High School All-Star Races

The high school races are a huge part of our meet and we’re proud to have had some of the nation’s top athletes race at the Festival of Miles.

FOM features some of the very best post-season mile races in the entire country. Since 2011 we have had 100+ boys break 4:12.00 and 115+ girls break 5:00!

HIGH SCHOOL RACES

Marks must be from the 2024 outdoor track season, beginning March 1, 2024.

Boys and Girls Championship Mile: We will accept the top 15 entries* per gender in the Championship Mile races.
Boys and Girls 800 Meter Run: We will accept the top 8 entries* per gender in the 800 meter races.
Boys and Girls Elite Mile: While the fastest times for our mile races will be entered in the Championship sections, we will accept the next 15 best entries into our Elite Development sections. And these races are FAST! Winners of the boys and girls races needed to run 4:08 and 4:46 to win the elite development sections in 2023.
Missouri Mile:*New in 2024* These races will feature top high school runners from our event’s home state of Missouri. Up to 15 boys and girls from high schools in Missouri (who are not invited to run in the Championship section) will be invited to participate in the Missouri Mile. While new, we expect these races to be extremely competitive!
Note: if an athlete is from Missouri and has a time that would qualify them for the Elite mile section, he or she may choose to participate in either the Elite OR Missouri section. 

*All participants from the High School sections (Championship, Elite, 800 and Missouri) will receive a set of apparel, shoes and spikes from HOKA. 

The deadline to enter is midnight EST on Saturday, May 25th. Accepted entries will be announced on Sunday, May 26th.

Use the Link below To EXPRESS INTEREST (or UPDATE YOUR TIME)

*Meet Director may accept at-large entries under extraordinary circumstances.

MEET RECORDS

Boys Mile- Simeon Birnbaum (SD), 2023, 3:57.53
Girls Mile- Allie Zealand (VA), 2024, 4:30.38* – National Record US Outdoor Mile, HS Only Race
*Sadie Engelhardt ran 4:28.46 in the professional women’s race in 2024 – US High School Outdoor Mile Record

Boys 800- Daniel Watcke (IL), 2023, 1:48.59
Girls 800- Tessa Buswell (CA), 2024, 2:06.55*
*Caitlin Collier ran 2:03.32 in the professional women’s race in 2017.

TOP TIME LISTS

Boys and Girls Mile
Boys and Girls 800

If you have any questions at all about the entry process or any other aspect of the High School All Star Races please contact the Race Director. 

Notable Participants

Some of the big names who have run at Festival of Miles include:

• Emily Sisson (American Record Holder – Marathon/Half Marathon)
• Grant Fisher (American Record Holder – 5,000m/10,000m)
• Colleen Quigley (NCAA Champion/World Champs Finalist/Olympian)
• Sadie Engelhardt (American HS Outdoor Mile Record Holder)
• Gary Martin (4th Fastest American High School Miler of all time)
• Natalie Cook (American HS Record Holder in the 5,000m)
• Drew Griffith (1600m NFHS Record Holder, American HS Indoor 2 Mile Record Holder)
• Connor Burns (Fastest HS Junior Miler of all time)
• Amos Bartelsmeyer (Olympian)
• Jonathan Davis (Fastest American 1500m of 2022, NCAA All American, 2nd – USA Championships – 1500m)
• Taylor Werner (7 time All American at Arkansas/three-time Foot Locker finalist)
• Stephanie Jenks (3-time Foot Locker Finalist)
• Hannah Long (Stanford/3-time Foot Locker Finalist)
• and many more.

Sub-4 History at Festival of Miles

• In 2015 Grant Fisher became just the seventh HS boy ever to break 4 minutes in the mile.
• In 2017, Reed Brown bested Fisher’s time running 3:59.30 and became the 9th high schooler to break the 4 minute barrier.
• In 2022, for the first time in U.S. running history, two high schoolers ran sub-4 in the same race with Gary Martin, a senior from Pennsylvania who had already run sub-4, bettering his PR and Connor Burns, a junior from Missouri, running sub-4 for the first time (15th U.S. high schooler to do so). Burns is the first Missouri runner to break 4 and the first junior since Jim Ryun.
• In 2023, for the first time in U.S. running history, four high schoolers ran sub-4 in the same race with Simeon Birnbaum, a senior from South Dakota, winning with a 3:57.53 – a new PR and #4 on the US all-time list. Rocky Hansen, a senior from North Carolina bettered his PR running 3:58.23. Tinoda Matsatsa, a senior from Maryland, became the 19th US high schooler to break four and the first Black high schooler to run under 4 minutes. Jackson Heidesch, a senior from Iowa, became the 20th US high schooler to break four.
• In 2024, Drew Griffith became the 22nd US high school athlete to break four minutes in the mile and the 5th fastest all-time with his 3:57.72.