LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — Little Rock's Jonathon Jones tied for fourth at the NCAA West prelims on May 26 to punch his ticket to the NCAA championships in Austin, Texas.
"I couldn't do anything but smile," Jones said. "After all I had been through, all I could do was smile. No need to roll around or scream. It was an expectation."
Little Rock jumps coach Ray Doakes commended Jones for his hard work.
"He works hard when things are down," Doakes said. "He's the guy that picks everybody up. I can't tell you how proud I am as a coach... the rest of the team is bursting with pride seeing what JJ has been able to do this year."
Jones has a personal best of 7-1.5, and he's quickly become a star after only starting the high jump in high school at Little Rock Central.
"I was always a football kid," Jones said. "My mom told me I'm gonna run track and I said 'no.' When it was time to actually run, I didn't want to. So I went and jumped, and my teammate Greg taught me how to jump... the rest is history."
The Little Rock native is excited to represent his university, but also his hometown. Jones hopes to inspire other local kids to chase their dreams.
"It's just childhood coming to life, dreams coming to life," Jones said. "I'm able to do it with a Little Rock on my jersey instead of all of those big names... know we're doing it here and I'm doing it in my town. It means a lot to me to be able to do this and for my friends and family that believe in me. It's everything."
Jones will start compeititon on Friday at 7:30 p.m. Central on ESPN+.