John Raffel
Sports Scene
Landon Kemp’s impressive achievements as a pole vaulter for Greenville’s girls track and field team continue, and it’s only her junior season.
Kemp was fifth at the state finals in the pole vault as a sophomore at 11-0. She was fourth in the long jump (17-0 ¾) and fifth in the 100 hurdles (14.95 seconds). As a freshman, she took third in the pole vault and fourth in the long jump.
“It’s going pretty well so far,” Kemp said. “It’s early in the season. It’s all building up to the state meet. That’s what we train to do, track especially. You build up for the state meet so you peak at the right time, especially with the pole vault. I feel good.”
She has also been competing in national competition.
Already this season for Greenville, Kemp set the school record with a vault of 12-9 outdoors. Jeff White is Greenville’s pole vault coach.
“I’ve been working with Landon four or five years now,” White said. “I started out as a volunteer in Greenville. She used to come up and hang out with one of the vaulters I had. We talked her into trying pole vault and she loved it. She’s a great worker. She tries to get better every day. She sets high goals and tries to achieve them.”
White said Kemp also goes down to Maple Valley to work with instructor/coach Jerry Sessions.
“She’s improved probably six inches to a foot every year,” White said. “She’s very coachable. I think she obviously wants to win in competition and set a state record.”
The state record is 13-2 feet and Kemp has already cleared that height this year at an indoor state meet. She hopes to go for that mark this season.
“I was a gymnast for seven years. Growing up, I did gymnastics,” Kemp said. “When I quit that, someone said ‘hey, you’d be a good pole vaulter. You’re fast and you’re strong. I tried it. I stuck with it and it came natural. I have no fear of it because gymnastics taught me not to be scared of it.”
She’s placed in national competition in past years. She has vaulted 12-4 ¾ two years in a row at the New Balance nationals in New York (indoor) and North Carolina (outdoors).
Kemp also does the long jump, high hurdles, relays and sprints.
“She’s very good at all of them,” White said. “She has a very good future.”
Michael Woods has been Kemp’s hurdles coach in high school. He’s coached hurdlers since 1987.
“She is without question one of the most outstanding hurdlers I have coached, boys and girls,” Woods said. “She is extremely intelligent, is dedicated, hard working and extremely athletic. She’s on par to run faster this year.”
Woods said Kemp is explosive out of the blocks.
“She has terrific form,” he said. “She just powers through each hurdle.”
“I’ve been working pretty hard with those,” Kemp added. “Last year, I ran a 14.95 (in the 100s). I hope to be in the mid 14s by the time state comes around. “