The Comeback Is Greater Than The Setback: How NCAA Champion & Adidas Pro Will Sumner Is Using Lessons From His 2024 Setbacks & Using Them To Make 2025 His Best Year Yet

Mid-distance star Will Sumner is back on the show after smashing the Millrose Games 600m record in February, clocking an impressive 1:14.04

The former Georgia Bulldog, who attended Woodstock High School in Georgia, comes from a lineage of stand-out runners. Will's parents, Brad and Tosha, both ran collegiately in the 1990s–Brad at Villanova and Tosha at Georgia. Will's sister, Brynne, has run for Villanova and Clemson and specializes in the 800m and 1500m. 

In high school, Will ran the (current) fourth-fastest outdoor 800m with a time of 1:46.53. He was named Gatorade Georgia Track and Field Player of the Year in 2021. He has since lowered that to an eye-popping 1:44.26 in 2023 when he won the NCAA Championships in June of that year as a freshman.  

Will then went on to compete in the stacked 800m field at the 2023 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships in Oregon and finished fifth with a time of 1:47.41.

Will has a gold medal to his name, competing as part of the winning 4x400m team at the 2023 U23 NACAC Championships in Costa Rica. 

After an accomplished year with UGA, Will decided to turn pro in 2023, signing with Adidas. Will has current PRs ofWhile the USA 800m scene is chock full of all-time greats, Will is primed to be in the mix for years to come.

Will's career PRs include 21.55 in the 200m, 45.78 in the 400m, 1:14.04 in the 600m and 1:44.26 in the 800m.

In today's conversation, Will takes me through his setbacks and challenges in 2024, insights from them, how to overcome your own challenges, what his training is looking like these days, his goals for 2025, and his Hot Wheels collection. 

Tap into the Will Sumner Special.

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