Trevor Yedoni

Men's track • Long jump

Trevor Yedoni will get a chance to defend his first Big Ten long jump title during outdoor competition this spring — something that once didn't seem possible after two significant injuries.

During his first week of school as a freshman, Yedoni tore his ACL in his left knee, his jumping leg, while playing basketball. He fully recovered after surgery and rehab, but he later suffered the same injury during a meet. Yedoni heard his knee pop during takeoff on the high jump, sidelining his career once again.

"After two surgeries on the same thing, you really keep your mind on it," said Yedoni, now a junior.

Yedoni recovered once again but instead of participating in the high jump, he focused on the long jump because of damage already done to his knees. The move paid off last year as Yedoni won the Big Ten title with a long jump of 24 feet, 10 inches and was named Big Ten Freshman of the Year.

"It was really surprising because the long jump really isn't my main event," Yedoni said. "We just started doing it seriously last year and actually training for it. It was great to know I could come back from an injury like that and still compete at the level I used to."

Yedoni didn't feel like he performed as well indoors, but he's feeling confident with outdoor season underway that he can defend his title.

"Athletically, I feel like I'm starting to figure some things out at the end of indoors that I should be able to build upon," Yedoni said.

Master Tesfatsion