Sports

New Mexico Track Star Ignites Rules Controversy By Impeding BYU Freshman Phenom Jane Hedengren

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Jane Hedengren Pam Kosgei Track and field rules violation new mexico impede byu
BYU Athletics

New Mexico distance runner Pamela Kosgei lost to BYU freshman phenom Jane Hedengren, again, during the NCAA West Preliminaries for track and field. She also could’ve been disqualified.

It appeared as though she intentionally ran out into the third lane to force her opponent further outside.

The rules of track and field clearly state that any athlete who impedes a challenging runner should be removed from the race and any subsequent competitions in that specific discipline. Kosgei got lucky.

Jane Hedengren broke a(nother) record.

If you are not a fan of the sport, you likely have not heard the name Jane Hedengren. She is a 19-year-old true freshman at Brigham Young University and she is coming for all of the NCAA records.

Hedegren was named as the 2025 Gatorade Female Athlete of the Year as a senior at Timpview High School in Houston. Her father, John Hedengren, was a five-time All-American runner so the apple does not fall far from the tree. He was inducted into the BYU Athletic Hall of Fame in 2015 and currently teaches at his alma mater in the Chemical Engineering Department. She decided to follow in his footsteps and committed to the Cougars.

It did not take long for Jane to announce her arrival. She already owns the NCAA records in the 5,000 and 10,000 and won the Indoor national championship in the 3,000 and 5,000. The Big 12 named her as the Women’s Runner of the Year. The USTFCCCA named her as the National Women’s Track Athlete of the Year. BroBible Editor-in-Chief Cass Anderson also named her as one of the 11 most inspiring athletes this year.

All of this as a true freshman before her 20th birthday!

As the outdoor track and field season comes to a close, Hedengren will go for the distance double in the 5,000 and the 10,000. She shattered a 17-year-old facility record in the 10K at John McDonnell Field in Fayetteville, Arkansas during the NCAA West Preliminaries with a time of 31 minutes, 27.30 seconds to punch her ticket to Eugene on Thursday. She will run the 5K on Saturday.

The 10,000 final came down to less than one second. Hedengren edged New Mexico star Pamela Kosegei right at the line.

However, the race might not have been that close if not for some questionable decorum by the eventual runner-up. Kosegi was lucky that she did not get disqualified from the race and the remaining 10,000 competition this season.

Did Pamela Kosgei violate the rules of track and field?

The NCAA rulebook for Track & Field and Cross Country is very clear. A runner cannot intentionally impede a fellow competitor in an effort to gain an advantage.

Section 5, Article 3, C. reads as follows: “The referee shall disqualify a competitor who veers to the right or to the left so as to flagrantly impede a challenging runner or forces the challenging runner to run a greater distance.”

It appeared as though Pamela Kosgei did exactly that. She and Jane Hedengren held a 16-second lead over the competition. They were pretty much neck-and-neck on the last 300 meters. Hedengren was just one step behind Kosgei, waiting for her chance to overtake her. That chance never came.

Kosgei pushed out into the third lane, which forced Hedengren further out toward lane four. Every time Hedengren tried to make a move, Kosgei stepped in front of her. Hedengren had to kick even harder at the line to win. It looked like she was trying to make her move much earlier but couldn’t.

There is an argument to be made that Kosgei was just trying to avoid the slower runners in lane one. And yet, she slid all of the way into lane three on the final straightaway. That was not necessary. She had already passed by the slower runners in lane two.

Per the rules, Kosgei could’ve been disqualified for veering to her right. Her slide to the outside flagrantly impeded Hedengren but the track and field officials chose not to call it. New Mexico’s distance star will be allowed to compete at the NCAA Championships. She got very lucky.