One is an acclaimed and accomplished athlete who might as well
have been competing in her own backyard. The other is an
up-and-coming talent who is just beginning to tap his
potential.
One is an acclaimed and accomplished athlete who might as well have been competing in her own backyard.
The other is an up-and-coming talent who is just beginning to tap his potential.
But they have one thing very much in common. They’re both Junior Olympians.
Live Oak High’s Cobbie Jones and Jonathan Kamei both earned the highly coveted right to compete at the Junior Olympics in Eugene, Wa. this week.
The 38th edition of the USA Track & Field’s National Junior Olympic Track & Field Championships started on Tuesday and will run through Saturday at historic Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore.
This year’s competition will serve as one of the selection meets for the 2005 IAAF World Youth Championships in Marrakech, Morocco.
Competition age divisions are as follows: Bantam (10-and-under), Midget (11-12), Youth (13-14), Intermediate (15-16) and Young Men/Women (17-18).
Jones qualified in both the 800-meter run and the 4×800 relay, while Kamei qualified in the 1,500-meter run.
Both are representing the Los Gatos Athletic Association this summer.
It is an honor both agree is a much-prized highlight of their disparate careers.
For Jones, it’s almost a homecoming of sorts because her grandparents live just 20 miles away from the University of Oregon track where the Junior Olympics are being held, and where her mother, Diane Urban, grew up. Urban also earned All-American honors while competing in the discus at the NCAA track and field championships at Hayward Field.
“I’m going to be running on the same track as Prefontaine ran on and seeing my grandparents,” Jones said. “Talk about a great vacation.”
For Jones, competing at the Junior Olympics is another in a long line of stellar athletic accomplish-ments. Heading into her junior year in the fall, she has already made the state meet in both cross-country and track in each of her first two years in high school.
And, this is actually Jones’ second trip to the Junior Olympics. She also qualified two years ago, but was disqualified on a technicality.
However, for Kamei, this is the first real opportunity in the spotlight.
Last year, as a junior at Live Oak, Kamei made the Central Coast Section finals in cross-country but just missed qualifying for the section championships in track.
And, for the most part, he has labored in relative anonymity behind his talented Acorn teammates Billy Wong and Jesus Atanacio.
But Kamei said he has been dedicating himself totally to a successful effort to make the Junior Olympics this summer.
“Through hard work and training I believed I could do it,” Kamei said. “I’m just looking for a good experience.”
After this week’s experience, it’s hard to believe that Kamei will take a back seat to anyone any more.
