By Olivia Ekpone - MileSplit
"Track is really my escape from reality. I get to get away from the school work, away from the drama, away from high school. And I can just go out there and truly be myself and show people truly who I am through the sport that I do. It's my first love."
The beginning of JaiCieonna Gero-Holt's track and field career began when she was seven years old.
At the time, she was a multi-sport athlete, competing in gymnastics, swimming and volleyball. In that same year, her grandmother and mother signed her up to join a track and field team and let's just say it wasn't what Gero-Holt expected.
She only focused on the sprints and jumps; Gero-Holt wasn't satisfied.
"It wasn't love at first run, I absolutely despised track," Gero-Holt told MileSplit recently. "I didn't like it at all."
She was used to doing multiple things. She enjoyed having variety and not having to focus on one thing.
The following year rolled around and she was able to try the triathlon with the eight-year-olds. Gero-Holt embarked on the challenge as this 'event' seemed to be more up her alley.
For her, doing the multis just seemed fitting.
She found her niche and she began to climb the rankings and faced a handful of the nation's best even before she entered high school. Gero-Holt won the pentathlon in 2018 at the USATF National Junior Olympic Track and Field Championships in Greensboro, North Carolina with 2,838 points.
However, it wasn't until two years ago that everything began to really click.
At NSAF Outdoor Nationals at Hayward Field, she competed in the heptathlon and finished sixth with 4,855 points against high school athletes. She was only an eighth-grader.
Two years later, Gero-Holt is flying toward a sea of records and ambition like few athletes before her. The highly-promising multis athlete is succeeding at a pace that, perhaps, only Anna Hall, the national high school record-holder in the outdoor heptathlon and indoor pentathlon, has accomplished before.
* JaiCieonna Gero-Holt competed the NSAF Outdoor Nationals at Hayward Field in Oregon
Photo Credit: Ben Lonergan / The Register-Guard, USA TODAY
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Freshman Year Was Just The Beginning
The momentum didn't stop there once she enrolled at Emerald Ridge High School in South Hill, Washington in 2022. She continued to build upon her resume.
She caught the nation's attention in her second outdoor meet of the season when she cleared 6-0 in the high jump at the Arcadia Invitational to set a new Washington state record and was ranked U.S. No. 4.
Gero-Holt ended her regular outdoor season with three WIAA 4A individual state titles in the 100mH, high and long jump, while she finished seventh in the javelin as the top underclassman. She competed in every competition that season with her team.
She did it all.
The summer season came around and Gero-Holt found herself in Oregon, competing for a spot on the World U20 Championship team in the heptathlon to represent Team USA in Colombia.
Entering the championships, the young star said she felt challenged in different areas.
"After [World U20] trials, I was mentally and physically drained," Gero-Holt said. "After my first year of high school, I did every dual meet and invitational. Then I had six to eight straight weeks of competing. I had leagues, districts and states. The next week, I was in Oregon for two weeks. I had NSAF Nationals and then I had World U20 Trials. I was just so tired."
Despite these emotions, the high schooler was able to finish second to Pittsburgh State's Blakelee Winn at trials with 5,401 points. This was the best performance by any high school girl that year and it also broke the national high school freshman record.
Gero-Holt was ultimately surprised she was able to make the team and break 5,000 points, and the challenges and the emotions ended up being worth it in the end.
"Thinking about [representing the US] to this day feels so surreal," said Gero-Holt. "It took a while for it to sink in."
In Colombia, she finished as the top American with 5,212 points and was 17th overall.
While competing on the biggest stage, the experience opened up Gero-Holt's eyes to the strength she had within herself, as well as an area of growth she began to recognize early on.
"I'm not going to lie, I didn't finish strong, I did give up on that 800m [at the World U20 Championships]," Gero-Holt said. "It's a mental battle. It's a mental push. The race itself is hard, but it's not about the race, it's about you as the person and you as the athlete and pushing yourself mentally. I struggled with that last year. This year, I feel like it's going to be another year to remember. It was an honor. I'm taking a new approach this year of being able to last and do my absolute best at Pan American Games."
Where Does Gero-Holt Go From Here?
In February at the USATF Indoor Championships, this was the first competition that she can remember where she felt relaxed and performed better than what she expected of herself.
As a result, the sophomore faced athletes who were in their 20s and 30s. The competition didn't faze her as she cleared a high school US No. 1 high jump mark of 6-0.50 to break the sophomore class record and finish fifth overall.
Her clearance puts her as US No. 8 all-time.
"I'm really proud of what I did," Gero-Holt said. "I was so close to clearing 6-1.50. I know that I have it in me. I have so many opportunities to get it and I know I have to take each and every opportunity."
Gero-Holt believes she was 'created differently and will go out there and do amazing things.' She describes herself as hardworking and determined, and she strives to be the best.
"Track is really my escape from reality," she said. "I get to get away from the school work, away from the drama, away from high school. And I can just go out there and truly be myself and show people truly who I am through the sport that I do. It's my first love."
Despite the minor mental setbacks of last summer, she's more determined than ever to push through barriers, including the 800m to finish off the day, and better herself every time she steps onto the track. Her experience as a young competitor is shaping her into one of the best athletes in the nation has seen.
This is only the beginning.
"I'm excited to get this year going," Gero-Holt said. "It's going to be a memorable year."
"I'm really proud of what I did. I was so close to clearing 6-1.50. I know that I have it in me. I have so many opportunities to get it and I know I have to take each and every opportunity."
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