Binghamton senior middle-distance runner Jesse Garn took fourth in the finals of the 800-meter race at the 2015 NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships, en route to becoming just the third Bearcat in program history to earn first team All-America honors.
To accomplish that feat, Garn competed in two rounds — the preliminaries and the final. Although Garn found success in the final, he achieved his actual goal in the qualifying round.
“Going into it, I just really wanted to qualify for the finals,” Garn said. “In my first race, I had gone up against a lot of the other runners head-to-head before so I was pretty confident going in.”
As the eight runners rounded the University of Oregon’s historic Hayward Field track in the second of three preliminary heats at the championships, a flash of green came into view. Garn, who had been at the back of the pack for much of the race, began to overtake fellow runners as the final turn approached, positioning himself third with 200 meters remaining. As his competitors started to fade from view, Garn only increased his speed, using his kick to cross the finish line in first and qualify for the final round of competition with a time of 1:47.68.
After catching his breath, Garn pumped his fist in celebration.
The last time he had competed on the national stage, at the 2015 NCAA Indoor Championships in March, Garn was disqualified in the semifinals due to a false start and his hopes of advancing were dashed. He refused, however, to let the outcome of that meet affect his goals moving forward.
“I kept my head up,” Garn said. “Honestly, it took a bit of a toll emotionally, but I just stayed positive and realized that it wasn’t a fluke that I made it to the indoor championships and that I really did belong at the national level of competition.”
Garn had a similar plan in the finals, when he came from the rear of the group for the second consecutive race to finish fourth, clocking in at 1:49.74.
“I knew that I belonged in the finals of the 800,” Garn said. “I know that I’m that much of a competitor and finishing fourth is crazy. It was really a cherry on top of the season.”
Iowa State senior Edward Kemboi took first in the race with a time of 1:49.26, while Penn State junior Brandon Kidder (1:49.36) and Akron sophomore Clayton Murphy (1:49.74) finished second and third, respectively.
While Garn completed his undergraduate degree in May, he has another year of NCAA eligibility left due to his status as a redshirt. He plans on staying at Binghamton as a graduate student while continuing to race for the Bearcats.
“I’m very sure that I can qualify again next indoor season, either in the eight [hundred] or the mile,” Garn said. “As far as the team goes, we want to be in the top two or three in the conference championships again next year.”