Selah has a state champion, and Brett Blanshan is his name.

Blanshan is any track coach’s dream athlete and a powerhouse in the sport.

He could also be confused with the boy next door. Don’t expect any airs or attitudes with this down-to-earth student-athlete.

Blanshan broke the 2A record in securing the long-jump crown with a leap of 23 feet, 2.75 inches, at last weekend’s state track and field championships.

He was barely edged out of the 200-dash crown as well, losing by just .01 seconds, with a record pace of 21.65 seconds.

Blanshan also ran anchor on the Viking’s 4x100 relay that finished second at 43.30 seconds.

Blanshan had won the 100-meter dash at districts with a time of 10.78 seconds, and he was expected to do quite well in that event at state, but a false start disqualified him.

“I have never had a false start in such a big race,” Blanshan said. “It was just the preliminaries, and I wasn’t concerned about doing that. It was just stupid.”

Blanshan said he works out and runs to keep in shape.

“I work out a lot, too,” he said. “I lift weights four days a week, about an hour a day.”

Blanshan he also tries to watch his diet.

“For lunch, I might have a sandwich, apple, orange, carrots and water,” he said.

“I eat high-protein bars too. For dinner, it is typically steak, chicken and vegetables.
“I obviously don’t drink or do anything stupid like that.”

Blanshan has been doing track for a long time. He was seven or eight when he started with Junior Olympics.

“I can’t even tell you how long it has been,” he said. Blanshan said he is looking forward to breaking more track and field records and capturing more gold next year as a senior. “I will try for 24 feet next year in the long jump,” he said. “We might even go for a national record in the 100 next year. “We are going to come back and run fast,” he said. “I am just going to come back and do my best.”

Selah fans are sure to be in for a treat to see how this young man affects the local track and field scene next year.