Illinois State senior Curt Jensen earned All-American honors in June, finishing eighth at the 2014 Outdoor NCAA Track and Field Championships in the men’s shot put with a best mark of 19.49 meters (63-11.50).
After his first two attempts, Jensen sat in 17th place. The senior thrower launched a mark of 63-11.50 on his third attempt to move into seventh place on the leaderboard, solidifying a spot in the final round. However, Jensen did not better that mark in his final three attempts to finish in eighth.
“Curt had the big throw in the preliminary round to get in the final,” head track and field coach Jeff Bovee said. “I think he saw the urgency that he needed to have a big throw. He had a much better series in the final. He wasn’t able to make it into the top-four or five, but he capped off a fantastic senior year.”
This season alone, Jensen captured 15 top five finishes in three different events, including three-consecutive first-place finishes in the shot put, two of which broke the Missouri Valley Conference and Illinois State shot put records. Jensen currently holds both records with a best-mark of 20.33 meters (66-08.50) at the Redbird Invite.
