Past legends help shape present superstars.
UCLA track and field honored former coaches Jim Bush and Bob Larsen – the latter helped train 23 eventual Olympic athletes at UCLA and the former earned four NCAA Coach of the Year selections – at the Bob Larsen Distance Carnival and the Jim Bush Legends Meet on Friday and Saturday. The Bruins women’s squad took first place out of 26 collegiate teams, and the men’s crew took the runner-up spot in a 22-squad field.
“The meet really means a lot because it’s named after Bob Larsen and Jim Bush, two incredible coaches for UCLA who have outstanding legacies here,” said director of track and field Joanna Hayes. “We had a lot more people, a lot more teams than we’ve had in the past. It was really exciting to see the meet really coming back to what it used to be.”
UCLA earned six event wins and 16 podium finishes across both competitions.
Junior sprinter Gabriel Clement II – who achieved the first Bruin All-American selection in the 400-meter dash since 2006 last outdoor season – opened his spring campaign with a 20.50-second time in the men’s 200-meter dash to take first place Saturday.
His outing also marked the first time a Bruin has cracked the UCLA all-time top ten in this event in the 21st century, as he secured the No. 10 spot on the Westwood leaderboard.
“He did a really good job this weekend,” Hayes said. “He’s gotten much smarter when it comes to how to run, how to plan a race out and he was very patient in the 200 where he was. He didn’t press, he didn’t rush, he just ran his race.”
The Kaplan, Louisiana, local said he sustained a hamstring injury during the indoor season, hindering his ability to compete at an elite level.
Although the half-lap race was different from his typical one-lap event, Clement said his 200-meter dash performance bolstered his confidence in the 400-meter dash.
“This was a really good gauger for me, because this sets in stone what pace I can come to comfortably for the 400 (400-meter dash), so it was definitely huge to see that time, especially as an opener,” Clement said.
The junior also helped the men’s 4×400-meter relay clinch the gold medal Saturday alongside graduate sprinter/hurdler Chris Paige, senior sprinter/hurdler Zaire Waring and freshman sprinter Shaun McCoullum with a 3:08.82 mark.
Clement said his relay teammates, who are also his training partners, have fostered continued individual improvement due to the diligent work ethic they display.
“Those are great training partners, where blood, sweat and tears on that track, day in and day out,” Clement said. “Once you see that work ethic, and it’s not just you, it’s all of us. … It really creates something special. I have faith in all of my guys that I know when opportunity arises, they will rise to the occasion.”
But Clement was the only athlete on the men’s team to claim a first-place title.
The women’s bunch achieved three individual top-place finishes.
Freshman distance runner Kaitlyn Arciaga clocked a 2:07.01 in the 800-meter run to earn first place in her first outdoor collegiate competition Saturday.
Arciaga did not compete during her first cross country campaign, but she said the rest helped spearhead a successful indoor campaign, where she earned her first collegiate victory at January’s Spokane Sports Showcase in the 600-meter run.
“I’ve never run indoor before, and indoor gives you a confidence boost because everyone says, ‘Indoor times are slower than your outdoor times,’” Arciaga said. “I came into outdoor with the mentality, ‘I know what I’m capable of, and I know what I can do, so I’m gonna go show what I can do.’”
The freshman added that the women’s distance squad’s three upperclassmen, seniors Annika Salz and Kaho Cichon, along with junior Ailish Hawkins, have provided athletic and academic mentorship.
Sophomore jumper Valentina Fakrogha notched another historic performance in the women’s long jump to clear 1.87 meters and hoist the gold medal. The Ventura Beach, California, local tied Jackie Joyner-Kersee’s No. 3 all-time jump in UCLA track and field history. Joyner-Kersee earned six Olympic medals throughout her track career.
“It’s a great honor, because UCLA has so many great athletes,” Hayes said. “We have such a great legacy, people who have done things, not only on the track and field, but in life.”
Graduate student pole vaulter Paige Sommers vaulted 4.43 meters to claim first place, which was the Bruins’ first individual triumph Saturday. The Duke transfer’s personal record also earned her the No. 3 on UCLA’s all-time outdoor women’s pole vault list.
The women’s 4×100-meter, consisting of sophomore sprinter Kayla McBride, senior sprinter Naomi Johnson, sophomore sprinter/hurdler Celeste Polzonetti and junior sprinter Taylor Snaer crossed the finish line first, clocking 43.68 seconds. The quartet’s performance was the eighth-fastest time in UCLA outdoor history.
Hayes’ team garnered a handful of silver placements as well.
Graduate student thrower Simon Skoumal and freshman distance runner Arrin Sagiraju earned runner-up finishes Friday in the hammer throw and 1500-meter run, respectively, with the latter’s 3:43.27-second performance placing him just outside of the Bruins’ outdoor all-time leaderboard in the distance competition.
The Bruins recorded seven additional silver-medal placements Saturday.
UCLA will compete simultaneously at the Battle on the Bayou in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and the Stanford Invite – which will feature distance events – in Stanford, California, next weekend.
But the Bruins have one goal in the outdoor season’s initial frame – prepare for May and June’s championship campaign.
“I look at everything in March, April and early May as building towards championship season,” Hayes said. “The whole goal is to get out there and do your best. Don’t get comfortable when things are going really well, and don’t get down on yourself when things aren’t, because there’s time.”
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