Sara Almen to Compete in Olympic Trials

Oregon State senior-to-be high jump standout and Santiam Christian graduate Sara Almen has qualified for the U.S. Olympic Trials, scheduled for later this week at Hayward Field in Eugene. She is the first Beaver track and field athlete to qualify for the Trials since Hall of Famer Cindy Greiner in 1992 in the heptathlon, eventually qualifying for the Olympics for the third time.

Almen cleared 5-9.25 (1.76 meters) at last month's OSU High Performance Meet, which qualified her for the Trials that are scheduled for 4:15 p.m. Friday. The finals are 3:15 p.m. Sunday.

"This is such an incredible opportunity to be able to compete against the best of the best," Almen said. "It has been a dream of mine to jump at the Olympic Trials for as long as I can remember and I'm so blessed to have this opportunity."

Almen is a two-sport athlete at Oregon State, lettering three years in track and field and one year (2012) in volleyball. She has had three top-15 finishes at the Pac-12 Championships during her career, including third in 2013.

"The past three years have been extremely difficult for me due to injuries and other circumstances; I feel this is sort of a reward for continuing to believe in myself. Every athlete dreads the early morning workouts and countless hours of training, but moments like this Friday is what makes it all worth it – this only the beginning for me."

The OSU digital arts major was a standout at Santiam Christian where she twice was named the Pac-West Conference Track and Field, and Volleyball Athlete of the Year. She also was a four-time state champion (3 in the high jump and 1 in volleyball), and the 3A volleyball Player of the Year among her many honors.

"The coaching staff and her teammates are all very excited for Sara and this opportunity," Beaver head coach Kelly Sullivan said. "Two years ago, Sara suffered a very unfortunate knee injury while competing at the Regional meet in Austin and basically has been on a comeback ever since.

"She's gone through a lot but never given up even when there were questions early on with her knee and recovery. The talent is there and now that she is healthier and has another college indoor and outdoor season remaining, this could be the next step of a great story for Sara; not only this Friday but also heading towards next year NCAA's and the 2020 Olympic Games!"

Almen, who has a personal best jump of 5-11.25, joins Oregon State track and field director of operations Geena Gall at the Trials. The 10-time NCAA All-American, back-to-back NCAA 800 meters champion and 2012 USA Olympian, competes at 4:45 p.m. Friday. Former Beaver Laura Carlyle, a native of Kelowna, British Columbia, will be competing in the Canadian Olympic Trials next week in the 1,500 meters, an event she earned All-America honors at OSU in 2011 and '12.

For a full livestream and television schedule visit USATF.TV.

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Sara Almen

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