Difference between revisions of "Kenneth Rooks"

Latest revision as of 18:53, 31 August 2024

Rooks in his qualifying heat

Kenneth Rooks, a Brigham Young University runner and NCAA steeplechase champ, surprised onlookers when he jumped up from a fall two minutes into the 3000-meter steeplechase final during the U.S. Outdoor Track and Field Championships and crossed the finish line first with a time of 8:16:78. The time was also Rooks' fastest during his three-year steeplechase career, and the win was his first U.S. Outdoor national title.

“I was pretty close to [the runner] in front of me and he stuttered really hard and I almost ran into him — and then I ran into the barrier,” Rooks told NBC Sports afterward. “Everyone was running over top of me.”[1]

Rooks told himself to “go into Henry Marsh mode,” referring to the four-time Olympian and fellow Latter-day Saint, who preferred to run the steeplechase from the back in an effort to avoid such falls. Rooks decided that if he ever fell, he would work his way back to the pack gradually, which uses less energy than a burst of speed.

His coach Ed Eyestone “explained later, it was one thing to catch the leaders again after spotting them a four-second lead during the race; it was quite another to be able to summon a kick after such an effort. But that was exactly what Rooks did. He moved into second briefly on the final turn, then fell back to fourth place, but as the group came off the water jump he made another move that carried him into second place. In the homestretch he hurdled the final barrier and sprinted into the lead as the crowd, fully aware of what was happening, roared.”[2]

“The top three finishers in each event will represent the U.S. in the world championships in Budapest next month. No American steeplechaser has met the world championships qualifying mark of 8:15.00, but Eyestone said Rooks is a virtual lock to be accepted into the competition. ‘If not, we’ll find him a race and get a qualifying time,’ said the coach.”[3]

What was Eyestone’s reaction when he saw Rooks fall? “Initially, honestly, I was thinking, well, he’s had a good season, and there’s the Olympic trials next year. I just knew at this level of competition, if you’ve fallen and you’re four or five seconds back, the odds of him making the world championships team went from 95 percent to 5 percent or less.

“When he fell, I just slumped in my chair. I thought, well, let’s be patient and close the gap and beat some of these guys and maybe finish in the top 10. But each lap he got a little closer to the pack and then caught them.”

Eyestone added with a laugh, “Two weeks ago, he fell over the same barrier in a workout and did a barrel roll. That was a higher power probably preparing him for the race.”[4]

Rooks competed against professional runners in this event.

Rooks, who is from Walla Walla, Washington, was a junior at BYU at the time of the race. He served a full-time mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Uganda and Orem, Utah.

Olympics

Rooks, center, and the other medalists near the finish line/Associated Press

Rooks won the men’s 3,000-meter steeplechase at the 2024 U.S. Olympic Trials in Eugene, Oregon, on Sunday, June 23, 2024, with a time of 8:21.92. James Corrigan, also a returned missionary and BYU sophomore, surprised many by finishing third in 8:26.78.

In addition to finishing in the top three, runners must meet a time standard established by World Athletics, track and field’s international governing body, or his place on the team would go to another American who either had the qualifying time or a place in the top 36 of the world rankings. Rooks’ ranking was 24th going into the trials. He’s now at 18th.[5]

Each country is allotted three spots. Rooks has a season-best time of 8:15.08, and is positioned first on the Men's 3000 Steeplechase Olympic team.[6][7] Corrigan achieved an Olympic qualifying time June 29 in a specially arranged, tailor-made 3,000-meter steeplechase race in Philadelphia, where he crossed the finish line with a time of 8:13.87, crushing the Olympic standard.[8]

On August 5, 2024, Rooks finished second in his qualifying heat and was named one of the finalists to run in the Men's 3000m steeplechase. His time was 8:24.95.

Against all odds, Kenneth Rooks, who burst onto the track scene seemingly out of nowhere only one year ago, won the silver medal in the 3,000-meter steeplechase Wednesday in Paris.

After running at the back of the pack for much of the race, Rooks took the lead with less than a lap to go and didn’t give it up until the final 80 meters, when defending Olympic champion Soufiane El Bakkali [of Morocco] edged ahead of him en route to another Olympic victory.

El Bakkali, who has now won the last four world championships, including two Olympic Games, produced a time of 8:06.05. Rooks was second in 8:06.41, making him the second-fastest American ever and dropping his personal record by a whopping nine seconds. Kenya’s Abraham Kibiwot was third in 8:06.47.[9]

President Jeffrey R. Holland congratulated Rooks in a social media post:

This week I had the opportunity to visit by telephone with Olympian Kenneth Rooks, whose inspired steeplechase performance in Paris won him a medal and captured the admiration of millions of people around the world.

I congratulate him and all the athletes who remind us of what is possible when we give our all to something. Kenneth, like so many members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, does extraordinary things in life both in and out of the spotlight.

My mind turns to the "races" that all of us run—those daily challenges and experiences that help us grow as children of God as we strive to be more like His Son Jesus Christ.

It may not feel as if it comes with a medal or trophy, but we know that the prize is real. It is what Christ conveyed at the conclusion of the Crucifixion when he said, “It is finished” (John 19:30). “Into thy hands I commend my spirit” (Luke 23:46).[10]

Rooks was joined by other Latter-day Saint Olympic athletes at a devotional held on August 4, 2024, in a meetinghouse in France. Rooks was joined by U.S. men's steeplechaser James Corrigan and U.S. men’s marathon runners Conner Mantz and Clayton Young, also all members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Matthieu Bennasar, a former Area Seventy, also gave remarks. The devotional was conducted in French and translated in English.

Post-Olympics

In August 2024 during a competition in Poland that featured a rematch of the top six finishers in the Olympic final, Rooks tripped and fell over a barrier and landed heavily on his right shoulder. It took him several seconds before he could resume running. He fell with three laps to go. “I somehow lost focus and hit my lead leg and fell with all my weight on my right shoulder. It was a solid hit and it took me a bit to get up. I was a bit disoriented for a moment because of how it hurt. I still got up and finished, but didn’t swing my right arm because it hurt the rest of the time.” He finished in 16th place, holding his arm as he crossed the finish.

According to Rooks, X-rays found no broken bones, but an MRI revealed a grade 1-2 tear of the AC ligaments in his right shoulder (the ligaments that connect the collarbone to the shoulder). It requires a recovery period of six to eight weeks.

“I anticipate I will run sooner than that,” said Rooks. “It could be up to three months to be 100 percent for my shoulder, but I don’t need it to be 100 percent to run. I can just start running whenever it feels good to go. Running won’t damage my shoulder any more. I am glad my legs aren’t hurt.”[11]

Rooks won’t be able to practice the steeplechase, which requires hurdling heavy wooden hurdles and a water jump, until his shoulder is fully recovered. In the meantime, he is returning to BYU for his last year toward earning his civil engineering degree.

External Links

• Church News, "How the Book of Mormon inspired Kenneth Rooks to Olympic silver medal success"

• Latter-day Saint Olympians talk about finding hope, strength in Jesus Christ"

• The Church News, "Latter-day Saint Kenneth Rooks reflects on national championship race, gospel blessings"