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The University of Mississippi Athletics
Ole Miss
USA Championships
Former Rebel Reese Soars To USA Long Jump Title
6/26/2011 | Track and Field
June 26, 2011
EUGENE, Ore. - Former Ole Miss All-American and NCAA Champion Brittney Reese continued her dominance at the highest levels of the track and field world when she won the long jump title on Sunday, the final day of the 2011 USA Outdoor Championships.
The Gulfport, Miss. , native won her fourth straight U.S. long jump championship with a career-best leap of 7.19 meters (23-07.25) on her final attempt. Her jump is the longest in the world this year by a wide margin and beat the next closest competitor on Sunday by nearly a foot. Reese is the two-defending world champion in the event.
"Brittney is such a great competitor and once again proved she's one of the best ever in our sport," said Ole Miss head coach Joe Walker, who still trains Reese in Oxford. "This is a huge jump and one we've been expecting for a while now. She's had some huge jumps that were tiny fouls and now she hit one and got credit for it. She's a great Ole Miss track alum and represents us well."
With her victory, Reese earned a spot on Team USA for the 2011 IAAF World Championships, held Aug. 27-Sept. 4 in Daegu, Korea.
"Each year these get sweeter and sweeter," Reese said of winning her fourth straight U.S. title. "The older I get, the more I feel like I appreciate these championships. The crowd helped me a lot. I love jumping in front of such avid and knowledgeable fans, like the ones here in Eugene."
Just missing a berth to the World Championships on Sunday was current Ole Miss sophomore Ricky Robertson, who turned in a fourth-place effort in the high jump. He tied with fellow collegian Erik Kynard of Kansas State at 2.28 meters (7-05.75), but earned fourth place instead of third due to one miss on an attempt at 7-04.25. They were the top two collegiate finishers in the event.
"This was a great experience for Ricky and will help him when we come back to this same meet at the same site next year to qualify for the Olympics," Walker said. "We are so proud of how well he competed."
On Saturday, Lee Ellis Moore and Carson Blanks competed in the semifinals of the men's 400 meter hurdles. Moore finished 10th, just outside the top eight that qualified for the finals. The 2011 SEC Champion in the event ran a 50.96, closing his Rebel career as one of the most decorated hurdlers in school history. Blanks, a junior at Ole Miss, came in 16th with a 52.70.
Former Rebel All-American Antwon Hicks also competed at the USA Championships over the weekend, making the semifinals of the 110 meter hurdles, where he placed 10th with a time of 13.42.
