Pullen Rio Bound With National Gold
KINGSTON, Jamaica – 2016 NCAA indoor triple jump champion Clive Pullen jumped onto Team Jamaica’s roster for the upcoming Olympic Games with a spectacular personal best performance of 16.90m/55-5 1/2 in his signature event.
He is the first Jamaican man to qualify for the Olympics in the triple jump in 44 years (Henry Jackson, 1972) according to the The Gleaner, a Jamaican newspaper.
Capping his collegiate junior season at the outdoor nationals as one of the best triple jumpers in the NCAA, Pullen returned to work with assistant coach Travis Geopfert with full focus on the Jamaican National Senior Championship.
Entering the event with a personal best of 16.78m/55-0 3/4 he needed not only a top finish but also the Olympic standard of 16.85m/55-3 1/2.
Showing phenomenal growth since his 2015 performance at the national meet where finished in sixth place, Pullen impressed on the runway at the National Stadium in Independence Park out-marking his former lifetime best by almost half a foot. It was exactly what he needed to gain entry into one of the most elite and exclusive athletic competitions in the world.
“I couldn’t be more proud,“Geopfert said. “Clive [Pullen] is a special young man. He’s showed tremendous perseverance this year and through his self-discipline and hard work, he has accomplished a tremendous life goal. He will forever have the title of ‘Olympian’ and it couldn’t happen to a more deserving person.”
With his spot on the Jamaican national team secured, Pullen will continue training under coach Geopfert in preparation for the most challenging competition of his career to date, the 2016 Olympic Games on August 5-21 in Rio de Janerio, Brazil.
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