Long jumper David Registe of Palmer, who owns a collection of conference and national medals from his All-American career at UAA, on Tuesday added an international medal to the mix.
Registe, 23, captured the bronze medal at the Pan American Games in Guadalajara, Mexico, with a leap of 25 feet. 10 3/4 inches, less than an inch short of his personal best.
Registe's medal-seizing jump came on the second of the three-time Division II NCAA All-American's jumps in the competition. Registe was representing Dominica -- he holds dual citizenship.
"Today was a good day,'' Registe told the UAA sports information office. "Not just for me, but for my country of Dominica. It's an awesome feeling to represent something more than just yourself, and represent them well.''
Venzuela's Victor Castillo won gold with a leap of 26-5 and Chile's Daniel Pineda took silver at 26-1 3/4.
Registe credited UAA jumping coach Rafael Echavarria -- "Without him, I had no chance of getting a medal'' -- who Registe said paid his own way to the Games.
Registe on Monday topped qualifiers with a jump of 25-10 1/4. His personal best is 25-11 1/2, set at the 2009 Division II NCAA Championships, where he finished runner-up with that mark that represents both the UAA record and the Great Northwest Athletic Conference standard.
Registe is a three-time All-American. He won the Division II national title in 2008 and finished fourth earlier this year in his final season of college eligibility.
The silver-winning jump Registe uncorked Tuesday matched his best effort this season -- he also went 25-10 3/4 in Las Vegas in May -- and ranks him 15th among American jumpers this year.
Earlier this year, Registe was named the GNAC's Most Outstanding Male Performer after winning the long jump, 100 meters and 200 meters at the conference meet, where he also ran on two of the Seawolves winning relay teams. Registe became the first athlete in conference history to win five events at the conference meet.
Registe was named UAA's Athlete of the Year in 2009.
Anchorage Daily News