North Carolina track and field teammates Will Coogan and Patrick Anderson, a little more than a year after a near-fatal car accident, made headlines with their performances Thursday in the College Men's 5,000-Meter Championship at the 2024 Penn Relays.

The teammates finished first (13:52.60) and third (13:53.86), respectively, to secure an emotional return to the track the historic Franklin Field in Philadelphia. 

Coogan and Anderson were returning to the track for just the third time since that accident in the sprint of 2023.

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Coogan and Anderson were two of five team members traveling to practice together, when the vehicle crashed and flipped, before coming to rest in a ditch. Both were seriously injured, with Anderson nearing dying from his injuries, which included shattering the bones in his face.

The lengthy recovery and rehabilitation process meant Coogan and Anderson both had to miss the cross country season in the fall, but they both showed Thursday night how far they've come. 

It was a huge statement at one of the world's oldest and largest meets and a great gauge of their progress with the 2024 ACC Outdoor Championships just a couple weeks away.

The 2024 Penn Relays is the 128th edition of the event, which first was held in 1895. It now welcomes more than 15,000 athletes of all ages and skill levels (high school, college, Special Olympics, professional/elite and Masters).

Watch Will Coogan Win College Men's 5000M Championship At 2024 Penn Relays

61 seconds over the final 400 meters for Will Coogan!@UNCTrack_Field's Coogan put a gap on the field to win the collegiate men's 5,000m in 13:52.60.#PennRelays | @pennrelays pic.twitter.com/iJA7dNMggz

— FloTrack (@FloTrack) April 26, 2024

College Men's 5000m Championship Results

1. Will Coogan (North Carolina) - 13:52.60
2. Hunter Christopher (Youngstown State) - 13:53.37
3. Patrick Anderson (North Carolina) - 13:53.86
4. Travis Martin (UConn) - 13:55.22
5. Micah Wilson (Wisconsin) - 13:55.87
6. David Vorbach (N.C. State) - 13:56.04
7. Samuel Whittaker (Central Connecticut) - 13:58.24
8. Taonga Mbambo (La Salle) - 13:59.56
9. Alec Sauter (UConn) - 14:03.89
10. Jack Gregorski (Princeton) - 14:04.69

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