Adam Jenkins has been working hard during the past couple weeks to prepare himself for the Pacific-10 Conference Championships in mid-May.
So it was no surprise when the defending Pac-10 javelin champion showed up to last weekend’s Oregon Invitational physically drained from nearing the end of his training cycle. Along with the difficulty of battling back from a shoulder injury suffered earlier in the year, the senior simply wanted his efforts at Hayward Field on Saturday to produce a respectable mark.
“From the moment I stepped on the track, I didn’t feel very good,” Jenkins said after the event. “I’m coming off some training and my body is real tired.”
When all was said and done, the
Gladstone native walked away from the event a winner, with his best chuck of the spear traveling 205 feet, 3 inches. While the throw was well short of his personal best (222-4), Jenkins managed to defeat former Duck and NCAA Champion John Stiegeler (second, 204-9) by six inches.
Stiegeler set the school record with a toss of 252-10 in 2001.
“I was hoping to get a decent mark,” Jenkins said. “But I did beat John.”
Entering the meet fatigued, Jenkins decided to use a seven-step short approach for his throws and will return to a long approach for the conference championships. With the Pac-10s right around the corner, Jenkins admitted his focus wasn’t entirely on the task at hand.
“Most of the time when I get motivated, it’s personal,” Jenkins said. “But right when I stepped on the track, I said, ‘I’m not motivated today.’ I didn’t prepare myself for this meet very well. I know within the next three meets ahead that 205 isn’t going to do anything, so I have to prepare better for the next few meets.”

High jumper ready
Despite finishing tied for second (6-10 3/4) and failing to clear seven feet, Jeff Lindsey was happy with his performance at the Oregon Invitational.
Lindsey is one of five Pac-10 high jumpers to clear seven feet this year, but also one of many Oregon athletes who was worn down from training at last weekend’s meet. The sophomore said his performance was actually quite pleasing and can be used as a confidence builder.
“I actually jumped higher than I wanted to,” Lindsey said. “We just wanted to open at high bar, like (6-9 1/2) and if we made another bar that would be great. I think this is going to set me up for my jump in a couple weeks.
“This was a really laid-back competition. Nobody jumped seven feet and nobody really felt that well before the competition. You can’t really get hyped up if nobody’s excited to jump. We were excited, but at the same time there’s something kind of ho-hum about (the meet).”