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Wheaton College Athletics

Athlete Awards

Featured Thunder Student-Athlete

Parker Thompson

Parker Thompson

  • Award
    Featured Thunder Student-Athlete
  • Week Of
    5/21/2012
  • Sport
    Men's Track and Field
  • Bio
    View Full Bio
Parker Thompson is a junior on the Thunder track and cross country teams. Last weekend, he qualified for the outdoor track National Championships in the 1,500 meters with a time of 3:51.06. Below is a brief interview with Parker.

Q: What is your major?
A:
Applied Health Science (with Pre-Med course track).

Q: Why did you choose to attend Wheaton and run track and cross country?
A:
Well, this is a LOOONNG story but here’s the short version. I always knew I wanted to run in college and with 17 brothers and sisters, running was how I was going to get there. I also had a heart for the service, so I began applying to the Air Force Academy. One of my sisters was in a graduate program here at Wheaton and just wouldn’t let it go that this is where I was supposed to be. She told me about ROTC at Wheaton and it was then that I knew this is where God was calling me. There were many twists and turns and changes of heart that opened my eyes to the beauty of Wheaton and its community. When I came for a visit, I loved the team and I adored the coaches. I went to a public high school but my coaches were Christians and I didn’t think coaching could get better. But it did. Nor did I think team community and camaraderie could get better. But it did.

Q: What do you enjoy most about Wheaton?
A:
I love the communities I am a part of. I especially love the track and cross country team and coaching staff. I absolutely love the Applied Heath Science department. I love the professors and I love the students. The course track is very specific, so I have had classes with the same people for three years. Everyone loves studying the human body and we’re all great friends! And the professors love us very well. It couldn’t be better. Being a part of the Army ROTC program has also been such a blessing. Working with cadets who love the LORD and with Cadre who do too and genuinely want us to succeed and grow, however hard the process may be, has gone so far beyond what I could have dreamed the experience could be. I know “community” is kind of a buzz word around here, but it truly has been the best part of my Wheaton experience.

Q: What is your favorite track memory so far in your time at Wheaton?
A:
It’s hard to choose between three experiences that were essentially the same so I’ll lump it all into one: The CCIW conference meet. My freshman year, our 800 meter squad went 2-3-4-5 in finals which was pretty sweet! After getting second in the 1,500 meters that same day, I wanted nothing more than to win it sophomore year. So my sophomore year, I had one of the best athletic performances of my life, winning the 1,500/800 double. Coming back to win the 1,500 again this year, my junior year, and getting second in the 800 behind my All-American teammate, Luke Vance, was really exciting. I can’t wait for my fourth and final CCIW conference meet.

Q: Now that you’ve reached track Nationals for the second-straight year, what lessons did you learn from last year’s experience that will help your performance this time?
A:
Last year, I didn’t qualify for finals because of an avoidable tactics mistake. I allowed myself to get boxed in and when the kick for the finish started, I was trapped and too far back. That won’t happen again.


Athlete Awards
Date Athlete Sport
1/21/2013 Nate Serenius Men's Basketball
1/7/2013 Brooke Olson Women's Basketball
11/28/2012 Carl Sveen Men's Swimming & Diving
11/12/2012 Laura Westfall Women's Swimming & Diving
10/29/2012 Nate Veldt Men's Cross Country
10/8/2012 Hillary Topazian Women's Cross Country
9/24/2012 Jonny Tink Men's Golf
9/10/2012 Marissa Shults Women's Tennis
8/27/2012 Cassie Murphy Volleyball
8/13/2012 Garrett Meador Football
7/31/2012 Jordan Golz Men's Soccer
7/9/2012 Keri Shannon Women's Soccer
5/21/2012 Parker Thompson Men's Track and Field
5/10/2012 Sarah Ray Women's Tennis
4/30/2012 Joel Parrish Men's Tennis
4/23/2012 Lesley Guenard Softball
4/8/2012 Justin Zeller Baseball
2/9/2012 Renee Bettinger Women's Track and Field
1/3/2012 Tim McCrary Men's Basketball
11/30/2011 Kaitlyn Le Baudour Women's Soccer
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