STATE CHAMPION: Fairfield’s Brandtson Duffie wins 800m state championship
Duffie — a three-year state participant — continued his climb up the podium on Saturday morning at the Division III State Track and Field Championships in the 800-meter run by reaching the top spot and becoming the first Fairfield athlete to be a state champion in any sport. Duffie won the 800m run by wrapping up his high school career with the race of his life, with a personal record (PR) time of 1:53.77.
The Fairfield senior was in second place in the final stretch of the 800m race but broke into a dead sprint, passing East Canton senior Colt Hemphill in the final moments of the race to capture the state championship, completing a goal he’s had since entering high school four long years ago.
Duffie spoke about the moment he crossed the finish line and what it felt like knowing he was the 800m state champion in Division III.
“It is the most emotional I’ve ever been crossing the finish line, and it was everything I’ve ever wanted to accomplish,” Duffie said. “The feeling was unmatched, and I was just so excited. I’m so delighted in how I ran the race, and everything I’ve put into it the past four years finally came out.”
The senior champion also discussed the race itself, speaking about the strategy he had to win the race in front thousands of fans.
“The first lap, I knew I just wanted to put myself into position to just race,” he said. “I didn’t want to get too far back and have to pass a bunch of people, so I came through one lap and I was right at second or third, and I was happy where I was.
“With 200m left, the guy who was in first place at the time pulled away from me, and I didn’t want to lose — I hate to lose — so with 100m left I saw a sight of winning and I just gave everything I had to kick him down and win.”
As a sophomore, Duffie placed sixth at state in the 800m run, and just last year as a junior, he finished in third place in the same race.
This season, Duffie came in with more focus than ever by not only winning a Southern Hills Athletic Conference championship and a district championship, but he also qualified for state by winning a regional championship, which allowed him to cap his career off by standing at the top of the podium with the gold medal around his neck.
Duffie is no stranger to success, as in the fall he finished 23rd overall at the state cross-country championships, plus this track season he won his regional championship with a time of 1:56.62.
“I know it was going to be a dogfight, and I knew times were going to be a lot faster than what they were at the region the other day,” Duffie said. “We had perfect conditions here, we had the best racers, and I just knew it was going to be hard-pressed and I knew it was going to be the hardest I’ve ever had to run.”
Earlier in the postseason path to state, Duffie finished with a district championship time of 2:00.52, and at the SHAC meet his winning time was 2:02.85.
“Being that it was my senior year, I wanted to go out with a bang. Win or not, I was going to be happy as long as I ran to the best of my ability,” Duffie said. “Obviously, the win was in the back of my mind and was what I wanted, but what I really wanted was to enjoy my time here for the last time, my last high school race, to be in the moment and to be ready to perform in the moment.”
Fairfield head coach Rodger Marsh spoke about Duffie winning the state championship.
“Brandtson last year finished third, and when he finished first it capped a perfect career for him,” Fairfield head coach Rodger Marsh said. “The excitement of family and friends was an experience in itself to witness this the first ever state champion from Fairfield High School. Brandtson is furthering his career in college and he will be successful.”
Duffie was thankful to all who supported him.
“Thanks to everyone coming out to support me, thanks to my coaches and family again for pushing me to be the best and thanks to the community of Leesburg for supporting this ride for four years,” he said. “I’m thankful to be the first one to bring a state championship to Leesburg, and hopefully my legacy can be carried on for years to come.”