Carlsbad senior trained by Olympic great knows future is up in the air
CARLSBAD, Calif. (BVM) – Riley Millard had heard of Jackie Joyner before, the six-time Olympic track and field athlete, but not her brother. That was until the prelims of a championship meet where Al Joyner, the 1984 Olympic gold medalist in the triple jump, was helping rake the sand pit as a volunteer.
Al was there in part to support his daughter who is an athlete at San Marcos, while Millard was there competing for Carlsbad High School. The senior was going through her long and triple jump routines when Al began to give her pointers.
“You can go so much farther if you do this,” Al told Millard after seeing her hops.
The tips led to instant improvement, but Millard had no idea exactly who they were coming from at the time.
“I went over to my dad after and he was like, ‘Riley, you know that’s Al Joyner? He’s like an Olympic gold medalist’,” Millard said. “I was like ‘What? Oh my gosh; this is so cool.’
“It felt like out of a movie.”
Millard went back over to Al to say thanks, get a picture with him and their relationship sprouted from there. Millard and Al’s daughter would be trained by the Olympian in the nuances of jumping during the spring and summer months, something the Carlsbad senior is immensely grateful for.
“He (Al) could’ve talked to anyone so the fact that he gave me tips on how I can jump farther was awesome and super kind of him,” Millard said. “It just helped me gain confidence knowing that someone who went to the Olympics and won a gold medal is teaching me and preparing me to someday go to the Olympics as well or go to college for it.
“It was a huge confidence booster.”
Millard is right. The former Olympic gold medalist could’ve talked to anyone that day, but game recognizes game.
The Carlsbad senior is one of the area’s top long jumpers (boasting a personal record of 17’4.5), and if the spring season hadn’t been canceled after just two meets due to Covid-19, it’s likely she’d already be committed to a Division I program. In Millard’s last meet before the pandemic shut things down, she took first place in both long jump (16’11) and triple jump (31’6).
The two-time All-Avocado League selection said she knows an athlete’s junior and senior seasons are of the utmost importance when it comes to college recruiting. With her junior campaign all but ended just as it began and the upcoming spring still in question, Millard knows the next few months leading up to graduation will be crucial.
“It’s made recruiting and everything so much harder,” Millard said. “For me, I love being on a plan and having everything scheduled so I was hoping by this time I would know if I was committed somewhere with track. But it’s just all up in the air still.”
Colorado State, Long Beach State, Wichita State and Bowling Green State University are all schools with mutual interest in Millard, but a decision won’t be made until after the NCAA dead period which was extended to April 15 back in November.
The two-time CIF San Diego Section finalist is keeping her fingers crossed for a spring season to commence around March. A chance to showcase her skills at the high school level one final time and visit her future school of choice is all Millard is asking for.
“Getting another personal record, finding a college that fits and wants me for track and just getting everything in line to go to college sounds ideal.” Millard said. “I would love for that to happen.”
