Lodi Track Club sends four athletes to Jr. Olympic nationals

Four Lodi Track Club athletes are headed to one of the biggest track meets in the country, and they’ll do it right in their own backyard.

Three of the athletes qualified at the Pacific Association Junior Olympic Qualifier at Modesto Junior College from July 5 to 7, with the top five competitors in each event moving on.

Chris Medeiros placed fifth in the 15-16-year-old javelin at 107 feet, Maceo McDowell won the 1314 long jump at 19 feet, 11 inches and placed third in the javelin at 114-9, and Isaiah Mansaray won the 9-10 high jump at 3-10 and was second in the turbo javelin at 85-1.

Another, Paige Sefried, placed second in the 17-18 heptathlon at the Pacific Association Region 16 Junior Olympics Qualifier at Chabot College over the weekend.

The four Lodi athletes will join thousands of competitors from across the country for the National Junior Olympic Championships, which are from July 22 to 29 at Sacramento State’s Hornet Stadium.

“They just met with their technique coaches, and it’s all about refining their events,” said Lodi Track Club coach Anthony Rodriguez. “Because if they’re not in shape by now, they won’t be.”

Lodi Track Club’s athletes have been practicing since the first Monday in April, and Rodriguez said the club had 55 athletes this summer.

One mark that impressed Rodriguez was the 19-11 long jump from McDowell, whose older brother Elijah is with the Fresno Pacific University track program.

“That’s a real good number,” Rodriguez said. “He’s only 14 years old, and that’s an outstanding jump.”