James Clemens' Benjamin Thomason is this week's Athlete of the Week!
At the Last Chance Pentathlon, he won the overall pentathlon with a mark of 3,463. He won the 60m hurdles, the long jump, and the high jump while placing second in the shot put and 5th in the 1000m.
His fellow James Clemens teammates Isaac Pollard and Austin Abney placed third and sixth respectively. We caught up with him to recap his performance.
Tell me about the pentathlon overall. It was a dominating performance for yourself in almost all the events
Pentathlon over all went very well. I'm very thankful that it was a good day but I was hoping to do better in the 1000 meter.
Did you feel like you coulda done better in the 1000m and just didn't execute well?
Yes. I feel like I could've pushed a little better hard and executed it a little bit better.
What event was your favorite one?
Long jump was my favorite event.
It had to be! Pentathlon record in the long jump. You fouled the first one, but how did it feel? Did you know a big jump was coming?
I felt a little bit frustrated but i knew I had to stay positive and told myself that I had two other chances to fix it. I kinda felt like it was going to be a good jump when my coach told me to move 2 feet back which gave me a little but more opportunity to get my hips lower.
Did you know on the second jump it was a good one before they officially measured it?
Yeah I felt it was good but I didn't think it was great.
What's the camaraderie like amongst the competitors in the pentathlon? From an outsider, it appears to be different than a normal track meet.
Yes there is 100% a team spirit. We always try to keep positive and try to be very competitive with each other.
I honestly don't think it much different from a normal track meet because I have the mindset as just focus on one event at a time.
How do you balance conserving energy for events while giving your best for each?
I didn't balance conserving energy. I just do it one at a time for each event. The reason is because I feel like if you have to conserve energy for other events then you are not giving it your best. I also feel like it's good to have a level of fitness to allow me to do that.
How do you structure your regular season meets to prepare you for this meet?
So we would do 4 events each meet and two of them would be what we are good at and the other two would be like a 400m, 4x400, high jump or shot up.
What was your pre race routine before the meet? Take me through the morning of competition.
We would wake up and get ready for the meet and go down there. While we were going down there we should try to stretch and get mentally prepared (in the mindset) for the meet. When we got there we would do our normal warms up with a mile jog and do our normal stretches And before the event starts I would have magical banana bread that my mother made.
Is that all for breakfast usually?
Yeah but I usually try to have a sub sandwich or grapes as well. I would also pray before the meet.
Do you listen to music or anything before the meet?
Yes I do. I usually listen to rap, hip hop, or upbeat fast music.
Who's your favorite artist?
Travis Scott 100%
Best song?
The best song would be THANK GOD from the Album UTOPIA but to be honest 80% of that album is the best.
What's your favorite meet you've ever competed at? Maybe your favorite track memory?
My favorite meet that I competed was the State Decathlon that I won last year. The competition was very good and a lot of people were having fun but my favorite track memory would be last years sectional at Scottsboro when i was jumping in the 22s and have my whole team watch and cheer us on. It was just very positive and hype energy.
What's your favorite event? The long jump?
Long jump and hurdles are my favorite events.
I'm a former Samford athlete and saw you committed to Samford! Tell me about that decision to go there.
The reason I decided to go to Samford is because of how the track team was and the coaches. The coaches seem like amazing people and that they actually care about how well you do, how to improve you, and don't want to over work you. I also love there facilities and training program. The training program seems really good and the environment also seems very welcoming.
What were some other schools you talked to?
I've talk to South Alabama and Army West Point.
Will the James Clemens track be finished in time for outdoor?
Honestly I hope it does get finished in time for outdoor track but knowing our luck it probably wont.
What are your goals for this weekend at State? What events will you be competing in?
My goals for State is to at least get above 21ft 8in in long jump. In the hurdles my goal is to at least get 8.10 or faster. For the 4x400m I am hoping to knock of 2 seconds for my part and hoping the other will try to do the same.
Catch Ben and his teammates back in action this weekend!