Lukas Verzbicas

Medal record
Competitor for  United States
Men's triathlon
ITU Triathlon World Championships
Gold 2011 Bejing Junior

Lukas Verzbicas (born January 6, 1993 in Kaunas, Lithuania) is a Lithuanian long-distance runner and triathlete.[1] He won the Foot Locker Cross Country Championships in 2009 (15:07) and in 2010 (14:59),[2] and the Nike Cross Nationals invitational in 2010 (15:59),[3] becoming the first runner to win both FLCC and NXN in the same year, and only the third to win FLCC back to back. He became the 2010 IHSA Class 3A state champion, 3 miles (13:53.7), which was the third fastest of all time, 3 seconds off the state record held by world cross country champion and three time Olympian Craig Virgin.[4] Verzbicas is also a successful triathlete, with wins in, among others, 2011 ITU World Junior Championships, the Pan American Triathlon Confederation Junior Championships (May 2009, July 2011) and the Duathlon World Junior Championships (September 2009).[5]

He is the high school indoor national record holder in the 5000 meters (14:06). He holds the Sophomore national record in the 1 mile (4:04), and the Freshman national records in the indoor 1 mile (4:15), indoor 2 mile (8:57), indoor 5000m (14:18) and outdoor 2 mile (8:53).[4]

At the 2011 New Balance Indoor National meet, Verzbicas won the 5000 meters (14:06), the 2 mile (8:40), and the one mile (4:10), becoming the first high school runner in history to win all three at the national meet.

At the 2011 Prefontaine Classic in Eugene Oregon, Verzbicas set a national high school record in the 2 mile with a time of 8:29, smashing the old record of 8:34 set by German Fernandez in 2008.

At the 2011 Adidas High School Boys' Dream Mile, Verzbicas became only the second American high school male to run below 4:00 for a full mile in a high school-only race, running 3:59.71. Jim Ryun, Tim Danielson, Marty Liquori and Alan Webb have also run under four minutes in high school. Webb is the American high school record holder for the mile, clocking 3:53.43 at the Prefontaine Classic in 2001.

Verzbicas moved to the US from Lithuania with his mother and stepfather at age 9, and lives in Orland Park, Illinois.[5] His mother is a former Lithuanian record-holder at 3,000m.[5]

He resides in Orland Park, Illinois and graduated from Carl Sandburg High School in May 2011,[1] completing high School in just 3 years.[6]

Verzbicas signed a national letter of intent to run for the University of Oregon.[7]

In November of 2011 during Cross Country season, Verzbicas announced that he would be leaving Oregon to pursue a career in the triathlon with the hopes of making a future US Olympic team. The timing of this decision was controversial as he left the cross country team just before a critical national qualifying race. [8]

References

  1. ^ a b Gerweck, Jim (July/August 2009). "Lukas Verzbicas". Running Times. http://runningtimes.com/Article.aspx?ArticleID=16938. 
  2. ^ [1] Retrieved 13 December 2010
  3. ^ [2] Retrieved 13 December 2010
  4. ^ a b Foot Locker biography Retrieved 12 December 2010
  5. ^ a b c Metzler, Brian (May 2010). "Lukas Verzbicas: Boy Wonder". Running Times. http://runningtimes.com/Article.aspx?ArticleID=19585. Retrieved December 13, 2010. 
  6. ^ Kane, Colleen (June 9, 2010). "High school running: Sandburg's Lukas Verzbicas to graduate a year early, thinking about college". Chicago Tribune. http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2010-06-09/sports/ct-spt-0610-prep-xc-verzbicas-update-20100609_1_gatorade-national-cross-country-runner-school-graduate. 
  7. ^ Two-Time National Cross Country Champion Lukas Verzbicas Signs NLI with Oregon
  8. ^ Hersh, Philip. "Verzbicas leaves Oregon to concentrate on triathlon". Chicago Triune. http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/breaking/chi-verzbicas-status-at-oregon-uncertain-20111110,0,3058211.story. Retrieved 11 November 2011.