Kahlil James: Soaring with the Eagles

Kahlil James left an impression here in Colorado as a high school jumper. He heads to Chadron State to try to do more of the same as a collegiate jumper. Photo by Alan Versaw.

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Kahlil James' best marks:

Long jump: 21-7.25

Triple jump: 46-2

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How much of an influence did Chris Cutcher's presence on the Chadron State team have on your decision to sign there?

Yes, he played a big part in my decision. He told me the pros and cons of going to Chadron. They also made Chris into a great hurdler, and from not jumping in high school, he has a respectable long jump and triple jump in college. Since I have been triple jumping and long jumping for years now I feel like Chadron can help me improve my jumps and make me an All-American in college.

What do you plan to study at Chadron?

Right now I'm undecided. So I'll just be doing general studies to figure out what I would want to study in the near future.

Will you be working on both horizontal jumps at Chadron are is there the possibility of specializing in just one of the jumps?

I'll mainly be doing triple jump at Chadron, but there's a possibility that I will also be working on the long jump and hopefully gain some knowledge from Demarcus.

When you look back on your high school career, what gives you the most satisfaction?

I wasn't really satisfied with my high school career because I always want to get better. However, I wasn't able to do that my senior year due to injuries. In track and field when you get a personal best, you now have to get a new personal best and keep repeating the cycle.

Did you have a favorite place to jump during your high school career?

My favorite place to jump during my high school career was at the Air Force Academy for the Glenn Peterson Invitational. I liked it because it kind of gave me an idea of what it would be like to jump on a college track.

Are you doing any work on your jumps over the summer or is it mostly down time from that right now?

After state I had some down time, but right now I'm conditioning and power lifting. After I'm done with that phase, then I'll be focusing on technique while conditioning, until I go to Chadron.