By Wesley Yonts

A former UK triple jumper represented the university’s athletic tradition at the 2008 Olympic Trials last Friday.

UK alumnus Simidele Adeagbo competed and came in seventh in the women’s triple jump competition, falling short of the top three contenders who will continue to Beijing in August.

Adeagbo was a four-time All-American triple jumper while she attended UK and was an Olympic Trials finalist in 2004. She has been ranked in the top 10 in the U.S. for the last four years and placed fifth in the U.S. Outdoor Championships in 2005. Because of that, she was selected to train at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Chula Vista, Calif.

“Training there (was) a wonderful experience,” Adeagbo said.

While at Chula Vista, Adeagbo was on a strict training regimen that included running for at least four hours every day, weight training and yoga.

“It was great being there,” she said, “with all kinds of world-class athletes and services like sports nutrition and the efforts of everyone to help you get better.”

Adeagbo is also a product line manager for women’s cross-training footwear at Nike.

“I’m responsible for creating new product concepts and bringing them to market,” she said.

She has been featured in Business Week for her work with Nike.

Adeagbo graduated from UK in 2003 with a bachelor’s degree in journalism, and holds a master’s degree in communication. While at UK, she was a scholar athlete and honored as an Academic All-American.