When Jane Hedengren was in sixth grade, she set her sights on breaking her school’s mile record. She went to the track with her father, John Hedengren, a former BYU runner, to chase the splits she would need. She couldn’t hit them and ended the workout in tears.
A few months later, though, she returned to the same race and broke the record. That moment of disappointment, followed by resilience, became a fitting prologue to one of the most remarkable high school running careers the United States has ever seen.
Now 18 and preparing for her freshman season at BYU, Hedengren leaves high school as the holder of nine national records.
Her times span nearly every distance from the mile to the 5,000 meters, indoors and out. In 2024 alone, she broke the U.S. high school records for the mile, 3,200, two mile, and 5,000, achievements that track historians have likened to the dominance of Mary Decker in the 1970s and Katelyn Tuohy in the 2010s.
Her breakout moment came at Nike Indoor Nationals, where she set records in both the mile and the 5,000 meters. Commentators that day called her “once in a generation”, and it wasn’t hyperbole. Later that year, she lowered the national 3,200-meter mark and won Nike Cross Nationals in record fashion, running 16:32.7 with a 41-second margin of victory that stunned even seasoned coaches.
What sets Hedengren apart, though, is that she doesn’t dwell on records. “I just want to see how far I can take it,” she said this summer, echoing her focus on the process rather than the accolades.
She has steadily built her training over the years, going from around 30 miles per week as a freshman to about 55 miles per week as a senior, with more structured workouts and strength training.
Coaches who have worked with her through the Nike Elite program describe her as rare not just for her genetics but for her mental toughness and work ethic, the three ingredients that often separate good runners from historic ones.
Her father still points back to that day on the track in middle school as a defining moment. “It’s like the analogy of the boxer,” he said. “You only lose when you don’t get back up.”
That resilience carried her through setbacks, into record books, and now to Provo, where she’ll join Coach Diljeet Taylor and a BYU program that has become a powerhouse in collegiate distance running.
Hedengren was named the 2025 Gatorade National Player of the Year in track and field, the country’s most prestigious high school sports honor. It’s the sort of award that signals future Olympic potential, though Hedengren is careful not to get too far ahead of herself.
“I’ve been really careful about thinking too far ahead,” she said. “What I can focus on right now is keeping myself healthy, enjoying the sport, and loving those around me.”
Whether she eventually makes her mark on the world stage remains to be seen. But in the span of just a few years, Jane Hedengren has gone from a middle schooler chasing a local mile record to the most decorated high school distance runner in American history.
And for the next generation of young girls watching her tear across cross-country courses and tracks, she’s already proof of how far a dream can go.
