University of Northern Iowa Athletics
Heims, Kerkhoff, King Perform Well at Trials
6/20/2021 10:32:00 AM | Track and Field
MINNEAPOLIS – Jessica Heims won the f37/38/64 discus at the US Paralympic Trials Saturday by over 10-meters and Erin Kerkhoff finished second in the t13 division in both the 400-meter dash and the 100-meter dash. At the Olympic trials, Darius King finished made the final of the shot put and finished 12th in the event.
PARALYMPIC TRIALS
Both athletes met the Paralympic High Performance Standard for their events, but the US Olympic & Paralympic Committee has the final say on who will make the trip to Tokyo. The committee is allowed a limited number of allotments by the Paralympic games and will announce the team Wednesday evening.
Heims, a recent UNI grad and the American record holder in the f64 discus, won the event with a mark of 34.04-meters on her second throw. Ella Rodriguez finished second in the event with a mark of 23.97-meters.
Heims is currently ranked second in the world in the event this year, just behind Poland's Faustyna Kotlowska.
Kerkhoff, a redshirt freshman on the UNI track and field team, finished second with a time of 58.24. She was edged at the line by Kymberly Crosby, a veteran of the Rio games. The time puts Kerkhoff in a strong position to make the Paralympic games. She finished the 100-meter dash with a time of 12.89, again behind Crosby.
Kerkhoff's time would be fifth in the world in the T13 classification for the 400 and she is currently ranked ninth in the world for 100.
The Paralympic track and field events are scheduled for August 27-Sept. 5 at Olympic Stadium in Tokyo, Japan.
WHAT. A. RACE.@kymkey14 holds off Erin Kerkhoff to win the women's 400m T13/38!#ParaTrials21 x #ShowTheWorld pic.twitter.com/STJbypuVEE
— #TokyoOlympics (@NBCOlympics) June 19, 2021
OLYMPIC TRIALS
Friday, King hit a mark of 19.66-meters with his second throw to advance to the finals. He was one of just four NCAA athletes to advance to the final. He did not improve his mark in the final and finished 12th overall.
Ryan Crouser broke a 30-year old world record to win the event by over a meter with a throw of 23.37.
The event caps a season that saw King break the UNI indoor shot put record, the UNI outdoor shot put record and the MVC Indoor Championship Record.
He is one of three Panthers at the US Trials. Current distance coach Alexina Wilson participates in the 3000-meter steeplechase. The semifinals begin at 8:35 p.m. CT. She will run in the first heat. UNI record-holder Brandon Carnes participates in the 200-meter beginning on Friday, June 25, at 4:04 p.m.
Players Mentioned
