In 2013, Mary Cain, then a 17-year-old middle-distance star from Bronxville, New York, made the jump from preps to pros. Five years later, Josh Hoey, a senior out of Bishop Shanahan High School near Philadelphia, did the same, becoming the first male teenager focusing on the 800 meters to make the leap.

Cooper Lutkenhaus, the 16-year-old record-breaking sensation in the 800 meters, became one of the youngest American runners to turn pro by signing with Nike on Monday.

Justin Northwest track phenom Cooper Lutkenhaus is turning professional at 16 years old and has signed a deal with Nike, according to multiple reports. “It was a lot of conversations with my parents,