Cameron Ponder, a junior at Furman, became the fifth runner from the Triad to break the four-minute mile.
Ponder, a Mount Tabor graduate from Winston-Salem, ran a 3:59.34 on Friday in the Samford Invitational at the Birmingham Crossplex in Alabama.
Coach Robert Gary said on the Furman website that Ponder’s performance was the highlight for the Paladins.
Cameron Ponder was a star at Mount Tabor before going to Furman.
“We currently have three sub-4-minute milers in the program: Cameron, Ryan Adams and Aaron Weir,” Furman coach Robert Gary said on the school’s website. “But perhaps even more impressive than Cam's commitment to this goal throughout this strange year is the fact that every time we have had someone in the program break 4 minutes, it is with the help of another in the program rabbiting.
“Our master goal for indoors is to keep everyone healthy and for every person to achieve a personal record."
In 2018 at Mount Tabor, Ponder posted the state's fastest mile time of 4:04.24.
Last season he was the Southern Conference champion for the indoor mile with a 4:07.81.
🚨FIRST TIME SUB 4:00 ALERT🚨@ponder_cameron breaks the barrier for an NCAA#1! #stayready#subfour#dinmen pic.twitter.com/PxdvXHrhNo
— FurmanXC (@FurmanXC) January 22, 2021
According to milesplit.com, Ponder is the 12th former high school runner from North Carolina to break the 4-minute mile at some point in their careers.
Ponder is also the fifth native of the area to achieve it, following Craig Engels (Reagan) 3:51.60, Jake Hurysz (Eastern Alamance) 3:48.10, Dylan Ferris (East Forsyth) 3:58.90 and Bobby Mack (North Forsyth) 3:59.70.
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