Salute To Seniors: Kimyanna Rudolph - Lawrence Central

 
What was your most memorable meet?
 
My most memorable meet was county in 2010. This meet was special to me because I came in the polevault with a personal best of 10'6'' and I left there with a new personal best of 11'9''. This was one of the best track meets of my life thus far.

Who was your biggest competitor?
 
My biggest competition was Sydney Clute. For the past two years we went back and forth in terms of who won the vault. It was real competition and I liked it because I like good competition. We both tried so hard to beat one another every meet it was ridiculous. I wouldnt choose any other vaulter to go up against because, although we fought for the big W everytime, we showed really good sportsmanship towards each other.
 
Out of all of your high school accomplishments which stands out the most?
 
Out of all my highschool accomplishments what stands out the most to me is breaking the school record with a jump of 13'2 1/2'' and also winning nationals. All my hard work, sweat, and tears led me to these two amazing accomplishments that will remain with me forever.
 
If you could do it all over again what would you change about your running career in high school?
 
If i could do it over again I wouldnt change a single thing. Every good and bad thing that has happened to me throughout my highschool career has shaped and molded me into the athlete I am today.
 
What were the most difficult obstacles you had to overcome?
 
The most difficult obstacle i had to overcome had to do with my back. I was in pain all of the time and sometimes i couldnt do anything about it. Ibuprophen and Aleve didnt always work. My athletic trainer tried her best to help me, but in doing so, my season might have had to come to an end. I didnt want that to happen so I pushed past the pain as much as I could. My back problems held me back from sprinting. At every meet my coach would only allow me to vault until i won, then stop. My back really held me back in some instances in my track and field career.
 
What will you miss the most?
 
I will miss my team the most. They are a big part of making me the kind of athlete I am today. They always believed in me even when I didnt believe in myself sometimes. I will miss all of their different personalities.
 
Do you have any advice for younger athletes? 
 
To younger athletes i would say  your imput determines your outcome. If you want to be successful in what you set out to do you have to put forth the effort to make that happen.
 
What are your college plans?
 
My college plans are to attend Indiana State University to major in construction management. I will also be polevaulting on the ISU track and field team.
 
Who would you like to say thank you to?
 
First i would like to thank my savior Jesus Christ. Through him all things are possible. I would ten like to say thank you to my team, my parents, without them I would not be here, my coaches for always pushing me, but most importantly I would like to thank my coach Tim Richey. Out of everyone I feel like he was the only one who truley believed in me. He knew I had potential as a freshman. He knew i had a chance at winning nationals. i remember one time he asked me, " Are you going to be the next Margo?" I said. "No.... I'm going to be the next Kimyanna." From that point on  it was gametime. He knew i was serious about polevauting, so I just want to thank him for putting all of his time and effort into making me, "the next Kimyanna."

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