How did Cordell Tinch, 1 of America’s best hurdlers end up in NCAA Division 2?
Cordell Tinch is the fastest American hurdler in 2023! But you probably have no idea who he is, because he is an NCAA division 2 athlete. He ran 12.96 wind legal to earn that title, and he finished second at the USA championships which was perhaps a disappointment. He dominated his way through the heats and the semifinals running the fastest times in both of them, and only lost the final because he was unable to match those times. Cordell Tinch running this fast out of Pittsburg State in Kansas,, is something nobody expected. In fact, I cannot recall the last time that an active college athlete who wasn’t in Division 1, ever made a World Championship team for America. But the only reason we didn’t expect this, is because we weren’t paying attention. Cordell Tinch has been one of the most dominant track and field athletes that nobody ever paid attention to. The only comparison that actually makes sense to him, is already the reigning World Champion, Grant Holloway.
Cordell has always been a dominant hurdler
If it feels like Cordell Tinch came from out of nowhere, there is a reason for this. That is because technically he did. Before the year 2023 he had not run an outdoor hurdle race since the year 2019. He literally disappeared from the track. He also didn’t start his career at Pittsburg State, which makes sense because an athlete as good as him belongs in Division 1 at the highest levels. That is where he used to be before he dropped off the map. Cordell was a dominant high school athlete who finished his senior season ranked in the top 2 of his state for the long jump, high jump, and the 110 hurdles! He would have been the best triple jumper as well, because he was number 1 in that as a junior, but he must have gotten bored of doing it as a senior. The only athlete in recent memory who was that good in their state across the horizontal jumps, high jump, and the hurdles was Grant Holloway. He dominated them all out of the state of Virginia.
After all that Cordell chose to go to college at the University of Kansas in the Big 12. As a freshman he proved that he belonged in Division 1. He didn’t just pick up where he left off in high school, he won the conference championship in the 110 hurdles running a new PR of 13.72. That is a very big deal for a freshman hurdler since the hurdles get higher in college! He was an NCAA west regional qualifier in the long jump, high jump, and the hurdles, and qualified for the NCAA championships as one of the favorites to make the hurdle final. Remember this is still just his freshman year. But he never actually ran at the NCAAs that year for reasons that were never officially specified. That was the last we saw of Cordell until now.
Cordell is multitalented like Grant Holloway
Grant Holloway might be the world champion right now but when he first came to college, he looked a lot like Cordell Tinch. He did a little bit of everything in high school, but was really good at all of it. The Florida Gators figured out that he would be most helpful as the best hurdler in the nation. He got way faster as a freshman, than he ever ran in high school. Which is how he won the NCAA championship both indoors and outdoors in the high hurdles. The rest is history because all the other events he used to do we have forgotten about. Since then he has run faster than almost anyone else has ever run with hurdles on the track. Cordell disappeared for so long, that nobody even in collegiate track and field remembered him. Then he resurfaced at Pittsburg State in Division 2.But he dominated the NCAA championships at that level, so much so that he could have basically done the same thing at the D1 meet. He won the D2 outdoor national meet in the long jump, high jump, and the 110 hurdles. But those performances would have won the hurdles in D1 either way, finished second in the long jump, and fourth in the high jump!
The Bottom Line
For much of 2023 Cordell Tinch had recorded America’s fastest hurdle time of the year. For that reason it should no longer be a surprise, that with Grant Holloway not on the starting line, it was Cordell Tinch who became the man to beat. Daniel Roberts did beat him, barely. But he didn’t actually run faster than Cordell this year, or even that weekend. That is alright because Track and Field is not about how fast you start, but rather how well you finish. Cordell Tinch may not be a D1 athlete anymore. In fact, he might not even have a proper shoe sponsorship, or at least not yet. But one thing is for certain. Cordell Tinch is not America’s next great 110 hurdler. He is one of America’s best hurdlers right now! Only 10 American men have ever run faster than him. He is actually top 20 in the world All time. He did all that from NCAA Division 2 because why shouldn’t he. If he can keep this up, he will be right there on the podium for years to come with Grant Holloway. Proving that he too has always been one of the greatest talents we’ve ever seen on the track in any event.
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