Colin Sahlman Named Top CA Boys Track and Field Athlete

GATORADE CALIFORNIA PLAYER OF THE YEAR AWARD


Colin Sahlman ran a U.S. No. 1 time in outracing teammate Lex Young to win a super-fast and deep 3200m at the Arcadia Invitational in early May. (Raymond Tran photos)

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Colin Sahlman opened his 2021 track and field season in Arizona on the second week of February and closed it out in Tennessee the first weekend in June. In between, the California-based distance star dropped a national-best 3200m, a No. 3 time for 1600m, a No. 6 time for the mile, and posted PRs across five different distances from 800m to 3200m. 

In a California outdoor track and field season that rarely, if ever, had the best of the best on the line at the same time, Sahlman's eight-meet resume rose above a handful of other worthy candidates, and on Thursday Gatorade named the Newbury Park High (SS) junior as its California Boys Track & Field Player of the Year.

Sahlman was also Gatorade's CA Boys Cross Country Player of the Year.

The pinnacle of Sahlman's spring was a jaw-dropping 3200m race at the Arcadia Invitational in May where he led a parade of 15 boys under 9 minutes, outsprinting sophomore teammate Lex Young to the line in 8 minutes, 43.42 seconds. That time was the ninth fastest eight-lapper in CA history and ranked U.S. No. 1 for the 2021 outdoor season. 

His 4:04.86 mile at the Sundown Track Series Meet No. 3 held at Queen Creek (AZ) HS outside of Phoenix, ranked U.S. No. 6 with his 1600m split of 4:03.58 slotting No. 3 and CA No. 16 all-time. 

The three-race Sundown Track Series of distance-only meets was the brainchild of Newbury Park head coach Sean Brosnan, who was looking for opportunities for his athletes while high school competition in California was severely limited as a result of the Coronavirus Pandemic. 

Sahlman, competing as part of the Newbury Park Athletic Club, took full advantage, running two of his three mile/1600m races and one of his three 3200m races in the Valley of the Sun. Placing first each time.

"Colin has a natural talent that he has been able to develop over the last three years to become a dominant competitor," Brosnan is quoted as saying in the Gatorade release. "His ability to push himself beyond what others may think is possible is what really sets him apart from other athletes."

Watch Colin Sahlman at Sundown Track Series Meet No. 3


Sahlman ran his 800m PR of 1:53.20 at the Marmonte League Finals to close out his limited CIF-season competition. He ran 3:46.39 for 1500m, competing unattached in an open field at a Sound Running event in Orange County in mid-May. He closed out his outdoor season with a 4:05.79 mile to win in a 13-runner national field at the Music City Track Carnival in Nashville the first weekend of June.

The Gatorade award recognizes not only outstanding athletic excellence but also high standards of academic achievement and exemplary character demonstrated on and off the field. As the recipient of the California award, Sahlman is now a finalist for the prestigious Gatorade National Boys Track & Field Player of the Year award to be announced later in July.



The Full Gatorade Release