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At the Middle Tennessee Valentine Invitational, JJ Sturm leaped 23'11" in the long jump and 47'1.5" in the triple jump. Both marks stood strong against the competition as Sturm won both events, his first wins of the season. Sturm's marks also moved him into fourth place in each event on the current Sun Belt Conference indoor performance list.
It has been a long hard fight for Sturm to return to his jumping prowess. During his junior year Sturm experienced a great deal of difficulty while jumping with excruciating pain in his right knee. While he thought he was dealing with a tough case of tendonitis, his marks decreased as the season went on.

Sturm remarks, "Jumping last year was extremely frustrating. The harder I trained, the worse I jumped. I felt like I was back in high school again."

At the completion of the season, an MRI revealed that he had been jumping with a torn patella tendon and a fractured knee.

"When I found out that there was some real damage, I felt a bit of relief. There was actually something wrong with my body and I wasn't just jumping poorly," states the veteran jumper.

Sturm proceeded to undergo surgery on June 2nd and immediately started rehabilitation and therapy every day for six months.

"Therapy was really tough to deal with because I lost almost all of the strength in my knee. It was redundant and aggravating, but I knew it was the only way I could return to full strength."

After the Christmas Break, Sturm had finally been cleared to jump. He opened his senior season by jumping at the Kentucky Invitational where he long jumped 22 feet and triple jumped 42'5".

"Jumping in the first meet was a unique experience. I really had no expectations, so I was just out there having fun. However, I felt like I weighed 1,000 pounds and had no spring in my jump."

Since the first meet, Sturm has consistently improved this indoor season. As the season progressed, he has shown no signs of slowing down. His mark of 47'1.5" in the triple jump this past weekend at the Valentine Invitational is a lifetime best indoors. Sturm's success this indoor season has blown away the expectations of many, including himself.

"It is a big stress reliever to come back and do well this indoor season. I have somewhat exceeded my expectations and am extremely pleased with how the season is developing. I really feel like I'm in a position to compete with the top jumpers at the Sun Belt Conference meet."

Middle Tennessee track fans can watch the Sun Belt Conference long jump competition unfold before their eyes on February 25th at Murphy Center. It promises to be an extremely captivating event as Juan Walker, Jakeith Hairston, Sean Waller, Linnie Yarbrough and Sturm duke it out against the rest of the jumpers in the Sun Belt Conference. A true track fan wouldn't miss it for the world.

Learn more about this author, Willie Parker.
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