After Being Turned Away From Two Universities, Kemboi Found A Home And Rewarded Utah Valley For Giving Her An Opportunity

By Doug Binder, DyeStat Editor

BERT RICHARDSON GALLERY

Everlyn Kemboi photo by Kirby Lee/Image of Sport

AUSTIN -- As the clock approached midnight, and with most of the people cleared out of Mike A. Myers stadium, there was Everlyn Kemboi slowly jogging on the track. She cradled a box containing her NCAA championship award in one hand, and held a cellphone to her ear with the other. 

Texas moved closer to the women's team championship at the NCAA Division 1 Championships on its home track. That party is on hold until Saturday. 

Britton Wilson of Arkansas rehearsed the fantastic double she's planning in the 400 meters and 400-meter hurdles. 

But Kemboi deserved an extended moment in the lights Thursday and her story of patience, answered prayers and perseverance was as inspirational as anything that happened on the second day of the national championship meet.  

"I've been patient the whole time," Kemboi said, referring not only to the race but to her life. 

Kemboi's victory in Thursday night's 10,000 meters, in 32 minutes, 39.08 seconds, broke Weini Kelati's facility record. 

She trusted her own ability to finish and closed in 68 seconds to get away from Utah's Emily Venters, who was second, and Alabama's defending champion, Mercy Chelangat, who was third. 

Kemboi, who grew up running back and forth to school, came from Kenya to the United States intending to run at the University of Texas-El Paso, but the school was unable to offer her a scholarship when she arrived. She pivoted, and enrolled at El Paso Community College instead, where she won a national junior college cross country championship in the fall of 2018 and finished second in 2019. 

Kemboi got an offer from Arizona and took it, leaving West Texas behind. 

The COVID-19 pandemic erased the start of her Division 1 career in 2020 and in 2021 she still had serious concerns about competing. Her father got ill with COVID and she didn't want to get it. She told her coaches at Arizona she wasn't comfortable racing. 

"They said if you don't want to do cross country, we will remove you from the team, and they removed me from the team," she said. 

Arizona took away her scholarship. 

In the summer of 2021, Kemboi's clock was ticking. Without a college, and without a scholarship, she had a month to figure out her next move or risk being sent back to Kenya. 

She reached out to former Utah Valley University assistant coach Chris Shane, and the call paid off. UVU offered her a scholarship. 

Kemboi moved to Orem, Utah and stepped into another new environment. In her first cross country race for the team she finished 36th out of 50 and was the 13th finisher on the UVU team. 

Kemboi, it turned out, was iron deficient, and a supplement fixed the problem. Within two months she finished fourth at the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) Championships. She barely missed an NCAA berth. 

In her 2022 track season, Kemboi advanced to the NCAA Championships and finished 12th in the 10,000. 

On Thursday, she became UVU's first national champion. 

"Yeah, I think it's the right place," Kemboi said of the program that was rewarded for its patience with her. 

"I prayed so much. I knew everything would be fine." 

Texas Marches Toward Title

The sprint corps at Texas appears ready to win the school's first NCAA women's title since 2005. 

In the semifinal round of the 4x100 relay, the quartet of Julien Alfred, Ezinne Abba, Rhasidat Adeleke and Kevona Davis smashed the collegiate record with 41.55 seconds. 

The only quartets that have ever moved the stick around faster are national teams from the U.S., Jamaica, Russia and East Germany. 

The performance was tied for the 18th fastest in track and field history. 

But the relay was the tip of the iceberg for a Longhorn program that is loaded with finalists and already has 10 points in the bank thanks to Ackelia Smith's long jump victory. 

Alfred posted the fastest qualifying times in the 100 (10.99) and 200 (22.33) and she will be joined in both finals by Davis. Abba gives Texas a third finalist in the 100 and Adeleke advanced to the 400-meter final. 

Valery Tobias is in the 800 meters after posting the second-fastest time in the semis (2:00.68), behind only Michaela Rose of LSU. 

The only ding in the armor came when the 4x400 relay team was disqualified. 

Britton Wilson's Challenge

Arkansas phenom Britton Wilson successfully qualified for Saturday's finals of two events that she dominates, the 400 meters and the 400-meter hurdles. 

On Thursday, the gap between breaking a meet record in the 400 with a time of 49.36 seconds and the start of the 400 hurdles was 29 minutes. 

"It felt really relaxed and easy," Wilson said of the 400 semifinal, an indication that her own collegiate record 49.13 seconds could be in play Saturday. 

Wilson, who has been dealing with stress reactions in both shins, had little time to rest her legs. 

"We got a Gatorade, got a peanut butter-and-jelly, and then it was back out there (to the track)," she said. 

Wilson won her heat of the 400 hurdles in a controlled effort of 54.67. 

She said she wants to go for the double as a way to challenge herself. Saturday's 400 finals are scheduled to start at 9:02 p.m. The 400 hurdles is at 9:27. 

"I want to see if I can do something that no one else has done before," she said. 

Katelyn Tuohy Advances

Another record-breaking athlete eager to test her limits is North Carolina State star Katelyn Tuohy, who qualified for the 1,500-meter final and will also compete in the 5,000 meters. 

Tuohy, who finished fourth in her heat of the 1,500 meters in 4:09.83, will have about 90 minutes in between the 1,500 and the 5,000 on Saturday. 

Washington's Sophie O'Sullivan ran the fastest time in the semifinals with 4:09.58. 

Three Oregon Ducks qualified for the final but Pac-12 champion Simone Plourde of Utah was the first one out. Maia Ramsden of Harvard, representing New Zealand, joins Tuohy in having the opportunity to compete in both the 1,500 and 5,000 finals.

100-Meter Hurdles Up For Grabs

Alia Armstrong of LSU (12.54) and Ackera Nugent of Arkansas (12.55) posted the fastest times in the 100-meter hurdles, but the final will be loaded with additional contenders, including Kentucky's Masai Russell, Florida's Grace Stark and Arizona's Talie Bonds. 

3,000-Meter Steeplechase

Oregon State and New Mexico both advanced two runners to the finals of the 3,000-meter steeplechase. 

The Beavers' Grace Fetherstonhaugh and Kaylee Mitchell are hoping to break through and give the school its first national champion since Karl Van Calcar won the men's steeplechase in 1988. OSU disbanded the men's program soon thereafter. 

The Lobos counter with Elise Thorner and Maisie Grice.

West Virginia's Ceili McCabe, Washington's Kayley DeLay, Notre Dame's Oliva Markezich and Cal Baptist's Greta Karinauskaite are successfully advanced and should be factors as well. 

Rose, Willis On Collision Course In 800

The two semifinal winners, Michaela Rose of LSU and Roisin Willis of Stanford, both asserted themselves early into the front of their respective races and drove the pace. 

Rose, the national leader this spring, finished in 2:00.31. 

Willis, the sensational freshman from Stanford and the NCAA Division 1 Indoor champion, won the first semi in 2:02.04. 

BYU qualified a pair, Claire Seymour and Meghan Hunter, to the final.