On a Mission to Be the Best

By: D. Scott Fritchen

Emil Uhlin is on a mission. As Kansas State opens its indoor track and field season at the Bob Timmons Challenge in Lawrence, Kansas, on Saturday, Uhlin will compete in the shot put and the 4x400m relay with a little bit of retribution on his mind as he begins the quest to earn All-American status — something that eluded him his sophomore year.

"I had a really good freshman year becoming an All-American at the nationals, and last year I improved in a lot of events but just wasn't able to put it all together in the decathlon. So, I wasn't satisfied at all," Uhlin says. "It was disappointing. I've been working even harder that I can put it all together in the heptathlon and decathlon and not just in individual events.

"I don't want my goal to be just going to nationals. I want to be competitive at nationals."

Uhlin, a native of Falun, Sweden, exudes success and carries an international reputation. The Swedish Junior Champion in the high jump in both 2019 and 2020, Uhlin captured the 2020 Swedish National Championship with a mark of 6 feet, 11.5 inches (2.12 meters). He finished second in the decathlon with a personal-best 7,618 points at the 2022 Swedish Outdoor Championship, and he finished first in the high jump and 1,500 meters.

As a freshman at K-State, he went to the 2022 NCAA Outdoor Championships and finished with 7,546 points in the decathlon, where he recorded a new personal best with a second-place finish in the 1,500 meters (4 minutes, 23.85 seconds) and third in the pole vault at 15 feet, 9.25 inches (4.81 meters).

Last year, he finished fourth in the 2023 Big 12 Indoor Championships with 5,462 points in the heptathlon and earned a personal best in the 1,000 meters (2:38.67) and his second-best finish with a second-place pole vault (4.93m). He took fifth in the decathlon at the 2023 Big 12 Outdoor Championships with 7,539 points, winning the high jump, tying his personal best in the 1,500 meters and recording a new personal best in the 400-meter dash.

There could be more in store for the 6-foot-3, 190-pound Uhlin this time around.

And it begins with the shot put and the 4x400 on Saturday.

"We've done a lot of running with a lot of focus on sprints and the 1K, which is the last event in the heptathlon," Uhlin says. "We've done a lot of work in the weight room. I feel really strong right now, but I'm also pretty heavy, so we're trying to get the weight down as we get close to the conference championships in February. But I feel strong, and I have good endurance right now. I think the shot put and the 4x400 will do me good."

Uhlin grew up playing soccer and bandy — a limited contact sport on an ice surface that stretches nearly the same size as a soccer field. It is similar to ice hockey. Uhlin also competed in track and field with his friends— his first race was the 60 meters when he was 8 years old — and quickly decided a transition to track and field was in order when he believed himself to be an individualist in sports arena "because the outcome of track is only dependent upon myself."

"I want to win all the time," he says.

He loved the long jump and high jump but felt a pull toward the decathlon and heptathlon, which would allow him to hone his skills in a variety of events for competition. His experiences during his years of high school at Lugnetgymnasiet furthered his passion. He qualified for the 2019 Nordic U20 Championships in the decathlon and finished second with 7,166 points, a score that qualified him for the European u20 Championships in July 2019.

He knew friends who traveled to the United States to earn an education and further their track careers. Their experiences motivated him to pursue a dream and attend college.

"After I finished high school, I had a gap year where I worked and practiced and most of my friends moved away, so I had no one to practice with," Uhlin says. "My best option was to come to the U.S. where I could be a part of a big team and big training group again. I knew I was good enough to get a scholarship, so I'd have four years of free education and a good training group. Nobody I knew regretted their decision to come to the U.S. I said, 'Let's go.'"

Except he couldn't go. Not yet. Uhlin was set on attending Wisconsin, but the COVID pandemic hit one week before his official visit, prompting him to train at home over the next year.

In the meantime, Uhlin devised a lengthy spreadsheet of potential college programs. He emailed college coaches.

"I checked the NCAA statistics on which teams placed in the top 50 and top 100 and found that K-State had a big group of combined events athletes that were successful, and that made me interested," he says. "I researched Coach Cliff Rovelto and his name was everywhere. My coach back home knew of Rovelto's reputation through the books that Coach Rovelto had written and his high-jump clinics.

"Coach Rovelto and I had a couple FaceTime calls. The goals I wanted to pursue were the same ones that he wanted me to pursue."

Uhlin arrived at K-State in August 2021.

He has goals, big goals, and worked tirelessly this offseason in hopes of achieving a couple immediate goals.

"I want to become an All-American in both the indoor and outdoor season," he says.

Then there's his even bigger goal.

"I want to make it to the Olympics," he says. "It's going to be hard, but that's what I'm working toward."

It all starts with preparation and building blocks.

Uhlin is prepared to take those first steps on Saturday.

Kansas State University Athletics

Players Mentioned

Emil Uhlin

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