Will Sumner

Background

To say that Will Sumner has the pedigree to be a world-class middle-distance runner is an understatement. Both of his parents were NCAA champions at Villanova, with his father, Brad, on the Wildcats’ 1990 4x800m indoor champion relay squad, while his mother, Tosha, won with Villanova’s indoor distance medley relay team in 1995.

Despite having a pair of collegiate runners as parents, Will didn’t immediately jump head-first into track, opting to play a variety of sports and didn’t focus on running until the COVID pandemic curtailed most team sports. In high school, set new US high school indoor records at 500m and 600m, and ran 1:46.53 for 800m outdoors, making him the third-fastest US high schooler in history at the time.

Enrolling at nearby UGA, Will had a sensational freshman year, winning the NCAA outdoor title in the 800m for the Bulldogs in a new lifetime best of 1:44.26. Will then went on to place fifth in the final of the 800m at the US Championships and then earned a silver medal for Team USA in the 4x400m relay at the NACAC U23 Championships in Costa Rica.

After missing all of the 2024 season to injury, Will focused on improving his 400m best in 2025, and shaved almost a full second off his previous lifetime best, running 45.06 at the USATF Championships.