SHAPE’s Cassandra Jarzabek crosses the finish line during the girls 1,600-meter run at the 2026 Department of Defense Education Activity Europe track and field championships in Kaiserslautern, Germany, on May 21, 2026. Jarzabek set a record in the 1,600-meter event in addition to winning the 800. (Zade Vadnais/Stars and Stripes)
KAISERSLAUTERN, Germany — Two meet records were smashed Thursday on the first day of the 2026 DODEA European Track and Field Championships.
In the first final of the day on the track, the Ramstein boys 3,200-meter relay team completed the event in a blistering 8 minutes, 1.47 seconds to take down the old mark of 8:06.72 set in 2016 when Stuttgart was known as Patch.
A short time later, SHAPE phenom Cassandra Jarzabek established a new mark in the girls’ 1,600 with a time of 5:01.09, besting Stuttgart’s Mckinley Fieldling’s 5:08.48 from 2019.
It was the fastest DODEA-Europe girls’ 1,600 race in history as Wiesbaden’s Linden Pickler and Ramstein’s Caroline Swinson also eclipsed the 2019 record. Pickler ran 5:06.47 and Swinson was clocked in at 5:07.26.
Jarzabek broke open the race with a fast third lap, something she consciously works on “because that’s where I have the hardest time picking it up,” she said.
But the junior transfer from Humphreys, who is the DODEA-Pacific record holder in the 800 and 1,600, didn’t know she earned a spot in the European record books until it was announced over the loudspeaker at KHS stadium.
“Normally, I run solo and I rely on splits, but I couldn’t hear anybody out there,” she said. “It was just me all by myself.”
Jarzabek doubled up with another win in the 800 meters, winning by a few strides over Pickler, the DODEA European cross country champion, 2:17.52 to 2:22.05.
Ramstein Royals Rhett Dalling, Skyler Hauck, Adden Lowe and David Merrell pose for a photo after winning gold in the boys 3,200-meter relay during the 2026 Department of Defense Education Activity track and field championships in Kaiserslautern, Germany, on May 21, 2026. The team's time of just over 8 minutes, 1 second, earned them first place in the event. (Zade Vadnais/Stars and Stripes)
Ramstein's Adden Lowe crosses the finish line during the boys 3,200-meter run at the 2026 Department of Defense Education Activity Europe track and field championships in Kaiserslautern, Germany, on May 21, 2026. Lowe took gold in the event with a season best time of 10 minutes, 10.9 seconds. (Zade Vadnais/Stars and Stripes)
Ramstein's Danica Johnson, left, and American Overseas School-Rome's Natalia DiMatteo pose with gold medals for the girls high jump event at the 2026 Department of Defense Dependent Schools Europe track and field championships in Kaiserslautern, Germany, on May 21, 2026. Johnson and DiMatteo tied for first place, both clearing 5 feet, 1 inch. The event also saw four girls tie for fourth place. (Zade Vadnais/Stars and Stripes)
It was a different story in the boys’ 3,200-meter relay, where Ramstein and Kaiserslautern ran neck and neck for much of the race.
“We went in, we thought we were going to be running alone the whole time, just based off the numbers,” said junior Adden Lowe, who anchored the relay for the Royals. Going into the race, Ramstein had a 16-second edge over the Raiders based on each team’s best regular-season outing.
That gap was all but erased on the track Thursday. “Wow, every one of us was racing against someone,” said Lowe, who had to dig deep to overtake Kaiserslautern’s Collin Higgins, after Higgins passed him on the anchor leg.
Unfortunately for the Raiders, their runner-up effort was erased by a disqualification for moving into the inside lane too soon on the first leg.
For the Royals, breaking the European record was even more remarkable given the team settled on the winning combination of Lowe, juniors Rhett Dalling and David Merrell and sophomore Skyler Hauck only weeks ago.
Their season best prior to Thursday was 8:29.67. But then Merrell, a junior who traded in his soccer cleats for track shoes this spring, ran a 2:02 in his first-ever open 800 two weeks ago at a meet at Black Forest Academy.
“The coach was kind of surprised. I was, too,” he said.
That’s when “we started doing some calculations,” Lowe said. “We were like, ‘Wow, we could really shoot for it,” he said of the record.
Lowe said Hauck opening a gap on Kaiserslautern on the second leg was a key moment for the team.
“Skyler was our weakest leg just based off stats, but today he turned it up like crazy and definitely without him putting on a show, we would not have gotten the record at all,” he said.
Lowe later in the day added another gold medal in the 3,200-meter run with a time of 10:10.90. Trailing the defending European cross country champion Logan Conrad for much of the eight-lap race, Lowe made his move with 2.5 laps to go and never looked back.
“I was debating as to when I should try and kick it,” he said. He heard that Conrad may have been struggling with a side stitch when he made his move. “I got lucky,” he said.
Ramstein’s Lauren Meusel releases during the shot put finals at the 2026 Department of Defense Education Activity Europe track and field championships in Kaiserslautern, Germany, on May 21, 2026. Meusel took first in the event with a personal best distance of 31 feet, 6 inches. (Zade Vadnais/Stars and Stripes)
Hohenfels' Kenya Tucker competes in the long jump during the 2026 Department of Defense Education Activity Europe track and field championships in Kaiserslautern, Germany, on May 21, 2026. Tucker took gold in the event with a jump distance of 17 feet, 9.5 inches. (Zade Vadnais/Stars and Stripes)
Ramstein’s Javier Harrington competes in the discus throw during the 2026 Department of Defense Education Activity Europe track and field championships in Kaiserslautern, Germany, on May 21, 2026. Harrington took first, throwing 150 feet and 1 inch. (Zade Vadnais/Stars and Stripes)
Kaiserslautern's Isaiah Dykes poses with the gold medal for boys triple jump during the 2026 Department of Defense Education Activity Europe track and field championships in Kaiserslautern, Germany, on May 21, 2026. Dykes won the event with a personal best distance of 44 feet, 1.5 inches. (Zade Vadnais/Stars and Stripes)
In the field events, Ramstein senior Javier Harrington made it a three-peat in the discus, throwing 150 feet, one inch, better than the 136-09 from Kaiserslautern’s Floris van Kampen had for second.
Harrington already has his sights set on his next chapter at Colorado State, where he plans to compete in track and field and learn how to throw the hammer and javelin.
But he also took some time Thursday to appreciate his experiences as a Ramstein Royal.
“Right before my last throw, it was a little solace moment,” he said, “just thinking about all the fun moments I’ve had with my team and my coaches and everything that I’ve learned. I’m glad I had the opportunity to throw here in DODEA and at Ramstein.”
Teammate and fellow senior Lauren Meusel took gold in the shot put, her first European title. With a mark of 31 feet, six inches, she picked the right time to crack the 30-foot mark for the first time.
Despite being seeded fifth going into the meet, Meusel said, “I had it my heart, I had it in my mind, that this was going to be my year, and that I was going to come home with a medal today.”
The girls’ high jump saw two gold medalists and a four-way tie for fourth place. Ramstein’s Danica Johnson and Natalia DiMatteo from American Overseas School of Rome tied for first at 5-1 with the same number of misses. Ansbach freshman Ailee Sinclair took third at 4-11, after eclipsing four high jumpers ahead of her in the seedings, all of whom tied for fourth at 4-9.
Other winners on the day included two seniors in the field events: Hohenfels’ Kenya Tucker in the long jump with a mark of 17-09.50, and Kaiserslautern’s Isaiah Dykes in the triple jump. Dykes, on his last jump, hit a personal best by two feet to beat Ansbach sophomore Makai Sinclair.
“I felt it,” he said of his winning leap. Sinclair had “just tied me for first place, so I was like this has got to be a big jump here.”
Fifth last year in the triple jump, Dykes said his new personal record may open some doors to competing in college.
The second day of competition kicks off at 11 a.m. Friday with the start of the remaining field events. Action begins on the track at 11:30 a.m. with the girls’ 100-meter low hurdles.
