Swedish sensation

Today marks the start of the 2018 NJCAA National Indoor Championships that is being held in Lubbock, Texas. The Hutchinson Community College track and field team will only be sending a select few to the meet, and of that few is sophomore Adriana Janic.

However, this isn’t a big surprise, as she is defending national champion in the women’s indoor 60-meter hurdles. One year ago, she placed third in the nation in high jump  (a school record), 17th in the long jump, and of course, her championship finish in the hurdles, in which she also set a school record.

She was also the Region 6 women’s pentathlon champion in 2017.

Before coming to Hutchinson, Janic grew up on the other side of the world in Malmö, Sweden, which is roughly the size of Wichita. Although her mom was Serbian and her father Nigerian, she was actually born in Sweden herself. She also attended Malmö Idrottsgymnasium, which is basically a high school for athletes.

Her biggest achievement during her high school career, was a fifth place finish in the 100-meter hurdles at IAAF World Youth Championships.

Janic’s decision to come to Kansas after high school was mostly based on the fact that she wanted to leave Sweden and study abroad. Although adapting to life here in Kansas might be hard for Janic, she mentioned how much she likes Hutchinson and all the people she met so far.

Her first year at Hutchinson was outstanding, as she was the Blue Dragons’ leading point scorer on the women’s side. Janic shined in any event she participated in, and that’s why she finished the year a five-time All-American as a freshman. After winning a national championship that year, Janic said she “was very happy that all her work she put into track finally paid off.”

This season, has already been great for Janic, as she has qualified nationally for two different events. She also repeated as Region 6 women’s pentathlon champion.

When asked if there was any pressure regarding her defending her championship this week, she coolly

Responded, “There’s no pressure, I know I got it.”

Lucas Barlow

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