LAWRENCE (KSNT) - There's a new school recorder for the decathlon at KU.
The Big 12 track and field championships brought big smiles for KU redshirt junior Alex Jung. He became a Big 12 champion while also breaking the program's all-time decathlon record. He also owns the men's heptathlon record, which he set during the 2023 indoor season and broke again in 2024.
Jung joined K-Nation for a 1-on-1 interview as he trains for the NCAA Championships. Ten events per meet is not a small tasks. Jung found success in a number of events as his track career grew and ultimately decided to continue with them all, rather than specialize.
"I started as a pole vaulter when I was younger," Jung said. "My coach used to throw me into events like the one hundred meter sprint, the four hundred, long jump... just to see how I'm doing. At some point I got pretty good at all of them and that's how we decided to move into the [multi-event] competition."
He found success quickly, qualifying for nationals in his age group in Germany during his first year competing in the unique event. His second decathlon ever at KU broke a freshman record and qualified him for nationals. Quite frankly, the talented Jayhawk made it look easy. He says it was anything but that.
"You see the results and you see either the successes or failures but you don't see what's behind it," Jung said. "My freshman year I got back from two years of injury and I knew if I want to qualify for nationals and if I want to compete with the people out there who've been practicing continuously, I got to put more work in... My freshman year is when I actually learned hard work pays off."
Jung, a native of Saarlouis, Germany, values his faith and says it serves as a rock amidst the highs and lows of his sport.
"I end my day and begin my day with praying to God," he said. "The way it displayed in my life... I had one of my best seasons my freshman year... I needed God to achieve what I wanted to achieve... It's not only that the sport is not the biggest thing in my life. It's knowing that without God I am nothing. Everything I do, I can only do through God, and through God's help."
Jung will compete at the NCAA Track and Field Championships June 5 and June 5 in Eugene, Oregon. He will travel with the team NCAA preliminary/ qualifying meet in Fayetteville, Arkansas May 22-25 but already locked in his spot for nationals given his event.
