Track and Field | 7/1/2016 8:00:00 AM

SAN MARCOS, Texas – Former Texas State pole vaulter Anicka Newell competes at the Canadian Track and Field Championships, also serving as the nation's Olympic Trials, in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. She will compete on July 10 at 2 p.m. CT. Below is a Q&A with the Olympic hopeful.
 

Q: When did you first begin to pole vault?
AN: I started my junior year of high school.
 
Q: What was your high school personal best and what is your current personal pest?
AN: My PR in high school was 12 feet and my current is 15-feet 4 inches.
 
Q: How have you evolved as a pole vaulter and as a competitor?
AN: I have evolved a lot. I started out doing it for fun and probably not putting as much into it as I could. But now I live, breathe and eat pole vault. There is a big difference.
 
Q: What was your most memorable moment as a Bobcat?
AN: Definitely my last season at the outdoor conference championships. I won conference, got the conference record, Texas State record and clinched my spot into regionals. All my team was out there cheering for me. That was definitely my most memorable.


 
Q: How has your competitive season been so far?
AN: It has been really well. At this point last year my personal best was 14 feet, 7 inches. I have improved nearly a foot in a year. That is pretty tremendous. I fell ready for even more than that. I have been doing really well, hitting marks that I need to hit and winning some competitions.
 
Q: Has your goal always been to make the Olympic team?
AN: No. I thought that after college I would be done but last year after my college season I decided this is what I wanted to do. I really fell in love with it and wanted to keep working hard.


 
Q: What are you looking to achieve or accomplish at the Canadian Olympic Trials?
AN: The first goal is to get first or second. My main goal is to get first and officially have the Canadian pole vault record at the Canadian national meet. The record is officially at 15 feet, 1-inch but I currently broke it twice, first at 15-2 and then at 15-4. But that record is pending. If I jump that at nationals then there would be no questions asked.
 
Q: What would be your advice for young athletes aspiring to be Olympians?
AN: Work hard. You don't want to have any regrets and someone out there might be working harder than you. My dad always used to say that the lion and gazelle always get up in the morning. If the gazelle wants to stay alive it has to run fast and if the lion doesn't want to starve it has to run fast. Either way, someone has to be running.