Track Athletes to Compete This Week at U.S., Jamaican Championships

U.S. Track and Field Junior Outdoor Championships (June 22-23)

U.S. Track and Field Outdoor Championships (June 22-25)
JAAA National Senior Championships (June 22-25)

MANHATTAN, Kan. – Nine current and former Kansas State track and field athletes are scheduled to compete in various U.S., and Jamaican Championships this week, including current assistant coach Erik Kynard, Jr.

Kynard will be looking to claim his fifth Outdoor High Jump Championship on Sunday, June 25 at the U.S. Track and Field Outdoor Championships at Hornet Stadium in Sacramento, California. He will be joined at the Championships by rising senior Janee' Kassanavoid, who will compete in the women's hammer throw on Sunday, June 25, and by rising sophomore Wurrie Njadoe, who will compete Saturday, June 24 in the women's long jump.

Rising sophomores Ariel Okorie and Lauren Taubert will join the group in Sacramento, as the duo will compete in the heptathlon at the U.S. Track and Field Junior Outdoor Championships on Thursday-Friday, June 22-23.

In addition, four other Wildcat athletes – senior Claudette Allen and juniors Shadae Lawrence, Shardia Lawrence and Shanae McKenzie – will compete in the Jamaican National Track and Field Championships (JAAA National Senior Championships) in Kingston, Jamaica, on Thursday-Sunday, June 22-25.

The group will be looking to qualify for the IAAF (International Association of Athletics Federation) World Championships, which will be held August 5-13 at London Stadium in London, England.

A two-time national champion and silver medalist at the 2012 London Olympic Games, Kynard enters this weekend's Championships as the four-time defending USATF Outdoor Champion in the high jump. Overall, he has won the last eight USATF high jump competitions. He just wrapped up his first season as an assistant coach to Director of Track and Field and Cross Country Cliff Rovelto.

A two-time Outdoor All-American in the hammer throw, Kassanavoid is coming off a fourth-place finish at NCAA Championships on June 8 that earned her First Team All-American honors with a mark of 218-05 (66.58m). She captured three hammer throw titles this Spring, including the Big 12 Championships on May 12. She had a school-record toss of 219-08 (66.97m) in the event at the Texas Invitational on April 14.

Njadoe enters the long jump competition on a high note after earning First Team All-America honors in the event at the NCAA Championships on June 8 with an eighth-place leap of 20-10.50 (6.36m). She finished second three other times in the long jump, including a season-best mark of 21-10.75 (6.67m) at the NCAA West Preliminary meet on May 25.

Okorie and Taubert head into the U.S. Junior Championships after strong freshman campaigns, including Top 10 finishes in the heptathlon at the Big 12 Championships on May 12-13. Okorie twice finished third in the heptathlon this season, including a season-high total of 5,251 points at the Big 12 Championships. Taubert also competed twice in the heptathlon this past Spring, earning a sixth-place finish at the Big 12 Championships with 5,115 points.

Allen (long jump) and Shadae Lawrence (discus) will begin competition in the JAAA National Senior Championships on Friday, June 23 with Shardia Lawrence (triple jump) and McKenzie (high jump) following on Sunday, June 25.

The current school and Jamaican national record-holder in the discus, Shadae Lawrence is coming off a historic sophomore season, in which, she won the event in all seven meets that she competed in this Spring, including the Big 12 and NCAA Championships. She set the school and Jamaican national mark with a toss of 205-04 (62.59m) to win the Big 12 Championship on May 14, while she also recorded a throw of more than 200 feet (201-04/61.37m) to capture the NCAA title on June 10. She placed 22nd in the event at last summer's Rio Olympic Games.

Twin sister – Shardia Lawrence – twice won the triple jump this Spring, including the Texas Invitational on April 14 and Ward Haylett Invitational on May 6. She posted a season-best mark of 45-03 (13.79m) to finish second at the Big 12 Championship on May 14, while she was 23rd at the NCAA Championships with a leap of 40-06 (12.34m).

McKenzie competed in the high jump in six meets this past Outdoor season, winning the event at the John McDonnell Invitational on April 22 with a mark of 5-07 (1.70m). She earned a fifth-place finish in the high jump at the Big 12 Championships on May 14 with a season-best mark of 5-09.25 (1.76m).

Allen, who earned First Team All-America honors as part of the 4x100-relay team on June 10, competed in the long jump in five meets this Spring. She placed fourth at the Ward Haylett Invitational with a mark of 19-11.75 (6.09m) on May 6, while she had a personal-best leap of 19-11.75 (6.09m) at the Texas Invitational on April 15.

For the latest on K-State track and field, follow @kstatesports and @KStateTFXC on Twitter using the hashtag #KStateTF or on the team's Facebook page.

Championships Participants:

Ariel Okorie – Heptathlon (June 22-23)

Lauren Taubert – Heptathlon (June 22-23)

Claudette Allen – Long Jump (June 23)

Shadae Lawrence – Discus Throw (June 23)

Wurrie Njadoe – Long Jump (June 24)

Erik Kynard, Jr. – High Jump (June 25)

Janee Kassanavoid – Hammer Throw (June 25)

Shardia Lawrence – Triple Jump (June 25)

Shanae McKenzie – High Jump (June 25)