BEAUMONT, Texas - Lamar University track and field redshirt sophomore Kenson Tate has qualified for a berth in the U.S Olympic Team Trials in the men's long jump as announced by USA Track & Field. Tate will return to Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore. – where he just earned second-team All-America honors at the NCAA Outdoor Championships – to open competition in the semifinals jump. The long jump is set for a 6:45 p.m. start (Central)  Saturday, June 22nd.
 
Tate was one of 24 athletes to qualify for the long jump with his career-best 8.02 meters (26'3.75m) at the Robert Platt Invitational, which has him ranked 13th in the nation. Should Tate advance to the finals, his next jump will start at 9:25 p.m., on Monday, June 24th.
 
Fresh off an appearance at the NCAA Outdoor Championships, the three-time All-American from Zachary, La., who also was dubbed the Southland Conference Male Athlete of the Year earned a 12th-place finish with a jump of 7.56m (24'9.75"). He earned a trip to Eugene by winning the Southland Conference long jump event (7.85m-25'9.25") and earning fourth at the NCAA West Regionals (7.84m-25'8.25").
 
This past outdoor season saw him earn 14 top-10's, including four victories in the long jump and men's 4x100m relay combined. He racked up two SLC Field Athlete of the Week honors and was a conference first teamer. Prior to the outdoor season, Tate was the SLC Tri-Outstanding Field Performer of the Year reaching the NCAA Indoor Championships.

"When Coach Clark hired me, we talked about having an elite jumps group," said Assistant Coach Tyler Sunwall. "We laid out a plan for what it would look like and Kenson's success is a manifestation of all of those concepts we've worked on coming together. It's important to note he doesn't do it all alone too. There's a great group of guys and ladies out there working hard and holding everyone to a high standard. So when a guy like Kenson gets an opportunity to compete at the Olympic trials, it raises that bar for everyone else too. Being afforded the opportunity to go to this competition is such an honor and we extremely grateful to everyone who has supported the program. I'm proud of Kenson and it's been a whole lot of fun watching him grow and develop. I'm excited to see what else we can accomplish."

The U.S. Olympic Team Trials will be broadcast and streamed nationally on NBC, Peacock and USA Network.

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