Bjorn in the USA
4/29/2004 12:00:00 AM | Track & Field
April 29, 2004
Published April 29, 2004
Bjorn Sommerfeldt knew two things were in his future: the decathlon and the University of Missouri.
It's become a family tradition.
His older siblings, sister Eli and brother Knut, were outstanding multi-event athletes at MU.
Knut Sommerfeldt owns the school record in the decathlon with 7,685 points, which he scored last year to win the Big 12 outdoor title. He won four Big 12 titles, including three outdoor crowns in his career.
Eli Sommerfeldt was the first to come to Missouri and has the fifth-best heptathlon score (5,463) in school history. She is also fourth in the triple jump (39 feet, 3? inches) and fourth in the javelin (148-10).
Just a freshman at MU, Bjorn Sommerfeldt should be in the hunt for the decathlon title at the Big 12 Outdoor Championships, which begin today in Norman, Okla.
"I've always been wanting to go to the states for college, because I was in Wisconsin as an exchange student two years ago, so I decided I wanted to go then," Sommerfeldt said. "Because of my brother and my sister, it was just natural for me to come here. I've been really happy with everything."
Sommerfeldt is continuing another tradition at MU. He is the latest in a long line of Norwegians to grace the Missouri track team.
It started with high jumper Hanne Anderson in the early 1990s. Anderson suggested MU to a friend, heptathlete Rannveig Kvalvik, who recommended decathlete Espen Strindeberg, who was engaged to heptathlete Eli Sommerfeldt, who recruited Knut, who convinced current sophomore decathlete Hans Uldal to come.
"It's a testament to Coach" Rick "McGuire and our program of being able to take care of the kids and seeing them through the ups and the downs," Missouri assistant coach Matt Candrl said.
Like his siblings, Bjorn couldn't settle on one event.
"When I started track, I was like 8. I've always done everything," he said. "I never had one specific event that I did really, really well, so I was always just an all-arounder. So it just felt natural to do the decathlon."
Sommerfeldt admits his favoritism varies between events.
"My favorite events are probably the ones that go well at the moment," he said. "But long jump and hurdles have always been my strongest ones."
Sommerfeldt has been doing well in most of his events lately.
He finished fourth in the heptathlon at the Big 12 Indoor Championships and is ranked second in the Big 12 in the decathlon with 6,993 points. His score is good enough for fourth on MU's all-time list and is only seven points shy of the NCAA provisional qualifying mark of 7,000. It's a number he is aiming for.
"That's what I'm hoping for, so I don't have to do the decathlon in two weeks again in order to make the qualifying mark," Sommerfeldt said. "Then I can just rest until nationals. I know I can do it. I just have to get out of me what I have inside of me. Hopefully it will be a good score and I can get the team some points, too."
Does Bjorn want to keep the Big 12 decathlon title in the family?
"Yeah, of course. I'm not really thinking hard about winning," he said. "I'm just trying to do my best. I know I can go really far if I do well. That's kind of the approach I have, get everything I have out of me and do the best I can."
Even though Knut Sommerfeldt has exhausted his eligibility, he continues to train with the Tigers as an undergraduate assistant. Having his older brother and fellow Norwegian Uldal on the team has helped Bjorn Sommerfeldt's transition on and off the track.
"It's really beneficial," he said. Knut "practices with us all the time. Just being able to train with my brother and Hans, it's really good for all of us. We kind of help each other along the way and push each other in practice. It's a really good position to be in.
"It's been really helpful to be able to have that security."
Bjorn Sommerfeldt contends the family rivalry is friendly.
"There's four years between us, but still I beat him on the longer runs like the 400 meter and the 800," Bjorn said. "He probably doesn't like that."
Candrl said the youngest Sommerfeldt might end up being the best.
"Bjorn fit in right away and has done nothing but work really hard," Candrl said. "He's very dedicated and exhibits similar characteristics that Knut has of dedication and being coachable.
"When Knut was a freshman, he scored 6,900. Bjorn scored 7,000 last year as a high school senior. So developmentally, he's ahead of him this year in particular."
So is breaking the school record and getting family supremacy in Bjorn's future?
"That will happen," Bjorn said. "I don't know when, but it will happen."
