Kemba Nelson had been focusing on the 100 in training, so she was particularly happy with her 200-meter win. Photo by Kevin Neri
Kemba Nelson had quite the sweep at the Pac-12 championships Sunday afternoon, winning all three of her races – the 4×100 relay, 100, and 200 – and crossing the finish line in the 200 in 22.74 seconds, the fastest time of her career.
Her 100 time of 11.05 seconds put her within .02 of the Pac-12 meet record and is a season best for the Jamaican sprinter, who has been turning heads since she transferred to Oregon last year as a junior. Last winter, she recorded a new collegiate record in the 60 meters. Her performance Sunday earned her female athlete of the meet and helped push the Oregon women’s team to a dominating win.
“It’s only my second year, and last year we lost,” she said. “So this year, to be able to finally do it and to get that winning streak back, it feels great.”
Nelson said that this season, she has been focusing on mental health and staying patient with the process. She’s also been focusing on the 100 in training – which she said makes her 200 win that much more special.
“I don’t run that much twos, so to be able to do it today going off of mostly doing stuff for the 100, that’s really good,” she said.
Before the 200, she’d won the 100 less than 40 minutes earlier. Going into Sunday’s 100 final, she was seeded third behind California’s Ezinne Abba and USC’s Celera Barnes, who Nelson said pushed her at the start of the race.
“I know the USC girl next to me is also a good starter,” said Nelson. “Coach always says, break them at the start and just keep going, and that’s exactly what I did.”
Nelson’s goal for regionals is to break the 11-second barrier in the 100.
“It’s a good look going forward,” said Nelson. “One step at a time. I keep going lower and lower each race I run.”
