Chris Perry has had his share of challenges in life, from being placed in foster care, to homelessness and a serious leg injury. But the BSU track and field star has never let those difficulties stand in the way of his athletic dreams.
That determination paid off when the 24-year-old senior won the triple jump competition at the NCAA Division III Outdoor Track & Field Championships in Canton, N.Y., on May 23, making him BSU’s first national champion.
“It was the most exciting moment of my life,” said Mr. Perry, who was particularly thrilled that he won by edging the previous champion, Jamie Ruginski, who had been undefeated all year.
Perry’s winning jump of 50 feet-11 inches broke the previous BSU record he’d set of 48 feet-9.5 inches.
All season he was not able to surpass 48 feet, in part because he was taking off before the jumping board. But this time, he said, “I literally started to fly down the runway and when I hit the board, I knew the magic was there.
The winning jump culminated a year that saw Mr. Perry place second in the triple jump and third in the long jump at the NCAA Division III Indoor Track & Field Championships in March.
“It’s a great feeling because of the journey to get here. I’ve been training so hard,” said the Swansea resident, who transferred to BSU from UMass-Dartmouth his sophomore year.
Though he is not graduating until 2016 due to a change in major to criminal justice, Mr. Perry will be ineligible to compete next year.
“He’s one of the most talented athletes we’ve ever had,” T.J. Smith, the men’s head track coach at BSU, said of Mr. Perry, adding that he is also “as positive as anyone I’ve ever met.
That upbeat attitude has helped propel Mr. Perry both on and off the field.
Placed in foster care at age 2, he was adopted four years later by his foster parents in a family that eventually grew to 11 children, six of them adopted.
At Dighton-Rehoboth High School, he could not play sports until his junior year because his family could not afford the fee. But despite a leg injury that required surgery, he joined the track team that year and as a senior won the New England high school outdoor track and field championships in the triple jump – coincidently edging Ruginski.
Despite more challenges, Mr. Perry continued his track career, first at Bristol Community College – where he was homeless for about eight months, living partly out of his car – and later at UMass-Dartmouth.
His career plan is to work in the field of security, but Mr. Perry’s real ambition is to be a track coach. And he dreams of competing in the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio.
“I can feel myself heading that way,” he said. “I just need someone to give me the proper training so I can get to the next level.”
