Crunch, crunch, crunch. That’s the sound of shoes hitting the gravel-like ground, gaining speed to jump over the nine-meter sandpit. Whoosh, through the air, she lands, marking 19 feet 4.25 inches — a new PR and Linfield University school record.
Meet junior exercise science major and heptathlon athlete Kira Hawaaboo.
Hawaaboo, a Washington native from Enumclaw recently set a Linfield indoor long jump record at the Whitworth Invitational held at The Podium on Feb. 15. She also snatched the No. 2 position for all DIII long jumpers.
For Hawaaboo, this was her golden stamped ticket for the NCAA Division III Indoor Track and Field Championships on March 14 in Rochester, New York, making this her second year in a row as the only Linfield athlete.
“It kind of sucks there’s nobody else going with me, but I feel it’s really cool that I get to represent Linfield,” Hawaaboo said. “I’m hoping we have a few other teammates this year qualify for outdoor nationals, which would be so awesome.”
She will be accompanied by Linfield Track and Field Director Travis Olson.
“We of course would like to have more people back here at nationals, but it makes me feel proud that she qualified again for nationals,” Olson said in an email. “It is a testament to her work ethic and commitment which is unmatched in our program.”
The craziest thing? Hawaaboo never touched the track before coming to Linfield. In fact, she was a three-time letter winner in volleyball in high school and has been playing the sport since she was 12.
“I was actually recruited to Linfield for volleyball. I played on the JV team my freshman year and that didn’t work out,” Hawaaboo said. “I had some friends on the track team and they were like, ‘Hey, you should come out and join track,’ and I was like, okay, sure, never done this before and this was my sophomore year. I showed up to practice, and everything kind of fell into place.”
Now, she’s setting records and qualifying for conference like it’s light work. During her first year competing, she was the Conference Athlete of the Meet and ended the season by becoming an All-American in long jump.
But Hawaaboo holds onto her humble side. She is still behind No. 1 Emma Seipel of Loras College, who holds the indoor mark at 19 feet 7.5 inches.
“Honestly, my goal is to win,” Hawaaboo said. “I’m trying to change my mentality coming into this because I get really nervous when I’m competing and sometimes I get really hyped up, and oftentimes that can drag me down. I am trying to shift my focus and work on my technique.”
When Hawaaboo isn’t putting in work in the gym or on the field, she spends a lot of her time studying. Her goal is to pursue graduate school in physical therapy, a competitive field. She’s also assisting with a research project involving other Linfield faculty and students, looking at the effects of music on mood during sports practices.
She really has no time to spare.
“Every moment of free time I have is study,” Hawaaboo said. “I don’t have much free time, but honestly, I’m okay with that because I like being busy. It keeps me doing stuff and I feel more productive.”
On and off the field, Hawaaboo’s grind doesn’t stop.
“Kira is an exceptional athlete that absolutely loves to compete,” Olson said. “She is without a doubt the best overall athlete that I have ever coached. It is pretty rare you find an athlete that finds so much success while still being so new to the sport. It’s been a lot of fun to watch her progress.”
