Kenneth Rooks, who won a silver medal at the Paris Olympic Games in the 3,000-meter steeplechase, will return home to College Place to greet and sign autographs at the annual College Place Freedom Festival on Sunday, June 29.
A Walla Walla Valley native and College Place High School alum, Rooks said it had been a dream to compete at the Olympics and to represent both College Place and Walla Walla on the world stage as "the 25-year-old from Washington," as the Olympic announcer would say.
The steeplechase, a lesser-known event that doesn't normally show up in high school competitions, is a seven-and-a-half lap race with 35 barriers.
Racers usually hurdle the barriers; the last barrier is followed immediately by a water pit. Rooks' technique is to step on the barrier to push himself most of the way over the water, getting one foot wet coming out of the jump.
Rooks said he played multiple sports while at College Place High School, and a coach at Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah, suggested he try steeplechase.
"I was also curious ... I like to try new things," Rooks said.
He served a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints after his freshman year at BYU and won sixth place in the NCAA Championships 11 months after his return.
He went on to win the NCAA Championships and win the U.S. Steeplechase Championship despite falling down. The barriers stay in place when hit, making it easier to fall, he said.
He then took 10th in the World Championship in Budapest and won the Olympic trials in 2024, going on to win silver in the Paris Olympics.
"I'm very proud of my roots and my connection to the College Place and Walla Walla area," Rooks said. "I loved growing up in Walla Walla and going to College Place High School."
Rooks completed his civil engineering degree in April and has been running professionally since 2024. He plans to continue running and put engineering on hold for a while.
He is training for the World Championships in Tokyo this year and will race in Monaco on Friday, July 11.
"I want to thank anybody who has helped coach me or support me throughout my journey ... I'm super grateful to have started my journey with running at College Place High School," Rooks said. "I'm super excited to come back and do an event where I can give back a little bit."
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