Wissahickon's Hong Cho Wins State Championship

The hand-written paper hangs from Hong Cho's ceiling as a daily morning reminder of things yet to accomplish. Placed there last June, it lists the lofty goals for the senior's final year on the Wissahickon boys' track team. 

At the top, above some personal-best times, it reads, "Win a state championship."

Cross No. 1 off the list.

In what may be the final race of his high-school career, Cho emerged from a deep field of half-milers to take gold at the Pennsylvania Track & Field State Championships, held at Shippensburg University.

Though not his personal-best time, thanks to windy conditions on the back stretch, Cho's 800-meter finish of 1:52.49 was nearly a second faster than second-place Andy Flynn of Cumberland Valley.

Cho hoped to work his way up from the back of the pack, but quickly realized that no one wanted to lead in the windy conditions. He found himself on the shoulder of the leader at the 200-meter mark, and stayed there for another 200 meters.

With about 350 meters to go, Cho bolted in front and was gone.

"I felt threatened going into the back stretch," Cho said. "There were guys coming up on my shoulder. I didn't want to get boxed out, so I just made the move there. It worked out well. Even with the wind, I was confident that if I led, I would win. I decided to take on the wind and run my race, to give myself the best shot to win the title. There are so many incredible runners here. To come out on top today means a lot."

Cho also ran with Cornell Dixon, Max Hairston and Dave Stellato on the Trojans' 4x400 relay that came in sixth at 3:19.71. Individually, Hairston took a fourth-place medal in the 300-meter hurdles with a time of 38.76, while teammate Dillon Farrell took 10th place in the 3,200 with a time of 9:26.55.

The Trojans scored 18 points and tied for fifth in the team standings with Suburban One League American Conference rival Cheltenham. Hempfield won the overall meet with 28 points.

But Cho has his gold medal.

"The No. 1 goal was to become the outdoor state champion," Cho said. "I dreamt of winning a state title ever since I saw Nick Crits do it [in the 1,600-meter run] when he was a senior and I was a freshman."

Crits now runs for La Salle University, while Cho is heading to Cornell in the fall, where he plans to study something in the sciences.

Cho will rest for the next few days before choosing whether to compete at Nationals in Greensboro, NC, June 16 to 18. Regardless of his decision, he'll need a new list for the fall.

"I always set huge goals for myself, as a reminder to work hard every day," Cho said. "Next year, I want to push myself further. Winning the state title was fantastic. It's something I've been working toward for years. It's an awesome feeling, hard to put into words."

Boys 800 Meter Run
1. Hong Cho, Wissahickon, 1:52.49
2. Andy Flynn, Cumberland Valley, 1:53.36
3. Wade Endress, Altoona Area, 1:53.76
4. Mato Bekelja, Hershey, 1:54.35
5. Brandon Krszal, Allegheny, 1:54.36
6. Luke Lefebure, West Chester Henderson, 1:54.38
7. Brad Rivera, Bensalem, 1:55.28
8. Eric Witmer, McCaskey, 1:55.48
9. Craig Gonzaga, Archbishop Ryan, 1:55.88
10. Vincent Tonzo, North Allegheny, 1:56.78
11. Connor Manley, Central Bucks West, 2:00.97
12. Drew Magaha, Upper Moreland, 2:13.52