To reproduce create three rows with the following:

=rand() , first
=rand() , second
=rand() , third

Select B2 with the word "second" and click CTRL + B to bold the field.

Highlight columns A & B and click the sort button to randomly sort the table.

The bold formatting will stay with B2 rather than following the word "second" around.

You may have to do this a few times before the word "third" pops in there since it assumes the first row is a header row.

The bold formatting should follow the word "second" wherever it goes.

Note: CTRL + C, CTRL + V copy/paste keeps the formatting intact, so I know the formatting should follow the text, plus this is how Excel handles it.