For three years, Jasmine Gibbs' major opponent has been frustration.
One of the fastest runners in California, the
El Camino (Oceanside, Calif.)
athlete long jumped 19 feet, 9 inches as a sophomore, certain that the
20-footer was just a leap away. While 19 feet became passe', 20 was like
an invisible brick wall.
Jasmine Gibbs is flying high now.
Photo courtesy of El Camino High School
"Actually,
I've had a lot of 20 foot jumps in both meets and practice," said
Gibbs, who broke through in a big way to take the national lead at 20-11
in her league championships. There was no wind gauge at the meet so
it's not recognized as a San Diego Section record.
But she is considered the national leader under any conditions.
Gibbs went on to explain that many of those 19-6 and 19-9 jumps would
easily have been 20-footers if they were measured from where she took
off. She and the 8-inch takeoff board have had a life-long adversarial
relationship.
"The 20-11 felt like any other jump but this time I
hit the board," explained the senior who is headed for Kansas State
University. "I heard the crowd go ‘Whoa' and thought it was a good
jump. Yes, now that the barrier is broken I'm looking for a 21-footer
before I graduate.
"The thing is, I try to use my speed too much
and my dad (John) has been trying to get me to run under control. Last
summer it finally hit me what he was saying."
John Gibbs was a
quality athlete at rival Oceanside High, where he is still coaching. He
set the school vertical jump record of 40 inches. But he also tutors his
daughter, who got her speed from her mother, Candice, a former
sprinter.
"She has the best vertical of any jumper I've seen," said John. "She plays basketball (all four years of high school) and can
almost grab the rim. All she needed to do (to reach 20 feet) was hit
the board."
So what happens when Oceanside meets El Camino in a
dual meet, especially since as a freshman she went to Oceanside but then
moved in with her mother as a sophomore because she believes the newer
district school has better academics?
Gibbs is the national long jump leaderunder any condition.
Photo courtesy of El Camino High School
"Nothing," said John matter-of-factly. "I always coach kids the same, telling them
to do the best they can do. If they're on my team or the other, it
doesn't matter. I want them to do their best."
How far and fast
can Gibbs go? We'll find out this weekend at the San Diego Section
championships and if she advances, at the California State Interscholastic Federation State Championships the
following week in Clovis.
"We're obviously now looking for that
21-footer," said John. "A week ago I would have told you her best event
was the 100, where I believe she can run 11.5 at state, but now I'm not
sure. The 20-11 was a little surprise but you knew it would eventually
happen."
The 20-11 is the best in San Diego under all conditions but without a wind gauge it can't count as a record.
Whose standard is she chasing? In 1984, a young talent named Yolanda
Gail Devers of Sweetwater (National City, Calif.) hit 20-7 and
the mark has withstood all challengers for 28 years. Devers went on
to win three Olympic gold medals as a hurdler and sprinter.
As
for the sprints, Gibbs currently leads the San Diego Section in the 100 at
11.74 and the 200 at 24.62. She has three medals from her previous state
championships but none are gold — something she plans to change this
time.
Her El Camino coach, Billy Isles, has no doubt she'll do just fine in Clovis the first weekend in June.
Gibbs is headed to Kansas State.
Photo courtesy of El Camino High School
"Besides
her speed and athleticism, she's a competitor," said Isles. "It doesn't
matter if it's practice or a meet, she always competes hard. Once we had
an easy meet so I told her just to run to win and she said, ‘No, no,
no, I want a good time.' If anything, she's too hard on herself."
But her own teammates are pushing her. El Camino High could have three
20-footers by season's end if Miche Scott (19-9½) and Tamika Brazzel
(19-2) continue to improve.
What about the 200?
"I don't
like the 200, that's one event I hope to drop at K-State," she said seriously, shaking her head. "I like the relay because it warms me up
for the long jump, but not the 200 - not at all."
The only thing she likes with a 2 and an 0 in it, obviously, is the long jump.
