Waukesha West's Cole Zielinski Breaks 61-Year-Old WIAA State Meet Record in Long Jump

Waukesha West High School junior Cole Zielinski's pressure-packed third attempt helped him soar into the record books.

During the WIAA State Track and Field Championships at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse's Veteran Memorial Stadium on June 6, Zielinski captured the Division 1 state championship in the long jump with a meet record-setting winning distance of 25 feet, 9 3/4 inches, breaking a 61-year-old meet record.

The remarkable feat will go down as one of the most memorable in state track and field history as it shattered the oldest standing record in WIAA history. The prior mark of 25 feet, 3/4 inches was established by former standout Larry Franklin of Madison Central in 1965.

Record Leap Helps Team Race

The victory took on added significance as it scored valuable points for West, which finished with 41 points to tie for second place with fierce Classic 8 Conference rival Arrowhead in the final team standings.

Homestead captured the D1 state team title with 48 points.

Wisconsin high school boys track and field: Cole Zielinski set a D1 state record in long jump with a leap of 25 feet, 9 3/4. — Waukesha West High School junior Cole Zielinski breaks the state record with a leap of 25 feet, 9 3/4 inches in the Division 1 long jump during the final day of the WIAA State Track and Field Meet on June 6, 2026. | Wm. Glasheen/USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The history-making effort secured Zielinski's second consecutive state championship in the long jump and headlined a list of impressive boys state titles in the two-day competition. It came as part of a successful overall meet for Zielinski, who earlier contributed a victory in the triple jump (48-2), and ran the anchor leg of the winning meet-record setting 4x200 relay (1:25.65).

To help put Zielinski's remarkable career progression in better perspective, he claimed the 2025 state title with a leap of 24-5.

He is currently ranked No. 1 nationally in the long jump, according to DyeStat.com.

A Season-Long Goal Achieved

"The whole day was good and it felt like everything was just leading up to the long jump," said Zielinski, in an interview with Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reporter Zac Bellman. "It was the goal of the entire season ever since winning the state title last year. Going into the season, my eyes were set on the record so to actually break it makes it feel like all of the hard work over the course of my high school career has paid off. I can finally say that I did it and the job is finished."

Waukesha West head boys track and field coach Mary Quinn was quick to point out that Zielinski's mental toughness played a valuable role in responding to the big-meet pressure.

"His composure, I think, carries through him a lot," said Quinn, in a post-meet interview with the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. "He has been talking about this record all year. I don't think anything was gonna stop him from doing it, truly."

West senior Chetan Malkan added an individual state title in the discus, finishing with a first-place distance of 172 feet, 5 inches.

-- Jeff Hagenau | jeffreyhagenau@gmail.com

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