Two University Jumpers Contend for Spot on Olympic Team

For a few athletes their dreams are on the line, as they contend for a spot on their countries Olympic team.  These athletes are all from the University of New Mexico, and have competed with the school's team while studying at the University.  They are now competing for an even bigger contest.

For two UNM jumpers, the road to London goes through Eugene, Ore.
Junior long jumper Kendall Spencer and senior triple jumper Floyd Ross are going to the Olympic trials in Eugene from June 22 to July 1 to try to qualify for the U.S. team in the upcoming summer games.

The jumpers are not the only UNM athletes hoping to compete in the Olympics; junior high jumper Django Lovett is trying to represent Canada, while senior middle-distance runners Ross Millington and Sam Evans, senior steeplechaser Imogen Ainsworth and recent graduate Sarah Waldron are trying to represent their native England.

Ross, who sleeps in his uniform the night before a competition, said he is not changing his strategy or intensifying his training to make the team.

“I don’t want to change up what I’ve been doing to get me here right now,” Ross said. “I want to keep it the same.”

He did, however, change his diet from fast food to salads.

“I’m a Mickey D’s kind of guy, but lately I’ve noticed that eating well has helped me out a lot,” Ross said.

Spencer, who is last year’s NCAA Division I Indoor long jump champion, said getting mentally prepared for the Olympic trials is the hardest part about training.

“Mental game is a huge part of trying to make the Olympic team,” Spencer said. “I pray a lot. My church family really keeps me grounded, and I try to keep a lot of positive people around me.”
In order for Spencer to make the U.S. Olympic team, he has to jump about 27 feet, which is a bit farther than his personal best of 26 feet, 8.25 inches*.

“As long as he comes out and does what he’s supposed to do, he has a very good shot of making the team,” said UNM horizontal jumps coach Austin Brobst, who is working with Ross and Spencer. “He still has to jump about seven centimeters further for the U.S. to take him, but I believe he has it in him.”

UNM is paying for the athletes to travel to Eugene. Spencer said the support of the University and community means a lot.

“Having a support system is a huge part of being successful,” Spencer said. “We get letters, phone calls and text messages from people that are really supportive.”

After he won the indoor long jump championship last year, Spencer received a slew of supportive text messages from family and friends and said he will use those as motivation at the Olympic trials.

“I saved all those text messages so when I go to the trials and I’m trying to get focused, I’ll just go back and read them all,” he said.

Off the track, both men are successful scholars. Ross aspires to be a sports reporter and said all the hard work he put on the track will help him be successful in a professional career.

“Being an athlete, I’ve noticed that you can’t slack off,” Ross said. “You can’t slack off in anything you do. Just go hard or go home.”

Spencer, on the other hand, plans to get a Ph.D. in counseling psychology. He works with children who have autism and strives to make the dean’s list every semester. He said he works just as hard in the classroom as he does on the track.

“A lot of people just see me as the track athlete, but people who have been around me know that there’s a lot more to me than that,” Spencer said. “Everything that I do on the track is complemented by things that I do in the classroom.”

Spencer said he does not want to be the kind of athlete who only cares about himself.

“One of the things I promised myself was that I was going to be one of those athletes that was always approachable, kept a good head on his shoulders and had an all-around good character,” Spencer said. 

“I want to leave a positive mark on the world.”

For more information on these athletes head to the UNM Daily Lobo Website.