Feature by Shawn Moran, Sun Devil Athletics Feature Writer
TEMPE, Ariz. -- Arizona State pole vaulter Cole Riddle led three talented sophomores representing the Sun Devils at the USA Track & Field Junior Outdoor Championships in June, surviving a nail-biting jump-off to land a spot on the USA Junior Worlds team.
Riddle finished second at the meet held at Indiana University, clearing a personal best of 18-feet-½ inch (5.50 meters), and went on to a seventh-place finish in at the Junior Worlds in Finland.
His vaulting teammate Michael Chadwick finished sixth, which wasn't enough to qualify for a spot on the Junior Worlds team, but it was ASU distance runner Jackson Lewis who experienced the biggest heartbreak at the meet for elite athletes under the age of 20.
Lewis, blew away the field in the 3-kilometer steeplechase, finishing first by seven seconds. However, his time of 9-minutes, 20.95 seconds fell short of the 9-minute, 10-second qualifying time needed for a spot on the Junior Worlds roster.
While Lewis came away feeling as if he could have done more, the result will serve as added motivation for him during the upcoming season.
"It definitely is in the back of my mind, just being a little bit off and knowing that I could have ran that (qualifying time) and feeling like I was in pretty good shape there," Lewis said.
With the help of ASU assistant distance coach Cory Leslie and his teammates, Lewis has been able to quickly move past his initial disappointment and find some satisfaction in his performance.
"Coach Cory said after the race, 'You're not allowed to be disappointed.' They were really happy," Lewis said. "So it just carried over to me and I was pretty happy with it and excited."
Chadwick found satisfaction, too, by lending support to Riddle as he battled a couple of the nation's top junior vaulters.
"It was probably one of my favorite meets because you could just look around and the field was stacked," Chadwick said. "I got to try to help with Cole, just creating a game plan for him to keep going and ended up getting to see him make the (Junior Worlds) roster, which is really, really cool."
Matched up against KC Lightfoot, who was Missouri's Gatorade 2017-18 High School Track and Field Athlete of the Year, and Zachery Bradford, an incoming Kansas freshman, Riddle used his year of experience at the collegiate level to his advantage.
After Lightfoot failed on one of his jumps, he decided to pass on the next few heights while Riddle and Bradford battled it out for first. Bradford won with a vault of 18-feet-2½-inches.
After clearing 5.50 meters, the second-best vault in Sun Devil history, Riddle could only wait and watch to see if he would be passed on the leaderboard by Lightfoot, the high school phenom, with his remaining vault.
"It was intense having to watch him take his last attempt and be close to the bar," Riddle said. "But then he missed it, and I was really happy. I'd have to say that's probably the most nerve-racking, and that was definitely a lot to handle."
Riddle said having Chadwick there helped keep him motivated and calm in the later rounds of the meet.
"It's really helpful to have essentially another coach out on the field," Riddle said. "He was pushing me and cheering me on at every bar I would make."
Riddle moved on to the IAAF World U20 Championships in Tampere, Finland a month later, where he would finish seventh while matched up against top-level pole vaulters from countries across the globe. Bradford won the silver medal at that meet.
"It's humbling because you show up and everyone is just as good as you, if not better," Riddle said. "It's just really cool to get to meet kids that do the same thing all over the world that speak different languages. The competition was great."
Now the trio of second-year ASU athletes will focus on their next goal.
Chadwick is aiming to improve into the 18-foot range. Lewis is focused on qualifying for the NCAA Regionals. Riddle has an eye on the Olympic Trials in 2020.
Each of the Sun Devils has aged out of the Junior level and will begin encountering even stiffer competition on the international stage.
Their success over the summer has provided a measure of their progress and motivation for the fast-approaching indoor season, where all three hope to compete for honors in the Pac-12 Conference.
"Now I know what to expect," Chadwick said. "To see kids really young that can jump that high will push me to train harder and harder so that I can still place well in my conference and maybe try to win a few meets, too."
TEMPE, Ariz. -- Arizona State pole vaulter Cole Riddle led three talented sophomores representing the Sun Devils at the USA Track & Field Junior Outdoor Championships in June, surviving a nail-biting jump-off to land a spot on the USA Junior Worlds team.
Riddle finished second at the meet held at Indiana University, clearing a personal best of 18-feet-½ inch (5.50 meters), and went on to a seventh-place finish in at the Junior Worlds in Finland.
His vaulting teammate Michael Chadwick finished sixth, which wasn't enough to qualify for a spot on the Junior Worlds team, but it was ASU distance runner Jackson Lewis who experienced the biggest heartbreak at the meet for elite athletes under the age of 20.
Lewis, blew away the field in the 3-kilometer steeplechase, finishing first by seven seconds. However, his time of 9-minutes, 20.95 seconds fell short of the 9-minute, 10-second qualifying time needed for a spot on the Junior Worlds roster.
While Lewis came away feeling as if he could have done more, the result will serve as added motivation for him during the upcoming season.
"It definitely is in the back of my mind, just being a little bit off and knowing that I could have ran that (qualifying time) and feeling like I was in pretty good shape there," Lewis said.
With the help of ASU assistant distance coach Cory Leslie and his teammates, Lewis has been able to quickly move past his initial disappointment and find some satisfaction in his performance.
"Coach Cory said after the race, 'You're not allowed to be disappointed.' They were really happy," Lewis said. "So it just carried over to me and I was pretty happy with it and excited."
Chadwick found satisfaction, too, by lending support to Riddle as he battled a couple of the nation's top junior vaulters.
"It was probably one of my favorite meets because you could just look around and the field was stacked," Chadwick said. "I got to try to help with Cole, just creating a game plan for him to keep going and ended up getting to see him make the (Junior Worlds) roster, which is really, really cool."
Matched up against KC Lightfoot, who was Missouri's Gatorade 2017-18 High School Track and Field Athlete of the Year, and Zachery Bradford, an incoming Kansas freshman, Riddle used his year of experience at the collegiate level to his advantage.
After Lightfoot failed on one of his jumps, he decided to pass on the next few heights while Riddle and Bradford battled it out for first. Bradford won with a vault of 18-feet-2½-inches.
After clearing 5.50 meters, the second-best vault in Sun Devil history, Riddle could only wait and watch to see if he would be passed on the leaderboard by Lightfoot, the high school phenom, with his remaining vault.
"It was intense having to watch him take his last attempt and be close to the bar," Riddle said. "But then he missed it, and I was really happy. I'd have to say that's probably the most nerve-racking, and that was definitely a lot to handle."
Riddle said having Chadwick there helped keep him motivated and calm in the later rounds of the meet.
"It's really helpful to have essentially another coach out on the field," Riddle said. "He was pushing me and cheering me on at every bar I would make."
Riddle moved on to the IAAF World U20 Championships in Tampere, Finland a month later, where he would finish seventh while matched up against top-level pole vaulters from countries across the globe. Bradford won the silver medal at that meet.
"It's humbling because you show up and everyone is just as good as you, if not better," Riddle said. "It's just really cool to get to meet kids that do the same thing all over the world that speak different languages. The competition was great."
Now the trio of second-year ASU athletes will focus on their next goal.
Chadwick is aiming to improve into the 18-foot range. Lewis is focused on qualifying for the NCAA Regionals. Riddle has an eye on the Olympic Trials in 2020.
Each of the Sun Devils has aged out of the Junior level and will begin encountering even stiffer competition on the international stage.
Their success over the summer has provided a measure of their progress and motivation for the fast-approaching indoor season, where all three hope to compete for honors in the Pac-12 Conference.
"Now I know what to expect," Chadwick said. "To see kids really young that can jump that high will push me to train harder and harder so that I can still place well in my conference and maybe try to win a few meets, too."