• Privacy Policy
  • Contact Us
  • Login
  • Register
  • Home
  • Archive
  • Contact Us
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Archive
  • Contact Us
No Result
View All Result
No Result
View All Result
Home Interviews

Derek Drouin jumps for the stars, by Elliott Denman

Larry Ederby Larry Eder
February 18, 2014
0
0 0
0
SHARES
3
VIEWS
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

Drouin_Derek1a-Moscow13.JPG

Derek Drouin, Moscow 2013, photo by PhotoRun.net

This was a piece by Elliott Denman that we posted on Facebook just before the Millrose Games, where Derek Drouin was to high jump. We found out later that Derek withdrew due to a hamstring injury. Still the piece is well worth reading! 


Derek Drouin jumps for stars

By ELLIOTT DENMAN
The first time Derek Drouin ever peered up to a high jump bar perched at 8 feet/ 2.44 meters, he was staggered.

RelatedPosts

2025 Spring Racing/Training Program, May 14, 2025, week 9, day 3, Ninth Week of the season, Wednesday is the easy day!

2025 Spring Racing/Training Program, May 13, 2025, week 9, day 2, Ninth Week of the season, Tuesday is the hard day!

Deep Thoughts on the Opening of the 2025 Diamond League in Xiamen, China


“How can anybody possibly jump this high?” he remembers telling himself.
“It seemed totally unattainable.”


Except, perhaps, by a bird, a plane, or that blue-costumed, red-caped guy with the “S” shield on his chest.


Well, life – and Derek Drouin’s high jump career – have rolled right along.

The 8-foot “barrier” – achieved by just one man – Cuba’s Javer Sotomayor who cleared 8-0 / 2.44 in 1989 and then 8-0 1/2 / 2.45 in 1993 – remains an incredibly formidable challenge but after 21 years that “Soto” WR seems actually attainable by another athlete – or several of them.


Of course, it’s the Russians (Bohdan Bondarenko, Ivan Ukhov, Aleksey Dmitrik. Aleksandr Shustov), the Qatari Mutaz Essa Barshim and top American Erik Kynard who head the most-likelies list, but anyone disregarding Derek Drouin’s chances of going 8 or more is making a big mistake.


The John Thomas High Jump event at the 107th NYRR Millrose Games will be the official HJ opener to Drouin’s season – actually, he had competed in the first day of a low-key heptathlon event a few weeks ago – and something spectacular seems in the cards.

Gravity-defier Derek Drouin declares himself ready to fly high.


“The Armory’s a great venue,” he said in a pre-Millrose interview. “We all know the track’s one of the fastest in the world, but the high jump area is excellent, too. The whole facility is
tremendous.”


Drouin, the 24-year-old Sarnia, Ontario resident and five-time NCAA champion for Indiana, comes to New York and he’s pumped.


“There’s a strong field (including U.S. #2 Dusty Jonas, Canadian pal Martin Mason, Bahamian Ryan Ingraham, Penn’s Maalik Reynolds and Albany’s Alex Bowen) so something big can happen.”


Of course, it’s all in the cherished Millrose legacy of John Thomas.


In 1959, the then-17-year-old Boston University freshman became the first man ever to clear 7 feet indoors, as a Millrose capacity crowd at Madison Square Garden jumped for joy with him, and Millrose Games director Howard Schmertz jumped in delight with all of them.


Schmertz would later call it his greatest-ever Millrose thrill.


In later years, John Thomas would return to the Millrose Games many times – as the
HJ event’s top official. Sadly, he passed away a little over two years ago, but those great memories live on.


Well, 7 feet is just about opening height at many meets these days.
Drouin’s done it dozens and dozens of times and owns a career best of 2.38 / 7-9 3/4, which he achieved claiming the bronze medal, back of Bondaenko and Essa Barshim last Aug. 15 at the World Championships in Moscow. (He’d taken the bronze at the 2012 London Olympic Games, too.)

This was HJ drama at its best.


When he cleared 2.32 / 7-7 1/4, he thought that would get him a medal. But no, it didn’t.


Same for 2.35, which Ukhov also cleared, keeping four in the hunt for the three podium spots as the bar was upped to 2.38/7-9 3/4.


When he cleared and Ukhov didn’t, the Moscow crowd groaned but the medalists were now determined. Bondarenko finally soared the year’s high of 2.41 / 7-10 3/4 to clinch the gold, as Barshim and Drouin bowed out.


A reunion of these HJ elites is scheduled for March 7-9 in Sopot, Poland.
Drouin has already been named to Canada’s team for these IAAF World Indoor
Championships and will duke it out with his friendly foes. (Team USA will be determined at next week’s Indoor Nationals in Albquerque.)


Given the sure-to-be ideal conditions in Sopot, might an 8-footer / 2.44 be feasible?
Well, why not? The world stage is on the rise.


Sotomayor’s 2.43 / 7-11 1/2 has been the world indoor HJ record since 1989.
Drouin has been a winner at virtually stop along his track and field career path.
He first jumped at the Armory seven years ago, competing in the HJ and the pentathlon at the National Scholastic Indoor Meet. A versatile athlete, with “13 point 80 something” high hurdles talent, and 7-meter / 22-11 3/4 long jump ability, Drouin eventually gave up all the other events when he realized his clearest pathway to track and field’s pinnacles was as a high jumper.


The move has paid off- big-time.


His array of gold medals has stretched from the Canadian Junior Nationals, to the Canadian Seniors, to the Big 10s, to the NCAAs. And now he’s more than ready to take on the world. Indiana has loved him -specially so after he was named winner of the Jesse Owens Award as No. 1 athlete in the Big 10, and the Bowerman Award, as the NCAA’s top male track and field athlete. (Another Canadian, Southern Utah distanceman Cam Levins had preceded him as Bowerman winner in 2012.)


A kinesiology major at Indiana, Drouin at this moment has no idea how he’s going to put that degree to work in “the real world.” But if he could do something “working with athletes,” that would be a top preference.


The high jump event lends itself perfectly to marketing and promotional efforts,
and Drouin has always been happy trying “to grow” his event.
He jumped at the Eberstadt, Germany “high jump only” event last summer and loved it.
He’s looking ahead to the special HJ at a HY-Vees Super Market in DesMoines, Iowa that will be a prelude to the “regular” Drake Relays HJ on April 26th.


He thinks it’s about time more innovative events like these were created to raise the profile of track and field – and his favorite event, of course – in “the States,” in Canada, everywhere.
Have jumping shoes, will travel – that’s going to be Derek Drouin’s life, at least through the 2020 Olympic Games, maybe beyond.

Author

  • Larry Eder

    Larry Eder has had a 52-year involvement in the sport of athletics. Larry has experienced the sport as an athlete, coach, magazine publisher, and now, journalist and blogger. His first article, on Don Bowden, America's first sub-4 minute miler, was published in RW in 1983. Larry has published several magazines on athletics, from American Athletics to the U.S. version of Spikes magazine. He currently manages the content and marketing development of the RunningNetwork, The Shoe Addicts, and RunBlogRun. Of RunBlogRun, his daily pilgrimage with the sport, Larry says: "I have to admit, I love traveling to far away meets, writing about the sport I love, and the athletes I respect, for my readers at runblogrun.com, the most of anything I have ever done, except, maybe running itself." Also does some updates for BBC Sports at key events, which he truly enjoys. Theme song: Greg Allman, " I'm no Angel."

    View all posts
Previous Post

Renaud Lavillenie Sets WR of 6.16m, by Phil Minshull, for the IAAF

Next Post

2013 USA Cross Country Championships, the Boulder Experience, by Kevin Mangan

Larry Eder

Larry Eder

Larry Eder has had a 52-year involvement in the sport of athletics. Larry has experienced the sport as an athlete, coach, magazine publisher, and now, journalist and blogger. His first article, on Don Bowden, America's first sub-4 minute miler, was published in RW in 1983. Larry has published several magazines on athletics, from American Athletics to the U.S. version of Spikes magazine. He currently manages the content and marketing development of the RunningNetwork, The Shoe Addicts, and RunBlogRun. Of RunBlogRun, his daily pilgrimage with the sport, Larry says: "I have to admit, I love traveling to far away meets, writing about the sport I love, and the athletes I respect, for my readers at runblogrun.com, the most of anything I have ever done, except, maybe running itself." Also does some updates for BBC Sports at key events, which he truly enjoys. Theme song: Greg Allman, " I'm no Angel."

Similar Post

This Day in Track & Field History, February 18, 2024, Bob Seagren, Horace Ashenfelter, by Walt Murphy’s News and Results Service
Athletic History

This Day in Track & Field, May 14, Lehigh defeats Lafayette in first dual meet (1881) Bob Seagrens sets PV WR (1966), Jan Merrill breaks Mile AR (1977), by Walt Murphy

May 14, 2025
This Day in Track & Field, April 24, AAA founded (1880), Mt.SAC Relays begins (1959), Rudy Chapa sets HS record for 10,000m, 28:32.7 at Drake Relays (1976), by Walt Murphy
Spring Training

2025 Spring Racing/Training Program, May 14, 2025, week 9, day 3, Ninth Week of the season, Wednesday is the easy day!

May 14, 2025
National Records Highlight Day 1 of Grand Slam Track’s Miami Slam, by Jay Holder for Grand Slam Track
Spring Training

2025 Spring Racing/Training Program, May 13, 2025, week 9, day 2, Ninth Week of the season, Tuesday is the hard day!

May 14, 2025
2025 Spring Racing/Training Program, April 9, 2025, week 4, day 3, fourth week of year, Wednesday is an easy day!
Athletic History

This Day in Track & Field, May 13, Ted Meredith added 880 yards to his 800m WR (1916), Sydney McLaughlin sets 400m hurdles in 52.75 WJR (2018), by Walt Murphy

May 14, 2025
Coffee with Larry, May 13, 2025, Goteborg WC 1995, Jonathan Edwards, Kim Batten, Visiting Sweden, A Rave and Conversations with a Hedgehog
Coffee With Larry

Coffee with Larry, May 13, 2025, Goteborg WC 1995, Jonathan Edwards, Kim Batten, Visiting Sweden, A Rave and Conversations with a Hedgehog

May 14, 2025
Summary Xiamen Diamond League Report/Annotated Results
Diamond League

Deep Thoughts on the Opening of the 2025 Diamond League in Xiamen, China

May 13, 2025

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Subscribe to RunBlogRun's Global News Feed

Wake up to RunBlogRun’s news in your inbox. Sign up for our newsletter and we’ll keep you informed about the Sport you love.

*we hate spam as much as you do

  • Trending
  • Comments
  • Latest
Clyde Hart’s Guide to 400 meter training (from 1996 Super Clinic Notes/World Coaches Notes)

Clyde Hart’s Guide to 400 meter training (from 1996 Super Clinic Notes/World Coaches Notes)

April 5, 2023
2023 Nike Pre Classic: Two Amazing Days of Track & Field!

Noah Lyles, The Clock Doesn’t Lie

March 7, 2024
USATF / Day Four:  USA’s Assembled Team Is Ready!

Abby Steiner replies via twitter, on the curiosity about her new professional running contract

February 6, 2025
An epic pole vault competition

An epic pole vault competition

October 19, 2023
Mondo Duplantis and the Jump that made him the greatest of all time

Mondo Duplantis and the Jump that made him the greatest of all time

8
What happened to the crowd at Eugene?

What happened to the crowd at Eugene?

7
My Five Biggest Takeaways from the Men’s Olympic Trials Marathon, by Oliver Hinson

My Five Biggest Takeaways from the Men’s Olympic Trials Marathon, by Oliver Hinson

7
Asafa Powell, Considering Longevity in Sprinting

The RunBlogrun Interview: Asafa Powell

5
This Day in Track & Field History, February 18, 2024, Bob Seagren, Horace Ashenfelter, by Walt Murphy’s News and Results Service

This Day in Track & Field, May 14, Lehigh defeats Lafayette in first dual meet (1881) Bob Seagrens sets PV WR (1966), Jan Merrill breaks Mile AR (1977), by Walt Murphy

May 14, 2025
This Day in Track & Field, April 24, AAA founded (1880), Mt.SAC Relays begins (1959), Rudy Chapa sets HS record for 10,000m, 28:32.7 at Drake Relays (1976), by Walt Murphy

2025 Spring Racing/Training Program, May 14, 2025, week 9, day 3, Ninth Week of the season, Wednesday is the easy day!

May 14, 2025
National Records Highlight Day 1 of Grand Slam Track’s Miami Slam, by Jay Holder for Grand Slam Track

2025 Spring Racing/Training Program, May 13, 2025, week 9, day 2, Ninth Week of the season, Tuesday is the hard day!

May 14, 2025
2025 Spring Racing/Training Program, April 9, 2025, week 4, day 3, fourth week of year, Wednesday is an easy day!

This Day in Track & Field, May 13, Ted Meredith added 880 yards to his 800m WR (1916), Sydney McLaughlin sets 400m hurdles in 52.75 WJR (2018), by Walt Murphy

May 14, 2025

Popular Stories

  • Clyde Hart’s Guide to 400 meter training (from 1996 Super Clinic Notes/World Coaches Notes)

    Clyde Hart’s Guide to 400 meter training (from 1996 Super Clinic Notes/World Coaches Notes)

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Noah Lyles, The Clock Doesn’t Lie

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Abby Steiner replies via twitter, on the curiosity about her new professional running contract

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • An epic pole vault competition

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • 2025 Spring Racing/Training Program, April 11, 2025, week 4, day 5, fourth week of year, Friday is an easy day!

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
This Day in Track & Field History, February 18, 2024, Bob Seagren, Horace Ashenfelter, by Walt Murphy’s News and Results Service
Athletic History

This Day in Track & Field, May 14, Lehigh defeats Lafayette in first dual meet (1881) Bob Seagrens sets PV WR (1966), Jan Merrill breaks Mile AR (1977), by Walt Murphy

May 14, 2025
This Day in Track & Field, April 24, AAA founded (1880), Mt.SAC Relays begins (1959), Rudy Chapa sets HS record for 10,000m, 28:32.7 at Drake Relays (1976), by Walt Murphy
Spring Training

2025 Spring Racing/Training Program, May 14, 2025, week 9, day 3, Ninth Week of the season, Wednesday is the easy day!

May 14, 2025
National Records Highlight Day 1 of Grand Slam Track’s Miami Slam, by Jay Holder for Grand Slam Track
Spring Training

2025 Spring Racing/Training Program, May 13, 2025, week 9, day 2, Ninth Week of the season, Tuesday is the hard day!

May 14, 2025
2025 Spring Racing/Training Program, April 9, 2025, week 4, day 3, fourth week of year, Wednesday is an easy day!
Athletic History

This Day in Track & Field, May 13, Ted Meredith added 880 yards to his 800m WR (1916), Sydney McLaughlin sets 400m hurdles in 52.75 WJR (2018), by Walt Murphy

May 14, 2025

Recent Tweets

Next Post

2013 USA Cross Country Championships, the Boulder Experience, by Kevin Mangan

runblogrun

RunBlogRun comments on the global world of athletics, sports & ethics, and the Olympic movement. @runblogrun

Browse by Category

Newsletter

Subscribe to our mailing list to receives daily updates direct to your inbox!

  • Home
  • Archive
  • Contact Us

© 2022 Run Blog Run - All Rights Reserved

No Result
View All Result
  • Archive
  • Contact Us
  • Home page
  • My Account
  • Sample Page

© 2022 Run Blog Run - All Rights Reserved

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password? Sign Up

Create New Account!

Fill the forms below to register

Select a password for yourself. (minimum length of 8)

Paste here the user biography.

Provide here the twitter screen name. i.e. @RunBlogRun

Provide here the instagram screen name. i.e. @RunBlogRun

Provide here the facebook profile URL. i.e. http://www.facebook.com/RunBlogRun

Provide here the linkedin profile URL. i.e. https://www.linkedin.com/in/larry-eder-5497253

All fields are required. Log In

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In

Add New Playlist

No Result
View All Result
  • Archive
  • Contact Us
  • Home page
  • My Account
  • Sample Page

© 2022 Run Blog Run - All Rights Reserved