By Amy Tennery

NEW YORK (Reuters) -Texan schoolboy Cooper Lutkenhaus has catapulted himself from obscurity into one of the most compelling characters at this month’s World Athletics Championships in Tokyo with a stunning 800 metres run at the U.S. trials.

The 16-year-old will be the youngest American ever to compete at the worlds after he finished a close second to Donavan Brazier last month in Oregon, shattering the world under-18 record in one minute, 42.27 seconds.

Bryce Hoppel finished third in the race and was stunned by Lutkenhaus’s run.

“I’ve been through it all and that’s one of the craziest things I’ve seen,” the 2024 world indoor champion told local media.

Brazier was a compelling story himself, the 2019 world champion continuing his comeback from injuries that crushed his O

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