Serving Whitman County since 1877
Serving Whitman County since 1877
Brown places 8th in national track championship
Special to the gazette Caleb Brown of Colfax, right, was selected as an All-American decathlete after placing eighth in the NAIA OUtdoor Track and Field Championships.
GULF SHORES, Ala. - A Colfax man earned a spot on the podium during the 2022 NAIA Outdoor Track and Field Championships here.
Representing College of Idaho, Caleb Brown placed eighth in the two-day, 10-event decathlon.
Simultaneously, Brown was named an All-American decathlete.
He is the second ever All-American decathlete from College of Idaho - the other is his current Yotes coach, Austin Basterrechea.
Brown, a fifth-year graduate student, rose from 15th place on Day 1 to eighth by the end of Day 2.
He ended Day 1 with 2,447 points.
He started the second day of competition with a 16.77-second run in the 110-meter hurdles for 648 points. Then, he was third in the field with a toss of the discus of 38.48 meters for 6,534 points.
Brown followed that up by clearing 12-05.50 (3.80 meters) in pole vault for 562 points.
With only two events left, Brown recorded a personal best in the javelin with a throw of 162-05 (49.83 meters), which was sixth in the field. That put him ninth overall.
In Brown's final event, the 1,500-meter run, Brown recorded a time of 4:47.23 for 635 points. Moving Brown ahead to 8th place, he secured All-American honors with 6,212 points.
"Finishing that 1,500, running with a pretty decent time, and just looking up and seeing my head coach give me a 'you did it' fist bump in the air was really cool," he noted.
Brown said that despite the weather, he had a fun time and did well.
"With the weather conditions we were given, we did well all things considered," he said. "I've never seen so much rain come out of the sky. The rain was so heavy.
"But, it was super fun. We were up to our ankles in water."
The former Bulldog graduated from Colfax High School in 2017 and competed in track under Coach Jason Cooper.
"It was really cool to get a text and talk to my old coaches, especially my old high school coach, Coach Cooper," Brown said.
Brown graduated with an undergraduate degree in biomedical human health in 2021. He is considering nursing school while he applies for an open youth pastor internship in Hawaii.
"I could definitely see myself coaching at some point," he said. "Athletic-wise, I think triathalons would be fun."
Olivia Harnack is a Journalist at the Whitman County Gazette. Olivia is enrolled at University of Idaho and is majoring in digital film studies. She serves in the United States Army National Guard and is proud to serve Whitman County.
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