Donald Cabral (born December 12, 1989) is an American cross country and

track Track or Tracks may refer to: Routes or imprints * Ancient trackway, any track or trail whose origin is lost in antiquity * Animal track, imprints left on surfaces that an animal walks across * Desire path, a line worn by people taking the shorte ...

runner from Connecticut who went on to star at Princeton University. He has been most successful in the

steeplechase Steeplechase may refer to: * Steeplechase (horse racing), a type of horse race in which participants are required to jump over obstacles * Steeplechase (athletics), an event in athletics that derives its name from the steeplechase in horse racing ...

, but has also been a National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) All-American in cross country and the

5000 meters The 5000 metres or 5000-metre run is a common long-distance running event in track and field, approximately equivalent to or . It is one of the track events in the Olympic Games and the World Championships in Athletics, run over laps of a stand ...

, as well as the Ivy League champion at the

3000 meters The 3000 metres or 3000-metre run is a track running event, also commonly known as the "3K" or "3K run", where 7.5 laps are run around an outdoor 400 m track, or 15 laps around a 200 m indoor track. It is debated whether the 3000m shoul ...

. He is a former American collegiate steeplechase record holder and was the 2012 NCAA steeplechase champion. He competed in the

2012 Summer Olympics The 2012 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012) was an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...

and

2016 Summer Olympics The 2016 Summer Olympics ( pt, Jogos Olímpicos de Verão de 2016), officially the Games of the XXXI Olympiad ( pt, Jogos da XXXI Olimpíada) and also known as Rio 2016, was an international multi-sport event held from 5 to 21 August 20 ...

in the steeplechase. At Princeton, Cabral was an eight-time NCAA All-American and ten-time individual Ivy League champion. He was a long distance running champion in high school for Glastonbury High School, winning two Class LL championships as a sophomore and then open state and New England championships as a junior and senior.

Running career

High school

Early on, Cabral showed interest in Olympic competition and high caliber racing. After watching patriotic flag waving during the

1996 Summer Olympics The 1996 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXVI Olympiad, also known as Atlanta 1996 and commonly referred to as the Centennial Olympic Games) were an international multi-sport event held from July 19 to August 4, 1996, in Atlanta, ...

, Cabral requested that his father wave the American Flag during one of his swim meets as a six-year-old. In his first Manchester Road Race at age 12, Cabral's parents placed him in the starting position with the runners who run at an 8–9 minute per mile pace, but he complained, "How am I going to win from back here?" At Glastonbury High School in Glastonbury, Connecticut, Cabral excelled in track and cross country. He was a two-time State Open and New England cross country champion. He was also the indoor track Connecticut 2 mile champion. He ran the fastest high school

1500 meters The 1500 metres or 1,500-metre run (typically pronounced 'fifteen-hundred metres') is the foremost middle distance track event in athletics. The distance has been contested at the Summer Olympics since 1896 and the World Championships in Athletic ...

in the country during his senior year. He also established state records in the 5,000 m (14:32.60) and the 2 mile run (8:56.35). As a freshman, Cabral was the second slowest runner on the soccer team. He tried out for track to work on his speed. At first he ran the

400 meters The 400 metres, or 400-meter dash, is a sprint event in track and field competitions. It has been featured in the athletics programme at the Summer Olympics since 1896 for men and since 1964 for women. On a standard outdoor running track, it is on ...

in 68 seconds. By the end of the spring, he broke 10 minutes in the 2 mile and was considering joining the cross country team instead of participating in his usual fall sport, soccer. In the summer of 2005, the cross country coach sent him a letter of encouragement. During his sophomore year, he won the boys Connecticut Interscholastic Athletic Conference (CIAC) class LL indoor track

3200 meters Middle-distance running events are track races longer than sprints, up to 3000 metres. The standard middle distances are the 800 metres, 1500 metres and mile run, although the 3000 metres may also be classified as a middle-distance event. The 15 ...

race and placed third in the New England Championships two mile race. He finished third in the CIAC Cross Country Open Championships and 19th in the New England Championships. His cross country performance earned him the Class LL championship that year. As a junior, Cabral won the CIAC Cross Country Open Championships. He also won the 72nd New England Cross Country Championships at

Ponaganset High School Ponaganset High School is a school of the Foster-Glocester School District, located in Glocester, Rhode Island in Providence County. (It has a North Scituate, Rhode Island address for postal purposes.) The majority of high school students live in ...

with a 5K race time of 15:29. Glastonbury finished second to

Danbury High School Danbury High School is a public high school in Danbury, Connecticut, with approximately 3000 students. It is part of the Danbury Public Schools district. Despite Danbury's population of 86,518 (as of 2020), there is only one public high school, a ...

in the team competition. At the Foot Locker National Cross Country Championship, Cabral finished 21st with a time of 15:57. In his senior season, Cabral won the 2007 boys CIAC State Open Cross Country Championships. He also won the New England Cross Country Championships. At the Foot Locker National Cross Country Championship at Balboa Park in San Diego, Cabral finished 8th with a time of 15:19, which tied the best ever finish by a Connecticut runner. In May, his 4:09.80 became the best mile time of the school year for an American high schooler. Cabral placed second in the

10,000 meters The 10,000 metres or the 10,000-metre run is a common long-distance track running event. The event is part of the athletics programme at the Olympic Games and the World Athletics Championships, and is common at championship level events. The race ...

(30:50.28) at the 2008 USA Junior Track & Field championships, qualifying him for the at the IAAF World Junior Championships in Poland.

Collegiate

During his Princeton running career, Cabral was a three-time NCAA All-America in the steeplechase, two-time outdoor NCAA All-America in the 5000 meter, two-time cross country NCAA All-America, and one-time indoor NCAA All-America in the 5000 meter. As a senior, Cabral became the 2012 NCAA champion in the steeplechase after having been the runner-up to Matt Hughes in the two prior NCAA steeplechase championships. As a freshman, Cabral endured a plantar fascia tear while waterskiing and did not compete in cross country. He did not compete in the steeplechase until his sophomore season at Princeton. In his second time running the event, he won at the 2010 Penn Relays. That year he was the Ivy League outdoor 10,000 meter and steeplechase champion and the indoor runner-up in the 3000 meters and 5000 meters. He finished second at the NCAA championships with a time of 8:38.90. As a junior in 2010–11, he placed 34th at the November 22, 2010 NCAA Men's Cross Country Championship, earning All-American recognition for his top-40 finish. Then, he repeated as the Ivy League outdoor 10,000 meter and steeplechase champion and became the indoor champion in the 3000 meters and 5000 meters. He was selected as the most outstanding performer at both the indoor and outdoor Heps meets. That fall, he had been the 2010 Ivy League cross country champion. He finished second at the NCAA championships with a time of 8:32.14. At the NCAA national outdoor 5,000 meter race, he established a school record of 13:40.62 that would stand for less than a year. He spent the summer of 2011 training in Park City, Utah. During his senior season, Cabral purchased a high-altitude tent on craigslist that he used in his

dormitory A dormitory (originated from the Latin word ''dormitorium'', often abbreviated to dorm) is a building primarily providing sleeping and residential quarters for large numbers of people such as boarding school, high school, college or university s ...

room for five months leading up to the 2012 Olympic Trials. This enabled him to sleep and study at a simulated altitude of with the goal of making his body more efficient by depriving himself of oxygen. He spent 10–12 hours per day in the tent. At the November 21, 2011, NCAA Men's Cross Country Championship, he placed 19th, again earning All-American status. In 2012, he won his third consecutive Ivy League outdoor 10,000 meter and steeplechase championships. He also repeated as the indoor champion in the 5000 meters. He won at the NCAA championships with a time of 8:35.44. On May 18, 2012, while running in the OXY High Performance meet in California, Cabral completed the 3000 m steeplechase in 8:19.14, surpassing Farley Gerber's American Collegiate record of 8:19.27, set for Weber State University in 1984 and smashing his own personal best time of 8:32. The previous Ivy League record of 8:29.01 had been set by Michael Fadil of Dartmouth College in 1985. Cabral also holds the Ivy League record for the indoor 5000 meters. Cabral became the 2012 NCAA steeplechase champion on June 8, 2012, winning by five seconds and capping an undefeated season in the event. Cabral is Princeton's first individual track event NCAA champion since William Bonthron's 1934 championship in the mile run in 1934. This does excludes field event champions such as

Tora Harris Tora Lian-Juin Harris (born September 21, 1978) is an American high jumper. He is a Princeton University engineer of Taiwanese and African-American descent. Harris is an Olympian, a four-time national champion and two-time bronze medalist in i ...

(2002

high jump The high jump is a track and field event in which competitors must jump unaided over a horizontal bar placed at measured heights without dislodging it. In its modern, most-practiced format, a bar is placed between two standards with a crash mat f ...

) who had been Princeton's last NCAA Outdoor Track and Field champion. When combined with the men's squash team and epeeist Jonathan Yergler, it marked the first academic year that Princeton had three national champions since 2003. Harris had also been the last track and field Olympian, although no Princeton distance runner had qualified for the Olympics since class of 1906 Princetonian

John Eisele John Eisele (''John Lincoln Eisele;'' January 18, 1884 – March 30, 1933) was an American athlete. He won the silver medal in the 3 mile team race and bronze medal in the 3,200 meters steeplechase at the 1908 Summer Olympics in London. Eisele ...

earned a silver medal in the

and a bronze medal in the three-mile at the

1908 Summer Olympics The 1908 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the IV Olympiad and also known as London 1908) were an international multi-sport event held in London, England, United Kingdom, from 27 April to 31 October 1908. The 1908 Games were ori ...

. No Princeton runner had made the Olympics since Bill Stevenson went to the

1924 Summer Olympics The 1924 Summer Olympics (french: Jeux olympiques d'été de 1924), officially the Games of the VIII Olympiad (french: Jeux de la VIIIe olympiade) and also known as Paris 1924, were an international multi-sport event held in Paris, France. The op ...

. Because athletes in Ivy League competition only have four years of athletic eligibility, Cabral could not participate in NCAA competition for Princeton to use his final year of cross country eligibility. As a result, he intended to enroll in

business school A business school is a university-level institution that confers degrees in business administration or management. A business school may also be referred to as school of management, management school, school of business administration, o ...

at the University of Colorado, where he would continue training with Billy Nelson coach Mark Wetmore. He opted to turn pro rather than attend Colorado.

International

2014 DécaNation - 3000 m steeplechase 01

Cabral finished 17th in the 10,000 meters at the 2008 World Junior Championships. In the 2010 NACAC Under-23 Championships, he won the steeplechase with at time of 8:52.67. Although a competitive collegiate runner, Cabral has focused his training on the Olympics. On June 28, 2012, Cabral qualified for the 2012 United States Olympic team as a steeplechase participant by finishing second to

Evan Jager Evan Reese Jager (born March 8, 1989) is an American Long-distance running, distance Running, runner. He won the silver medal in the 3000 metres steeplechase at the Athletics at the 2016 Summer Olympics, 2016 Rio Olympics and a bronze at the 201 ...

with a time of 8:19.81 in the 2012 United States Olympic Trials and surpassing the Olympic A standard time of 8:23.10. In an August 3, 2012 Olympic heat, Cabral finished 4th with a time of 8:21.46 in his 13-man heat, earning the last automatic berth to the August 5 finals. Cabral's time was 10th fastest of the 15 advancing runners (and of all 39 entrants), slower than all six qualifiers from heat 1 and faster than all 4 qualifiers from heat 2. In the finals, he led at the 1000 meter split with a time of 2:52.70, but he finished in eighth place with a time of 8:25.91. Instead of continuing his collegiate career at another institution, he decided to go pro as a runner in the summer of 2012. After graduating from Princeton University in 2012, he signed with Nike; Following the 2012 Olympics and a little time off, Cabral moved to Bellingham, Washington, where he trained with former coach Peter Oviatt. In 2017 he signed with Hoka One One. He currently trains with the HOKA New Jersey*New York Track Club. At the 2015 World Championships in Beijing, China, Cabral placed 10th in the

3000 m steeplechase The 3000 metres steeplechase or 3000-meter steeplechase (usually abbreviated as ) is the most common distance for the steeplechase in track and field. It is an obstacle race over the distance of the 3000 metres, which derives its name from the h ...

with a time of 8:24.94. Donn Cabral placed third in the steeplechase in a time of 8:26.37 at the 2016 United States Olympic Trials behind Team USA teammates

Hillary Bor Hillary Bor (born November 22, 1989) is a Kenyan-born American track and field athlete. He qualified for the 2016 Olympics by finishing in second place in the 3000 meters steeplechase at the 2016 United States Olympic Trials (track and field), 2 ...

and

to qualify to represent the United States at

Athletics at the 2016 Summer Olympics Athletics at the 2016 Summer Olympics were held during the last 10 days of the games, from 12 to 21 August 2016, at the Olympic Stadium. The sport of athletics at the 2016 Summer Olympics was made into three distinct sets of events: track and ...

in Brazil. He placed eighth in the steeplechase at the

2016 Olympics ) , nations = 207 (including IOA and EOR teams) , athletes = 11,238 , events = 306 in 28 sports (41 disciplines) , opening = 5 August 2016 , closing = 21 August 2016 , opened_by = Vice President Michel Temer , cauldron = Vanderlei Cordeiro ...

Personal

His parents are John Cabral and Deborah Hadaway. His father coached him in soccer. At Princeton, Cabral earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in economics. After Princeton, Cabral earned both Master of Business Administration and

Juris Doctor The Juris Doctor (J.D. or JD), also known as Doctor of Jurisprudence (J.D., JD, D.Jur., or DJur), is a graduate-entry professional degree in law and one of several Doctor of Law degrees. The J.D. is the standard degree obtained to practice law ...

degrees from the University of Connecticut as part of a double degree program. In 2022, Donn married his longtime love Vruksha. They share a dog, Chiku, together.

References

External links

* *
Princeton stats
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cabral, Donald 1989 births Living people American male long-distance runners American male steeplechase runners Athletes (track and field) at the 2012 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 2016 Summer Olympics Olympic track and field athletes of the United States People from Glastonbury, Connecticut Princeton Tigers men's track and field athletes World Athletics Championships athletes for the United States