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Jordan Downs, of Bethel’s track and field team, recently broke Bethel’s in-house long jump record. This isn’t his first record-setting performance; he broke his high school’s long jump record as well. He is a transfer student from Vincennes University and is currently a junior here at Bethel.
Q: How long have you been doing track and field? Downs: I have been in track and field since I was in high school, since sophomore year. I wasn’t really into it until one of my friends recommended it. I was like, “sure I’ll try it,” and once I did that I had a lot of fun. Q: What is your favorite track memory? Downs: For high school, I had an injury and sat out half the season because of it. I still had hope that I could break the school record for long jump. So, I asked my coach if I was able to break it before everything was done, he looked at me and said, “I believe that you can.” Once I started to heal, and then at sectionals and it was my last jump, and it was a big jump. That was the moment when I broke the record. Q: Why do you stay in track? Downs: I love the program, I love the coaches and the way they treat their athletes. I believe in track that if you are willing to put in the work, the coaches will be willing to help you. Q: When did you come to Bethel and what did you learn at your previous school? Downs: I came to Bethel this year. Vincennes was a very good place to be, it was a very big school. When I first started out it was very overwhelming. There I had a good coach who really cared about me, they made sure I stayed on top of my grades. They pushed me to my limits, and there I broke the pole vault school record. Q: Who in track inspires you? Downs: Everyone inspires me, everybody pushes me to my limits. When I go to a meet I see the crowd cheering me on and (that) pushes me to do the best I can. All of my coaches from high school on have been an inspiration for me. Congratulations Jordan Downs for breaking the Bethel College long jump record! This is our last Student Athlete of the Week feature for the semester, so check back in the spring for more news on our athletes right here on the Bethel Beacon! Slider photo: @VUBlazerSports on Twitter
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