ANCHORAGE, Alaska — Janay DeLoach, one of the great track and field talents ever produced by Alaska, has taken a giant leap towards making her first Olympic team. He has a giant leap to thank for it.
DeLoach soared 23 feet, 5 and a half inches on her only jump of the day at the preliminaries of the U.S. Olympic Trials on Friday in Eugene, Oregon. The jump, the second longest in the world this year by a woman, sets DeLoach up nicely for Sunday's final. She was the top qualifier and needs to be among the top three American women to earn a berth in the London Games.
DeLoach ran track for Eielson High School in Fairbanks between 2000 and 2003, winning the state long jump title each year of her career. She still holds the state record at 19 feet, 5 inches.
