By Craig Morgan, thesundevils.com Writer
Chris Benard and Bryan McBride have been friends for so long that it isn't hard to track one down when you locate the other.
"He's sitting right next to me," Benard said of McBride, when reached by phone last week at the Olympic Training Center in Chula Vista, California. "We were just catching up on Game of Thrones."
The former Sun Devil teammates and roommates hope to stand on a different sort of throne as medalists at the 2016 Summer Olympics next month in Rio de Janeiro.
Benard, a former All-American, currently owns the fourth best triple jump in the world and is third among Americans at 56 feet, 4.75 inches. He will be one of the favorites at the USATF Olympic Trials this week in Eugene, Oregon where three jumpers qualify.
McBride, the 2014 NCAA high jump champion, is more of a long shot in his first year out of college, but he is tied for the eighth highest jump (7-5) in the nation and Track and Field News is currently predicting him to make the Olympic roster.
"Just making the team in general, I can't even explain what it would be liked except I'd be so pumped up and relieved and happy," McBride said. "But for me to do that alongside someone who has been my friend for so long -- someone I competed with in college and train with now? To share that experience would be the cherry on top or the icing on the cake. It's something we'd be able to take with us for the rest of our lives."
Benard was a junior when McBride arrived as a freshman at ASU in 2010. The two clicked from the get-to.
"He was a genuine guy; easy to get along with so I ended up spending a lot of time with him," Benard said. "After his freshman year, we became roommates for the rest of my time there."
When Benard left ASU in 2012, he didn't have a clear picture of where he wanted to go. He had his sights set on the 2016 Games, but he knew it would be hard to support himself and still find the necessary time to train for the world's biggest stage.
"Randomly, I ended up going to San Diego to see a friend and I met a coach who said he was heading to Chula Vista and asked if I wanted to come along," Benard said.
As it turned out, coaches at the training center had been eyeing Benard as well so he took up residence there and when McBride left ASU, it was a natural move for him to join his old friend.
"You get here and you live in a dorm with two people per room and you share a living room with two more," Benard said. "They have a cafeteria that is buffet-style for all your meals, there is a training room on site, they have massage therapists, an acupuncturist and they have an agreement with UC San Diego to have all your minor medical stuff covered.
Chris Benard and Bryan McBride have been friends for so long that it isn't hard to track one down when you locate the other.
"He's sitting right next to me," Benard said of McBride, when reached by phone last week at the Olympic Training Center in Chula Vista, California. "We were just catching up on Game of Thrones."
The former Sun Devil teammates and roommates hope to stand on a different sort of throne as medalists at the 2016 Summer Olympics next month in Rio de Janeiro.
Benard, a former All-American, currently owns the fourth best triple jump in the world and is third among Americans at 56 feet, 4.75 inches. He will be one of the favorites at the USATF Olympic Trials this week in Eugene, Oregon where three jumpers qualify.
McBride, the 2014 NCAA high jump champion, is more of a long shot in his first year out of college, but he is tied for the eighth highest jump (7-5) in the nation and Track and Field News is currently predicting him to make the Olympic roster.
"Just making the team in general, I can't even explain what it would be liked except I'd be so pumped up and relieved and happy," McBride said. "But for me to do that alongside someone who has been my friend for so long -- someone I competed with in college and train with now? To share that experience would be the cherry on top or the icing on the cake. It's something we'd be able to take with us for the rest of our lives."
Benard was a junior when McBride arrived as a freshman at ASU in 2010. The two clicked from the get-to.
"He was a genuine guy; easy to get along with so I ended up spending a lot of time with him," Benard said. "After his freshman year, we became roommates for the rest of my time there."
When Benard left ASU in 2012, he didn't have a clear picture of where he wanted to go. He had his sights set on the 2016 Games, but he knew it would be hard to support himself and still find the necessary time to train for the world's biggest stage.
"Randomly, I ended up going to San Diego to see a friend and I met a coach who said he was heading to Chula Vista and asked if I wanted to come along," Benard said.
As it turned out, coaches at the training center had been eyeing Benard as well so he took up residence there and when McBride left ASU, it was a natural move for him to join his old friend.
"You get here and you live in a dorm with two people per room and you share a living room with two more," Benard said. "They have a cafeteria that is buffet-style for all your meals, there is a training room on site, they have massage therapists, an acupuncturist and they have an agreement with UC San Diego to have all your minor medical stuff covered.