Lima track club sending 22 athletes to nationals
· Yahoo Sports
LIMA — A Lima youth track and field team will send 22 city athletes to the 2026 American Athletic Union Junior Olympic Games, as announced Wednesday at Mayor Sharetta Smith’s media briefing in council chambers.
The former C2K Striders Track Club featured an expanded roster of nearly 90 kids this season, ages 5 to 18, after combining with the Columbus Panthers Track Club. Through the athletes’ perseverance in challenging weather conditions, Coach Roderick Simpson Jr. said, the now-C2K Panthers placed 45 athletes — 22 from Lima — in the youth track and field national championships, which run Saturday, Aug. 1 to Saturday, Aug. 8 at the Drake University stadium in Des Moines, Iowa.
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The C2K Panthers are taking donations to fund their national championship trip and future travel. To donate, funds should be dedicated to the group through the Lima Community Foundation at 207 W. Elm St., Lima.
Simpson said that the team merger helped solidify the Lima club while they were “lacking certain things” to compete at the highest level. The personnel connections with the Columbus group played a large role in that fortification, Simpson said.
“That coach (in Columbus), he’s the one who started the program in Lima. He just ended up leaving for job purposes,” Simpson said. “That’s when (Coach Chris Jackson) took over. So, you know, it’s one big family.”
The team’s championship journey, however, did not come without challenges from the elements.
“There were a lot of times we had to adjust due to the weather. We didn’t really have to worry about the cold, but we got rained out a lot of days,” Simpson said. “… At regionals it rained a lot, so we had a lot of athletes that didn’t run due to the circumstances. But this was probably one of the best years that we’ve had.”
Among those competing for national titles in August are Carter Thompson, 14, of Rockford, and Kayla Jennings, 10, of Lima. Both had unique perspectives on their path leading up to the Junior Olympic Games.
“Just hard to believe this is my first year ever doing track, like I’ve never done it before,” said Thompson, who is competing in the high jump. “Baseball was my life, but I didn’t really like it. So I tried track for my first year (of high school) and it was just a fit, and this happened.”
“I’m thinking about at least hitting top eight in my (800-meter run), because right now I’m standing at top eight. So if I can stay there, I think I can get on the podium,” said Jennings, who will compete in the 800- and 1500-meter runs, triathlon and Turbo Javelin. “My triathlon, I think I have a good chance. 1,500, I just have to push myself, and turbo javelin, I just gotta make sure I’m doing all the stuff correctly.”
C2K stands for “Commitment to Kids,” Simpson said. That means his staff tries to make the kids well-rounded athletes, the coach said, and he has seen that work show through them this season.
“Our mission is to build discipline, build structure, and these kids have it,” Simpson said. “… One thing I can say about our athletes is that when they get older, they’re gonna be good citizens. And they’ll be great athletes.”
Reach Peter Bonasso at 567-242-0399.