Hartselle grad heads to Tokyo Olympics

Quanesha Burks earns her first trip to the Olympics

Hartselle graduate Quanesha Burks, class of 2013, will make her first trip to the Olympics after finishing third in the long jump at the U.S. Olympic Team Trials held in Eugene, Oregon, this past week.

Burks was a multi-sport athlete during her time at Hartselle. She starred on the basketball court and the track. During her senior year, she won state titles in the 60-meter dash, the triple jump and the long jump.

She went on to become an NCAA champion and All-American at the University of Alabama.

She finished the first round of the trials in second place, and after two jumps in the second round, she sat in third place.

She fell to fifth place following her third jump and then sixth after her fourth jump, but she jumped a personal best 6.96 meters on her fifth jump, moving her back into third place, where she would finish.

The Tokyo Olympics will take place July 23 through Aug. 8. Burks will start her competition Aug. 1.