There are student-athletes, and then there are student-athletes.
While many of the competitors at the U.S. Olympic Track & Field Trials are done with college and may never step in a classroom again, there are a handful of Olympic hopefuls who are in Eugene fresh off the NCAA Championships two weeks ago, still working toward their degrees.
Of those, the vast majority will take the summer off from school to be able to compete at the Olympic Trials and focus on their Beijing dreams.
With the Trials taking place on their home campus, Oregon’s Andrew Wheating and Rachel Yurkovich are both taking classes concurrent to the Olympic Trials. Wheating, a sophomore undeclared major, is taking an international studies course on global sports and politics, while Yurkovich, a junior economics major, is taking an international finance course.
Both said they thought twice about taking a class at the same time they’d be competing for a spot on the Olympic team, but decided it was worth it.
“It was really hard when I was signing up for all of the classes because it’s like if I go to Beijing I won’t be able to do some of the classes the second term (of the summer) or the third term,” said Yurkovich, the 2008 NCAA women’s javelin champion. “I thought about that, but it’s better to be prepared if I don’t, I guess, and then if I do be pleasantly surprised.”
Yurkovich said that she won’t have any overlap between class and competition, but if Wheating, the runner-up at the NCAA Championships, qualifies for the 800-meter final Monday night, he would be running for a spot on the Olympic team at the same time his classmates would be in class.
“It was definitely something I had to think about ’cause class and ‘student-athlete,’ you know, but you can’t pass up an opportunity to run the Trials,” he said. “If the teachers are understanding it shouldn’t be too much of an issue.”
None of the other current Ducks competing in the Olympic Trials is taking classes this summer. 2008 NCAA decathlon champion Ashton Eaton said it’s not something he really considered, adding, “I don’t know how they’re gonna do that.”
Oregon head coach Vin Lananna said that he’s not too worried about Wheating and Yurkovich being overtaxed by their classes.
“I think they’ve done all right all year, so I’m not really worried about it,” he said. “We encourage them to make normal progress toward their degree and that’s what they’ve done and we’re excited about that and we’re happy that they’re doing it.”
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