Competitions for two former San Diego State athletes, including Xander Schauffele, who will defend his 2020 gold medal in golf, begin this week at the Paris Olympics.
Former Aztec track and field star Shanieka Ricketts, at SDSU from 2011-14, is a three-time Olympian who will represent Jamaica in the triple jump, while Schauffele, at SDSU from 2013-15, is part of Team USA.
First up, the third men’s golf competition at the Olympics, starts Thursday at Le Golf National. Each of the four rounds begins at midnight PDT, with the medal ceremony set for Sunday.
Ricketts, the flag bearer for Jamaica at the Opening Ceremony, begins qualifying for the triple jump at 9:15 a.m. PST Friday at the Stade de France. The finals follow at 11:20 a.m. PST the next day.
Ricketts was a three-time NCAA triple jump champion and a two-time runner-up while at San Diego State. She qualified for Paris after winning the Jamaican Senior National Championships with a mark of 14.50 meters (47-07.00).
A member of the Aztec Hall of Fame, Ricketts will look to improve on her 2020 Tokyo Olympics where she finished in fourth at 14.84m (48-08.25). Ricketts also tied for 13th at the 2016 Rio Olympics at 14.02m (46-00.00).
Schauffele is coming off capturing his second major of the year, the Open, at Royal Troon Golf Course in Scotland. In two other majors this season, Schauffele tied for seventh at the U.S. Open and came in eighth at the Masters.
Schauffele was named a third-team All-American in 2015 by both Golfweek and GCAA, while also finishing as a three-time all-Mountain West selection.
Also representing San Diego State in Paris will be former NCAA champion and current Long Beach State head coach LaTanya Sheffield. This is the Olympian’s first time at the games as the head women’s coach. She previously served as Team USA’s sprints, hurdles and relays coach at the 2016 Rio Olympics and 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
A 1993 inductee into the San Diego State Hall of Fame, Sheffield was the 1985 NCAA champion in the 400m hurdles and a two-time All-American.
