TAMPA, Fla. — Fourteen USF track and field athletes are in Eugene, Oregon, for the NCAA outdoor track and field championships. One of them is making up for lost time after narrowly missing a ticket to the nationals last year.
Discus thrower Vincent Ugwoke has only been competing in the event since 2019. Despite being new to the sport, the Nigerian native owns the program record (63.72 meters/209 ft. -1 in.) and just won the AAC Outdoor Championship. It's safe to say he's mastered the formula for throwing pretty quickly.
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"It’s a combination of speed, technique, and power," he explained during training. "It doesn’t even take up to two seconds to achieve a throw, and you have to generate so much speed in the circle to make it fly. So you have to maximize what your body is capable of doing in a short period of time."
Ugwoke barely missed a chance to compete at nationals last year, and it's something he has used as motivation ever since.
"I knew going into regionals, I had to get everything good," he said with relief. "It happened on the first throw. I was so happy."
It hasn't been smooth sailing for Vincent. A fractured tibia in his left leg has limited his workouts for the better part of two years. But he and his coach have a plan, and they continue to execute it.
"He’s very passionate in what he does," USF throwing coach Mariami Kevkhishvili-Machavariani explained. "Sometimes physical injury is not as much of a harm as it goes into your mental approach as well. He’s matured a lot psychologically, and this year he’s a different person. He does not want to let anything get away from him."
Ugwoke admitted that he has nerves heading into the biggest meet of his collegiate career, but he's quick to add that it's a good thing. He said having nerves means he expects to do great things.
"You have nerves because you are about to do something different, something you don’t do every day," he grinned. "The nerves are going to be right there, but it doesn’t really change anything for me now, because I understand that it’s just a feeling. Everyone else feels nervous. So why would that make mine bigger than what it is?"
"He has the ability to do it mentally and physically, and he has training to do it as well," Kevkhishvili-Machavariani, a two-time Olympian, added. "It was a lot of ups and downs to get him here, so I am very proud of him."
The NCAA championships get underway Wednesday at 3 p.m. Eastern time. The men's discus competition begins Friday night at 5:15 p.m. Eastern. For a full list of events and competitors, visit ncaa.com.
