gatorade Player of the Year.[2] His senior season in 2020 was cancelled due to theCOVID-19 pandemic.[citation needed]
| Event | Time | Date | Location | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Outdoor | 800 m | 2:06.8h | April 23, 2018 | Newbury Park, California | |
| 1600 m | 4:07.33+ | March 23, 2019 | Azusa, California | ||
| Mile | 4:08.82 | March 23, 2019 | Azusa, California | ||
| 3000 m | 8:11.02+ | April 6, 2019 | Arcadia, California | ||
| 3200 m | 8:40.00 | April 6, 2019 | Arcadia, California | ||
| 5000 m | 13:50.55 | June 23, 2020 | Portland, Oregon | ||
| Indoor | 1500 m | 3:58.64+ | January 29, 2019 | Boston, Massachusetts | |
| Mile | 4:14.92 | January 26, 2019 | Boston, Massachusetts | ||
| 3000 m | 7:56.97 | February 8, 2020 | New York City, New York | Former High school record | |
| XC | 3 miles | 13:39.7 | September 20–21, 2019 | Norco, California | Former high school record |
| 5 km | 14:28.5 | November 30, 2019 | Fresno, California |
During the 2020 cross country season, Young placed 4th at the2020 NCAA Division I Cross Country Championships with a time of 29:58.3[6] at the 10 km distance, the highest a true freshman has placed since 2013. He set anAmerican junior record in the 5000m at the 2021 Drake Relays with a time of 13:24.26.[7] With this time he qualified for the 2021 U.S. Olympic Trials, where he ran 13:35.94 and finished 9th.[8]
Later that year, Young placed 11th at the2021 NCAA Division I Cross Country Championships with a time of 28:57.5, but he also lowered the American junior record in the indoor 5000m with a time of 13:22.59 at the BU Season Opener on December 4, 2021.[citation needed]
In 2022, Young placed 3rd in the 5000m and 7th in the 3000m at the2022 NCAA Division I Indoor Track and Field Championships.[citation needed]
On May 6, Young ran 13:11.30 at the Sound Running Track Meet inSan Juan Capistrano, which is the fastest 5000m ever run by an American teenager and the 3rd fastest outdoor 5000m in collegiate history.[9] He ended up placing 3rd in the 5000m at the2022 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships. At the2022 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships, Young placed 8th in the 5000m, running a time of 13:19.15.[citation needed]
During the 2022 cross country season, Young set a 10 km personal best of 28:01 at the NCAA Division I Mountain Region Cross Country Championships on November 11, 2022,[citation needed] before placing 2nd at the2022 NCAA Division I Cross Country Championships with a time of 28:44.5.[10] Two weeks later, Young lowered his indoor 5000m personal best to 13:15.25 at the BU Season Opener on December 3, 2022, finishing 5th in a field of collegiate and professional runners.[citation needed]
Young placed 6th at the2023 NCAA Division I Cross Country Championships with a time of 29:04.2.[11]
On January 26, 2024, at Boston University's John Thomas Terrier Classic, Young placed 2nd toAdrian Wildschutt's 12:56.76 in the men's 5000m White Heat, with a new personal best time of 12:57.14, defeating the 13:00.00 barrier, setting a new NCAA record, and hitting theParis 2024 Olympics' qualifying standard of 13:05.00.[12][13][14]
On March 8, 2024, Young won his first NCAA individual title at the2024 NCAA Division I Indoor Track and Field Championships over 5000m. His last three 200m laps were recorded at 28.47, 27.10, and 27.29 seconds, respectively.[15] He followed up the victory the next day with an NCAA title at 3000m in 7:41.01. North Carolina'sParker Wolfe finished second in both events, but was not within a second of Young in either.[citation needed]
Just one week after his double-gold performance atThe Track at New Balance inBoston, Young made his debut in the 10,000 m on the track, competing atThe TEN inSan Juan Capistrano with the goal of achieving theOlympicqualifying standard of 27:00.00.[16] Finishing in second place behindAmerican-record holderGrant Fisher, Young broke thecollegiate record[17] of 27:08.49 set bySam Chelanga, and hit theOlympic standard, running a time of 26:52.72.[18][19] Later that month, on March 25, Young announced he had signed anNIL deal withAdidas, and would go pro.[20][21]
Two weeks after the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships, where he placed second in the 5000m to Parker Wolfe, Young competed in the 10,000m at theOlympic Trials. He out-kickedDrew Hunter to place third and qualify for theOlympic Games.[22][23] At the Olympics, he placed 12th in the10,000 m in 26:58.11.[24]
| Event | Time | Date | Location | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Outdoor | 800 m | 1:47.65 | April 27, 2024 | Tucson, Arizona | |
| 1500 m | 3:37.75 | April 15, 2022 | Azusa, California | ||
| 5000 m | 13:11.30 | May 6, 2022 | San Juan Capistrano, California | ||
| 10,000 metres | 26:52.72 | March 16, 2024 | San Juan Capistrano, California | Collegiate record | |
| Indoor | 800 m | 1:54.21A | January 21, 2022 | Flagstaff, Arizona | |
| Mile | 3:56.00 | January 29, 2022 | Seattle, Washington | ||
| 5000 m | 12:57.14 | January 26, 2024 | Boston, Massachusetts | Collegiate record | |
| XC | 8 km | 22:30.8 | February 9, 2021 | North Las Vegas, Nevada | |
| 10 km | 28:01.8 | November 20, 2021 | Albuquerque, New Mexico |
On March 2, at the Last Chance National Qualifier atBoston University, Young ran 12:51.56 in the short track 5000 meters, which stands as the second fastest time run by an American, behindGrant Fisher, who holds the world record at 12:44.09.[25]
On June 1, Young won the3000 meters at thePhiladelphia Slam, in a time of 8:01.03.[26] On June 12, he won the5000 meters at theBislett Games, in anAmerican record time of 12:45.27.[27]
On July 31, Young won a national title over the10,000 meters at the2025 United States Outdoor Track and Field Championships, outkickingGrant Fisher in a time of 29:02.12 to 29:02.37.[28] On August 3, Young finished third to Fisher andCole Hocker in the 5000 meters.[29]
Young has younger twin brothers,Lex andLeo Young. All three brothers competed on the same team together at Newbury Park in 2019, when the twins were freshman and Nico was a senior. Both twins run collegiately atStanford and have NIL deals withOn.[30]
| Year | Competition | Venue | Position | Event | Time | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Olympic Games | Stade de France, Saint-Denis, France | 12th | 10,000 m | 26:58.11 | [31] |
| 2025 | 2025 World Athletics Championships | Tokyo, Japan National Stadium | 6th | 5000 m | 13:00.07 | [32] |
| 5th | 10,000 m | 28:56.62 | [33] |
| Grand Slam Track results[34] | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Slam | Race group | Event | Pl. | Time | Prize money |
| 2025 Philadelphia Slam | Long distance | 3000 m | 1st | 8:01.03 | US$50,000 |
| Year | Competition | Venue | Position | Event | Time | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Bislett Games | Oslo, Norway | 1st | 5000 m | 12:45.27ARNR | [27] |
| Year | Competition | Venue | Position | Event | Time | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | Olympic Trials | Hayward Field, Eugene, Oregon | 9th | 5000 m | 13:35.94 | [8] |
| 2022 | USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships | Hayward Field, Eugene, Oregon | 8th | 5000 m | 13:19.15 | [1] |
| 2024 | Olympic Trials | Hayward Field, Eugene, Oregon | 3rd | 10,000 m | 27:52.40 | [1][23] |
| 2025 | USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships | Hayward Field, Eugene, Oregon | 1st | 10,000 m | 29:02.12 | [28] |
| 3rd | 5000 m | 13:27.05 | [29] |
| Year | Competition | Venue | Position | Event | Time | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | Division I Indoor Championships | Birmingham CrossPlex,Birmingham, Alabama | 3rd | 5000 m | 13:21.23 | [1] |
| 7th | 3000 m | 8:00.83 | [1] | |||
| Division I Outdoor Championships | Hayward Field, Eugene, Oregon | 3rd | 5000 m | 13:28.62 | [1] | |
| Division I Cross Country Championships | OSU Cross Country Course,Stillwater, Oklahoma | 2nd | 10 km | 28:44.5 | [10] | |
| 2023 | Division I Indoor Championships | Albuquerque Convention Center,Albuquerque, New Mexico | 4th | 5000 m | 13:40.55 | [1] |
| Division I Outdoor Championships | Mike A. Myers Stadium,Austin, Texas | 8th | 5000 m | 14:10.17 | [1] | |
| Division I Cross Country Championships | Panorama Farms,Charlottesville, Virginia | 6th | 10 km | 29:04.2 | [11] | |
| 2024 | Division I Indoor Championships | The TRACK at New Balance,Boston, Massachusetts | 1st | 5000 m | 13:25.29 | [1][15] |
| 3000 m | 7:41.01 | |||||
| Division I Outdoor Championships | Hayward Field, Eugene, Oregon | 2nd | 5000 m | 13:54.65 | [1] |
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