Dotun Olubeko was already Chico State's fastest 110-meter hurdler ever heading into the NCAA Championships. Then he became a Wildcat legend. Ranked 13th in the nation heading into the Championships, Olubeko obliterated his own school record in the event twice in less than 24 hours, first advancing to the final and then finishing fifth overall, to earn Wildcat of the Week recognition.
Olubeko had run as fast as 14.23 heading into the NCAA Championships. But in Friday's preliminaries he covered the 110-meter distance, dissected in 10 places by 42-inch high hurdles, in 14.11 seconds. That was fast enough to finish second in his heat and advance to Saturday's final.
Despite his new school record, Olubeko's time was still tied for the slowest among those who advanced. And, his new personal record was still slower than everyone else's in the field. So Olubeko was guaranteed to be an All-American (top eight at the championships) by simply starting Saturday's final. But from the outside, it did not appear likely he would accomplish much more.
Olubeko did. The senior transfer from Fresno Community College flew through the final flawlessly, finishing in 13.97. It was a clutch performance that raised the bar for all Chico State hurdlers to follow, and secure Olubeko's name among Chico State's track and field legends.
His performance also netted the Wildcats four points in the team standings, helping to vault them into the top 10 to stay. They wound up in eighth and have now finished in the top 10 at the NCAA Championships five times in 11 years, and among the nation's top 21 for 14 years in a row.
