Two of the most publicized events in the world of track and field are the long jump and the 100-meter dash. For Sacramento State redshirt sophomore Shanita Bryant, the publicity is two-fold, as she competes in both.

But along with the demand on the body that exists when participating in two events at very high levels comes a greater chance of injury. And no one knows injury better than Bryant. Coming off a record-breaking freshman year, Bryant was ready to once again set and shatter records.

Unfortunately, while warming up for the long jump at a meet in Idaho last year, Bryant’s season came to a crashing halt.

“I was feeling good,” Bryant recalls. “I told (event officials) that I needed to practice one more time. I was running down and then midway through (the hamstring) just snapped, my right (hamstring) snapped, but I kept running through it.

“It just tore on me. I ran right to the wall, sat down and cried for about three hours.”

The devastating injury left Bryant no choice but to redshirt her sophomore year.

“A hamstring injury occurs normally in the middle of the thigh, either low, medium or high,” said head coach Joe Neff, who claims Bryant is 70 percent recovered from her injury. “This one, once all the general pain dissipated, actually turned out to be an outside-hamstring-low injury.

“I’m amazed at what she’s doing this season because she’s still hurt.”

Bryant has been looking very good this season, for someone who continues to fight through the right hamstring injury from last season and a brand new, but less serious, left hamstring injury suffered this year.

She has placed third in the long jump at the National Indoor Championships and second in the long jump in her last two meets. Bryant also placed sixth in the 100 meters at the Hornet Invitational.

Though these aren’t catastrophic results, Neff knows that Bryant is not at her physical best yet.

“When she is healthy, she is a dominant competitor in the Big Sky,” neff said. “But we haven’t had a chance to develop and get her there again.”

At the moment, Bryant is jumping between 18 and 19 feet per long jump attempt, roughly two feet less than what she was jumping during her dominating freshman year. Also, her 100-meter times have understandably declined due to the injury.

“(The events) hurt about the same,” Bryant said. “I would say a little less in the long jump because I can regulate the speed down the runway.

“I’m really just going off technique right now so that I don’t hurt myself.”

Another thing that Bryant hurt due to the hamstring injuries was a chance to compete for a spot on the 2004 United States Olympic team.

“It was my goal for 2004, but my injuries are too bad right now. It’s going to take a while.

“The hamstring I tore last year, a year and a month ago, still is not healed. So I need to take a break, rehab, take the necessary steps to get better and then 2008 (Olympics) will definitely be my goal.”

One thing is for certain, when Bryant does eventually come back to full strength, she says that her competitors better get used to seeing her name ahead of theirs.

“I hate to lose.”

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