Minnesota men’s track and field athlete Mikael Jakobson became a four-time All- American by placing fifth in the 400-meter hurdles at the NCAA Outdoor Championships in Baton Rouge, La. Jakobsson’s effort was the highest individual finish by a Gopher since high jumper Staffan Strand earned second place in 1999.
Jakobsson, a sophomore from Orebro, Sweden, ran a 50.15, after setting the school record clocking a 49.75 in the preliminaries. Jakobsson earned his first three All-America honors a member of Minnesota’s 4×400-relay team.
Women finish 45th
The University of Minnesota women’s track and field team finished 45th with four points in Baton Rouge.
In Saturday’s competition, junior Shani Marks finished 14th in the triple jump with a leap of 41-feet, 3-inches. First-year outdoor athlete Tahesia Harrington placed 10th in the 100-meter dash after running 11.63 seconds in the semi-final heat, failing to qualify for the final race by just .04 seconds.
The Gophers’ four points for the meet came from a fifth place finish in the javelin by newcomer Barbora Spotakova, earning the Czech Republic native her first All-American honor.
