In just over two years, sophomore jumper Renee Williams has
witnessed the highs of collegiate track, winning an NCAA
Championship and earning All-American honors at her position.
But during those two years, she has also had to deal with
recurring injuries, followed by rehabilitation. Through that
battle, Williams has transformed herself back into one of the
Pac-10’s premier jumpers and looks primed to leap to new
heights in this postseason.
Williams came to UCLA with many expectations, and rightfully so.
A standout at Skyline High School in Oakland, she was the
California long jump champion in 2003 and placed second at the U.S.
Junior Championships in that event.
During the 2004 indoor season, Williams owned the nation’s
top mark (21-1.50) and took fifth at the NCAA Championships,
earning All-American honors. With Williams showcasing such talent
so early on, all signs pointed to an even more successful outdoor
season. However, at the first outdoor meet, Williams suffered a
season-ending knee injury, which lingered for over a year.
“It took a long time to fully heal and be able to jump on
it,” Williams said. “Even now, I still have aches in my
knee.”
Williams returned to the track in 2005, though her injury slowed
her down substantially. Her marks were decent, as she finished
sixth at the Pac-10 meet.
“When I hurt my knee I lost a lot of my speed, which is
where I got the distance for my jumps,” Williams said.
“That year, I wasn’t nearly as fast and I
couldn’t jump nearly as far.”
It seemed as if Williams might never regain her elite status,
but a fresh approach and a new jumps coach in Mike Powell proved to
be the key to making a return to glory. Powell, in fact, was
instrumental in helping Williams build back her core strength.
That improved coaching has paid off, as Williams has leaped back
into the elite class of jumpers in the conference. Last week at the
Pac-10 Championships, Williams placed second in the long jump and
third in the triple. She has nearly equaled her best long jump mark
while also jumping a lifetime best in the triple (42-8.75) and is
in prime position to advance to the NCAA Championships at next
weekend’s West Regional Championships.
“Coming in, we always knew Renee had a lot of
potential,” coach Jeanette Bolden said. “Having her
come back and do so well in the long and the triple just shows how
tremendously talented she is. We always knew about the potential,
but now she is actually going out there and doing what we knew she
could do.”