Linnen/Dutoit Article

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http://www.zwire.com/site/news.cfm?news ... 0979&rfi=6

Flying high

By: Charles Redfield, Sun Associate Sports Editor
June 24, 2004

JCCC volunteer coach Amy Dutoit recently worked on the JCCC track for the Olympic Trials June 9-18 in Sacramento. Dutoit, an Arizona graduate, is ranked No. 2 in the nation in the pole vault.

You do not tell Andrea Dutoit she cannot do something.
The Arizona native, along with NCAA collegiate indoor record holder Amy Linnen, is training in the pole vault at Johnson County Community College for the Olympic Trials July 9-18 in Sacramento, Calif.
Dutoit (who is called Detroit by many public-address announcers) was an excellent high school athlete in Flagstaff, Ariz.,
She participated in track in high school. She swam with a U.S. Swimming program because there was not a high school program.
The 25-year-old started swimming at the age of 8. She was a sprint freestyler and swam the 100-meter breaststroke.
She participated in track her last two years of high school. She was in the long jump, triple jump and high jump, and ran the hurdles once. She was not a great track athlete. With her 1,500 on the SAT, she had an academic scholarship to Arizona.
At the end of her freshman year (1996-97), she heard from her high school jump coach that Arizona was starting the women's pole vault. He had contacted the Arizona coaches and found out that she could walk on if she wanted to.
In the spring of 1997, Dutoit went back to her high school, and some males were telling her that women's pole vault was a joke.
"If people say I can't do something, I try that much harder," she said. "I don't want to be mediocre."
Back on May 1 in a meet in New Mexico, she cleared 15-1 in the pole vault, the ninth best mark ever by a woman.
Linnen, 21, is from Mt. Sinai, N.Y., on the north shore of Long Island's Suffolk County. She had the opportunity to vault in high school, and she was the No. 1 female vaulter in the nation as a senior.
The 5-10 JCCC volunteer coach was a gymnast growing up on Long Island. She gave up gymnastics to try track in high school, clearing just over 13 feet as a senior.
Linnen also decided to attend Arizona.
"I liked the weather, and I had a good relationship with Coach (Tom) Hays," she said. She has completed three and a half years of college.
Linnen is taking the spring semester off from Arizona to train for the Olympic Trials, while Dutoit has taken a nine-month leave of absence from the University of Colorado Medical School for the Olympic Trials.
Both have been NCAA champions while at Arizona.
Linnen's best is the 14-10 1/4 she posted when she won the NCAA indoor title in 2002, while Dutoit was an NCAA outdoor champion in 2001.
What has brought both stellar vaulters here to JCCC?
The answer is Tom Hays, the school's assistant cross country and track coach. Hays also was on the staff at JCCC when Dave Burgess started the track program in 1987.
He was a 16-3 high school vaulter in 1981 at McLouth and went on to the University of Kansas, where he was a six-time Big Eight Conference champion in the pole vault.
He has been assistant coach at Nevada-Reno, Wichita State and Arizona. Hays coached both Dutoit and Linnen at Arizona.
He is back at JCCC because his wife, Rebecca, is working in Independence, Mo. "I want to see my kids finish school," he said.
At the present time, Dutoit is tied for second in the United States rankings, while Linnen is in the top 15. Both have cleared the automatic qualifying mark of 14-8 for the Olympic Trials.
What does Hays say about his two world-class athletes?
"They are both tall (5-10), and that helps them," he said. "Andrea is highly motivated, and she's fast.
"Amy is fast and strong. She has a great gymnastics background, ran the hurdles and could be a multi-event athlete."
Dutoit, whose maiden name was Neary, was not an instant success at the pole vault. She only cleared 10-8 in her first season but advanced to 12-4 in the second year. She had a 13-9 in winning the NCAA outdoor title.
She enjoyed vaulting in college.
"Track was a blessing," she said. "I got to wear a uniform, and I was a college athlete. It was fun. School was No.1. I wanted to relax and try hard in sports."
Linnen has been slowed some by injuries but is just rounding into shape. She recently cleared 14-0 in a small competition in the Kansas City area.
"I have been working on my technique," she said. "I have taken some steps backward to going forward later."
What is her secret of success? "Having fun and doing your best," she noted.
One of the reasons she gave up gymnastics was her height. "5-10 is not an asset in gymnastics," she said.
The sport has helped her as a pole vaulter.
"It has helped me know where I am in the air and given me flexibility," she said. "I am used to being upside down, and it has given me discipline."
She is looking toward competing in the decathlon when it becomes an event for women. She had a best of 12.2 in the 100 meters, 14.5 in the 100-meter hurdles and has high jumped 5-6.
Dutoit, who has not had a grade lower than an A in her academic career, has 1 1/2 years left in medical school, and then her residency will follow. She is looking at pursuing a career in anesthesiology or as an orthopedic surgeon.
The volunteer JCCC coach was a four-time All-American and was named to the GTE Academic All-American. She graduated from Arizona with a 4.0 grade-point average and degrees in physiological sciences and molecular and cellular biology.
Linnen will be heading back to Arizona, hopefully after the Olympics, for her senior track season and completing her degree. She is looking toward a career in education on either the high school or college level.
"I enjoy helping people and sharing my knowledge," she said.
But that will all have to wait for the two vaulters until later.
First on the agenda is the Olympic Trials in Sacramento in July. The pole-vault preliminaries are on Friday, July 16. Each vaulter will have to clear a certain height to advance to the finals on Sunday, July 18.
The top three on July 18 will qualify for the Olympics in Athens. The track-and-field events are scheduled from Aug. 7 through Aug. 15 in Greece.