Virginia's Shane Cohen Wins 800M National Title at Track & Field Championships

Virginia track & field is bringing a national championship trophy back to Charlottesville from Eugene, thanks to Shane Cohen. In his debut at the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships, Cohen delivered a legendary comeback in the men's 800m final, passing the entire field in the last 120 meters to claim the national title in an electric finish.

WHAT A KICK AT THE END.

Shane Cohen wins his first NCAA DI title with a time of 1:44.97!!

📺 ESPN#NCAATF x @UVATFCC pic.twitter.com/oIe4T4P2kC
— NCAA Track & Field (@NCAATrackField) June 8, 2024

A senior from Huntingdon Valley, Pennsylvania, Cohen transferred from Division II Tampa, where he walked on to the track & field team. After a couple of top 10 finishes in the 800m at the NCAA Division II Championships, Cohen joined the UVA track & field program as a graduate transfer in 2023.

A year later, in the men's 800m final at his first-ever Division I Championships, Cohen ran a personal-best 1:44.97, becoming just the second runner to go sub-1:50 in the 800m this season and winning the national title in dramatic come-from-behind fashion. Cohen is the third Cavalier to win the men's 800m NCAA title, joining Robby Andrews (2011) and Paul Ereng (1988 and 1989).

Cohen is the first Cavalier to win a men's NCAA title since Claudio Romero won the Discus title in 2022 and joins a list of only five Cavaliers to win an outdoor national championship:
Paul Ereng - 800m champion in 1988 and 1989
Robby Andrews - 800m champion in 2011
Filip Mihaljevic - Shot Put champion in 2016 and 2017 and Discus champion in 2017
Claudio Romero - Discus champion in 2022
Shane Cohen - 800m champion in 2024

Behind Cohen's national title, Virginia placed eighth in the men's standings at the 2024 NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships this week at Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon. It is the third-highest finish for the Cavaliers at the NCAA Championships in program history and their 26 total team points are their second-most ever. UVA was the highest-finishing ACC team at the NCAA Championships for the second year in a row.

The Virginia men had five First-Team All-Americans and three All-American honorable mentions:
First Team
Shane Cohen - 800m Champion
Nate Mountain - Runner-up in 3000m Steeplechase
Jacob Lemmon - Sixth in Discus
Wes Porter - Sixth in 1500m
Yasin Sado - 7th in 3000m Steeplechase

Honorable Mention
John Fay - 23rd in Hammer Throw
Gary Martin - 21st in 1500m
Will Anthony - 18th in 10,000m

The Virginia women totaled five points as a team and placed 40th in the team standings at the 2024 NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships. Margot Appleton led the way for the UVA women, placing fourth in the 5000m with a time of 15:24.24. Appleton earned First-Team All-American honors for the second year in a row at the outdoor championships after placing third in the 1500m in 2023.

Brining home the hardware 😁#GoHoos pic.twitter.com/caVo2zwfdc
— Virginia Track & Field and Cross Country (@UVATFCC) June 9, 2024

Virginia sophomore Celia Rifaterra also earned an All-American honorable mention, placing 18th in the high jump with her mark of 1.77m. Rifaterra is the first Cavalier All-American in the event since Sherry Gauld in 1993.