Eagle Valley's Jason Flaherty Clears 6-5 After 4x800 Relay at State

Jason Flaherty cleared 6 feet 5 inches to finish fourth at the Colorado High School Activities Association state track and field championships, a result achieved after he had already run an all-out 800-meter race and sprinted across the stadium to the pit. The Eagle Valley senior stood just 5-foot-9, making him the shortest competitor in the 4A high jump field, yet he managed to navigate a grueling morning double that left his coach wondering if the strategy was physiological madness or sheer genius.

The sequence began on the track. Flaherty led off the 4×800-meter relay, splitting a 2:01.6 that helped the Devils secure a sixth-place result and the second-best mark in program history. From there, he didn’t rest. He jogged across Jeffco Stadium to the high jump pit, his legs already heavy from the sprint. Coach Charlie Janssen noted that Flaherty was “definitely the shortest guy and the most exhausted guy going in,” a combination that should have made clearing the bar nearly impossible. Instead, Flaherty cleared 5-11 on his first attempt, then needed all three tries to get over 6-01 and 6-03.

“It was pretty insane,” Janssen said. “I’m like, ‘man we should have run more 4x8s right before high jump this season.’”

The gamble paid off when Flaherty cleared 6-05 on his first attempt, setting a personal best of 1 1/2 inches. He timed it perfectly, clearing the bar just as his 400-meter dash heat rounded the curve. Head coach Jeff Shroll advised him to stay in the pit rather than scratch the height to run his heat, a decision that proved critical. Shroll, who guided three athletes into the top-16, said he didn’t have words to describe watching Flaherty jump so high after such a brutal warmup.

Flaherty’s confidence came from a team tradition called the “hot seat,” where teammates and coaches discuss the athletes competing the next day. He had heard so many good things about himself that it changed his apprehension from the bus ride in Gypsum into determination. “I heard so many good things about me that it kind of made me want to go at it tomorrow,” Flaherty said. “No matter what happens, at least I tried and my team’s there to support me — no matter what.”

He admitted he struggled on the lower heights, but once he stopped caring about the mechanics and started having fun, the results followed. Seeing the faces of people cheering him on made him want to get better, higher, faster. The Devils’ performance was part of a larger story for Western Slope athletics. Wynn Sanders, the Western Slope athlete of the year, will compete in the 4×400-meter relay on Saturday with fresh legs. Alongside hurdler Hudson Wyatt and middle distance star Tyler Blair, the Devils came within half a second of the more than two-decade-old school record last week.

Janssen called the team a “sleeper team,” noting that their 3:22.11 win at the Windjammer Classic on May 9 was a sign of things to come. Flaherty will now focus on the 4×400-meter relay, where he is the top stick on the team, and the open 400-meter dash. The heat from the stadium floor still lingers in the air, a mix of sweat, rubber, and the sharp intake of breath from a crowd watching a small man defy the odds.