COLLEGE PARK, Md. — Maryland Track and Field Alumnae Thea LaFond and Chioma (Cici) Onyekwere will compete at the 2019 IAAF World Athletics Championships in Doha, Qatar. The championship kicks off Sept. 27 and will go thru Oct. 6.
Both Terps had outstanding careers at Maryland, breaking school-records and earing top-ten performances in the record books. Now they have the opportunity to compete among the world's best track and field athletes.
"At Maryland, I was pushed athletically and academically," LaFond said. "I never felt like I went through hardships alone. Otherwise, I don't know if I'd be in Doha without the support I received."
LaFond is the current school record holder in triple jump with a mark of 13.24m. She broke the 22-year-old record in 2015 at the Big Ten Outdoor Championships.
A year later, she took on the 2016 Olympics in triple jump, which prepared her for future world championship competitions. In 2018, she was the first Dominican athlete to win a medal at the Commonwealth Games in Queensland, Australia.
LaFond and Onyekwere were not only teammates, but also each other's support system.
"Cici Onyekwere is one of my best friends and we've seen each other go through insane highs and lows in the professional track and field world," Lafond said. "This year marks our first World Championships together in six years of friendship."
Onyekwere, who finished her career at Maryland as school record holder in discus (178'7"), is also familiar with the track and field world stage. As a dominant thrower for Team Nigeria, she competed in the 2016 and 2018 African Championships, the 2018 IAAF Continental Cup and recently won a gold medal for discus at the 2019 All-African games.
Onyekwere takes the discus world stage on Wednesday, Oct. 2 at 11 a.m. EST. Finals for discus will be held Friday, Oct. 4 at 2:00 p.m. EST.
LaFond will compete in triple jump for Team Dominica on Thursday, October 3 at 9:40 a.m. EST. Finals for triple jump will take place on Oct. 5 at 1:35 p.m. EST.
To keep up with these #ProTerps, visit www.iaaf.org/competitions/iaaf-world-championships.
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