Senior decathlete muscles way into NCAAs

Ten things senior decathlete Adam Waddell can do: run 100 meters, long jump, high jump, run 400 meters, high hurdle, throw the discus and javelin, pole vault and run 1,500 meters.

Ten things senior decathlete Adam Waddell can't do: sit still, eat brussel sprouts, gain weight, listen to oldies music, watch Sleepless in Seattle, tolerate whiners, cry during a film, watch sports, play video games, leave his bed unmade ... wait. This article is supposed to focus on the positive -

which is good, because I think those are the only things Waddell can't do.

The list of accomplishments goes way beyond 10, though. Waddell currently holds the Hopkins record for the decathlon and recently broke the record for the pentathlon. He took first in the pole vault during the Centennial Conference Championships and qualified for the NCAAs two weeks ago with 6,258 points in the decathlon.

"I just want to be the best at everything," Waddell says. His performance this season shows just how much he does want to be the best. For Waddell, the decathlon is "the ultimate sporting event." Because the event has so many different components, Waddell is drawn to it.

"I'm a decathlete because I like doing a lot of different events. I'm kind of well-rounded, I guess," he said. "And I'm just really, really competitive. I love sports."

Waddell has been forced to show his love to one sport only, though, during his last two years at Hopkins. After a concussion his sophomore year, Waddell had to quit the Hopkins football team for medical reasons.

"I originally came to Hopkins for football," he said.

He joined the track team his sophomore year, and after his concussion, track became the sport he hadn't planned to concentrate on.

Bur for Waddell, the actual sport has never mattered as much as the competition. "I'm the kid that just goes out at whatever it is and gives 100 percent," he said. "I always have to be in a gym or playing a sport. It's my nature, I guess."

Running through 10 events in two days, with only 30 minutes between one competition and the next, pushes this "nature" of Waddell's to the limit. "I'm pretty busy all the time. One day I'm doing high jump, one day I'm doing throws. I get to see my teammates, but only for a short while. It's a pretty long day."

When he's not competing, Waddell spends time lifting at the gym and trying to gain weight. In his rare "down time," you might catch him watching The Shawshank Redemption or dining on his favorite meal: steak and potatoes.

You might be thinking the 11th thing Waddell can't do is show any weaknesses, but you'd be wrong to say so! He does confess a liking for country music and admits to talking with his mother "often."

"I like to keep in touch," he said.

And just in case Mrs. and Mr. Waddell are reading this, they should know that their son chose them as his role models. "My parents are just great people. The way I live, all my morals - it's all because of them."

These ways of living include setting high goals and working hard to achieve them. "My goal is to go to nationals and compete at a high level of intensity. I'd like to be an All-American," Waddell told me. "But I hate saying stuff like that. It makes me superstitious."

Waddell doesn't seem like the type to place too much worry on luck or superstition. "I like to keep everything consistent, the same," he admits, but his main strategy is "not to worry about technique or little things ... it's not always the prettiest, but kind of raw. I just go out and try to get it done."