BRIAN GAGNON, Class of 2005

Brian Gagnon
Class of 2005
Inducted in 2015

Perhaps the most accomplished performer in the long and storied history of the Lowell High School Track and Field program, Brian Gagnon achieved a myriad of championships, records and awards in three distinct phrases of his athletic career at the local, state, regional, and national levels.

A four-year member of legendary Coach Phil Maia’s Lowell High School Cross Country team, Brian burst on the scene his junior season (2003), placing 2nd at the MVC Championship meet and later 5th at the Eastern Mass Division I Championships. He was named as a Boston Globe and Boston Herald All-Scholastic and received the Lowell Sun’s Runner-of-the-Year accolade. As a senior team Captain (2004) Brian was MVC Champion and league MVP. After finishing 2nd at the EMass Division I Championships and 11th at the Massachusetts All-State Championships, Brian was once again Globe and Herald All-Scholastic. So dominant was Brian against his MVC opponents in 2004 that he set cross country course records at four schools, including his home track at Shedd Park.

As a member of the LHS Indoor Track team, Brian continued his assault on the record book. In his junior season (2003-2004) Brian dominated the MVC, winning the mile at the League Championships. He went on to place 4th, 6th, and 7th respectively in the mile in the Massachusetts Division I, All-State, and New England Championships. As a senior team Captain, Brian dominated all competition at the state and regional levels. After winning the 1000 meters at the MVC, Mass Division I, Mass All-State, and New England Championships, Brian placed 3rd (2nd American) in the 800 meters at the National Indoor Scholastic Championships. His time of 1:52.5, in addition to being a LHS record, was the 3rd fastest high school time in the United States in 2005. Brian’s best 1000 time (2:30.06) ranked 4th in the USA. Not only did Brian receive All-Scholastic honors from both the Boston Globe and the Boston Herald, but he was also named as Gatorade’s Massachusetts Runner-of-the-Year.

A four-year member of the Red and Gray Outdoor Track team, Brian again dominated the middle distance scene, starting during his sophomore season (2003) when he set a school record in the 800 meters (1:57.8). During both his junior (2004) and senior (2005) seasons Brian was 800 meter champion at the MVC, Massachusetts Class A, and Massachusetts All-State Championships. Brian added the New England Championship 800 to his resume in 2004, but decided to challenge the nation’s best runners in 2005 by opting out of the New Englands to attend the prestigious Golden West Invitational in California, placing 5th in the 800. Brian received All-Scholastic honors from both the Globe and Herald during both 2004 and 2005. The team Captain set numerous Lowell High School records during 2004 and 2005, including the incredible feat of breaking his own 800 meter record in five consecutive races. Brian also set records in the 400 meters and 1 mile and also as a member of the 4 x 400 and sprint medley relay teams.

After graduation Brian attended Division 1 power University of Connecticut on a track scholarship. Over the next five years Brian won several individual championships at 500, 800 and 1000 meters within the Big East Conference, at the New England Championships, and at the regional level in the IC4A meet. He was an important component of the Huskies school record-setting 4 x 800 relay teams. Brian’s career culminated during his junior (2008) and senior (2009) seasons when he competed at the NCAA Division I Championships, twice winning All-American honors in the 800 meters. Voted UConn’s team Captain during the 2010 outdoor season, Brian won the UConn Club Senior Track Athlete of the Year Award as a fitting conclusion to an impressive collegiate career.

After graduation Brian has continued to to accumulate accolades as a professional runner with the New York/New Jersey Track Club. He has competed in the USA Championships on several occasions. Brian was a member of his club’s 4 x 800 meter relay team that set an American Record of 7:13.22 in 2014. Perhaps the pinnacle of his career to date was his participation in the 2012 US Olympic Trials in Eugene, Oregon, where he advanced to the semifinals of both the 800 and 1500 meter events, narrowly missing advancing to the finals in both events.