Little guy wins decathlon
Posted: Fri Jun 15, 2007 2:31 pm
http://www.santacruzsentinel.com/archiv ... 1sport.htm
Bull's eye for success: Size doesn't keep Harbor grad from D-II decathlon, pole vault titles
By Rafael Rangell
Sentinel Correspondent
His college coaches told him he was too small and discouraged him from competing in the strenuous 12-event decathlon. Yet Kevin Bull went ahead and not only competed in the decathlon, but also became the NCAA Division II California State Champion.
Bull, a 5-foot-9, 150-pound Harbor High graduate, said he can compete with the bigger athletes thanks to spending hours practicing his favorite event, the pole vault, which works his upper and lower body. He said he wanted to thanks to two coaches he met while competing in track and field for Harbor High: Joe Miyoshi and Matt Ryan.
"Matt encouraged me to do the decathlon, while most of my college coaches discouraged me," said Bull, a 2002 Harbor graduate. "I am not a very big guy, but Matt believed in me. I took the confidence that he had in me to my own competitions"
Bull, who competes for Cal State-Stanislaus, needed all of that confidence going into the California Collegiate Athletic Association Championships at San Francisco State University last month. He wasn't seeded, and at best he was expected to finish in fourth or fifth. With only the 1,500-meter run remaining, Bull was in fourth place. But, he raced to a personal best, which catapulted him into first place and to the state crown.
That's just the kind of thing Ryan and Miyoshi told Bull he could do back when he was winning Santa Cruz Coast Athletic League pole vaulting titles in 2001 and 2002.
"Kevin was perfect for the decathlon, he has the mental aptitude, and the boot camp attitude. He would do all the training to get where he wanted to go," said Ryan, the Pirates' head track coach.
"He has always been a strong kid," said Ryan. "A lot of track is technique, Kevin was a perfectionist with that"
Bull used technique to also capture the D-II state title in the pole vault. In March, he earned All-American status as a member of the Cal State-Stanislaus 4x400-meter relay team that placed fifth at the National D-II Indoor Track and Field Championship in Boston.
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"It was the most exciting event I have ever been apart off," said Bull, a Scotts Valley native who is 5-foot-9 and 150 pounds. "I have never seen a level of competition that was that high, it was a great experience"
Bull did not qualify for the pole vault or the decathlon â€â€
Bull's eye for success: Size doesn't keep Harbor grad from D-II decathlon, pole vault titles
By Rafael Rangell
Sentinel Correspondent
His college coaches told him he was too small and discouraged him from competing in the strenuous 12-event decathlon. Yet Kevin Bull went ahead and not only competed in the decathlon, but also became the NCAA Division II California State Champion.
Bull, a 5-foot-9, 150-pound Harbor High graduate, said he can compete with the bigger athletes thanks to spending hours practicing his favorite event, the pole vault, which works his upper and lower body. He said he wanted to thanks to two coaches he met while competing in track and field for Harbor High: Joe Miyoshi and Matt Ryan.
"Matt encouraged me to do the decathlon, while most of my college coaches discouraged me," said Bull, a 2002 Harbor graduate. "I am not a very big guy, but Matt believed in me. I took the confidence that he had in me to my own competitions"
Bull, who competes for Cal State-Stanislaus, needed all of that confidence going into the California Collegiate Athletic Association Championships at San Francisco State University last month. He wasn't seeded, and at best he was expected to finish in fourth or fifth. With only the 1,500-meter run remaining, Bull was in fourth place. But, he raced to a personal best, which catapulted him into first place and to the state crown.
That's just the kind of thing Ryan and Miyoshi told Bull he could do back when he was winning Santa Cruz Coast Athletic League pole vaulting titles in 2001 and 2002.
"Kevin was perfect for the decathlon, he has the mental aptitude, and the boot camp attitude. He would do all the training to get where he wanted to go," said Ryan, the Pirates' head track coach.
"He has always been a strong kid," said Ryan. "A lot of track is technique, Kevin was a perfectionist with that"
Bull used technique to also capture the D-II state title in the pole vault. In March, he earned All-American status as a member of the Cal State-Stanislaus 4x400-meter relay team that placed fifth at the National D-II Indoor Track and Field Championship in Boston.
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"It was the most exciting event I have ever been apart off," said Bull, a Scotts Valley native who is 5-foot-9 and 150 pounds. "I have never seen a level of competition that was that high, it was a great experience"
Bull did not qualify for the pole vault or the decathlon â€â€
