Local Sports

By HAROLD WILSON
Staff Writer

With jumps ranging from 56 to nearly 58 feet on his resume, Kenta Bell leaps into the pit with the best triple jumpers on the globe.

But according to his parents, Kenneth and Dianne Bell, a different sort of leap deserves the credit for their son's path to the 2008 Summer Olympic Games.

"A leap of faith is his motto," Dianne said. "It's gotten him to the Olympics."

Make that back to the Olympics.

For the second time in his stellar career, the native East Texan qualified for the biggest stage in track and field. At the 2004 Summer Games in Athens, Greece, Bell finished ninth in the long jump.

The men's triple jump competition begins at 9 p.m. on Sunday, Aug. 17 with qualifying. The final round gets going at 7:20 p.m. on Thursday, Aug. 21.

"You know what, the second time is better then the first time," Bell said following the U.S. Olympic trials. "This one was harder and I put a lot of work into this. I have had every injury that you can probably name and this is the best jump (56 feet, 6ï¾½ inches) I've had since 2004. I am probably the oldest guy by three or four years on the runway, so to come out here and get it done is a great feeling."

The feelings felt by Bell trickled from the site of the trials in Eugene, Ore., all the way back home.

"He's making it again, and this time we hope he comes away with a medal," said Kenneth. "It's a joy for the family. Now, with everyone talking about it, wishing us a lot of success, it's wonderful. Not everyone can have an Olympian. He's representing the United States and East Texas."

In what figures to be his last chance at an Olympic medal, the family of the 31-year old Bell believes he already won just by getting there.

"If he doesn't medal he's a winner because he's a gift to me," said Dianne. "You don't have to be an Olympian to be a star."

While athletic ability no doubt plays a big part in his success, Dianne credited Kenta having his priorities straight.

"Putting God first (made his dreams come true)," said Dianne, who thanks to the help of her church, St. John's Baptist in Kilgore, will be leaving for Beijing on Friday, but without her husband, who recently had back surgery, which prevents him from taking the scheduled 19-hour flight to the Far East.

"He's been jumping by faith and not by sight. If you don't believe you're going to do it, you're not going to do it. Put God first, (then family), and everything else will fall in line."

In the Bible, the 11th chapter and verse one of Hebrews defines faith as the "assured expectation of things hoped for, the evident demonstration of realities though not beheld."

(New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures).

Bell goes further than simply wanting to excel, he confidently envisions himself doing just so.

"I expect to medal in Beijing," Bell said.

As a teenager in the early 1990s, the majority of Bell's peers dreamed about being the next Michael Jordan or Emmitt Smith of their time. But Bell dared to be different.

An all-around athlete who also played baseball, basketball and football, Bell settled on an event that suited him best: an individual one. As the story goes, Bell vented after a teammate on his mile relay team in high school dropped the stick.

"I told him to do something you don't have anyone to blame anyone for," said Dianne, who along with husband Kenneth, have another son named Reginald who is four years older than Kenta. "If you have a bad jump, you can't blame anyone else. (When he realized that) that's when he went into that area."

Even at a young age, Bell seemed destined for success. His parents named him after the famous character, Kunta Kinte, from the novel

Roots: the Saga of an American Family, whichlater spawned the memorable mini-series. Kinte (pronounced Ken-TAY just like Kenta), made a name for himself by running away from slave owners until finally they cut part of his foot off to better confine him.

In grade school, others noticed the potential of Bell, who was raised in Kilgore's Steber Grove Community.

"According to my wife, in elementary school he came away with seven or eight medals on one of those field days," Kenneth said of his son, who is self-coached. "One of the teachers said 'you have a star in the making.'"

Bell received his degree in criminal justice at Northwestern State and gained acceptance into law school shortly after. But he envisioned another setting for prominence, one outdoors.

"He said 'I did what you required of me to get a degree, can I try track?'" Dianne recalled. "I had to respect him as a grown-up, that was his choosing. My philosophy is you're not a failure when you try. God has blessed him -- it's a gift."

Based on his career at Northwestern State, Bell appeared to have a solid chance. He won seven Southland Conference championships, gained All-American status multiple times and twice earned the distinction as SLC Male Track and Field Athletes of the Year.

In 1999, he finished fourth at the USA Outdoor championships, and placed 11th in his first go-round at the Olympic Trials the next year in 2000. Over the next five years, he experienced success at the World Championships, taking sixth in 2003, and seventh in 2005).

After failing to make the 2000 Summer Games, Bell made his mark on the global stage, taking first at the World University Games with a mark of 56-6ï¾¾ inches in Beijing in 2001.

Numerous feats followed, with Bell finishing as runner-up at the USA Indoor championship in 2002, and later setting a career-best with a distance of 57-10ï¾¼ in a victory at Mt. SAC Relays in California before winning the 2003 USA Outdoor championship when he jumped 57-8ï¾½.

The next year, Bell became one of the few East Texans to ever reach the Olympic Games when he took third at the trials, and later finished in the top 10 at the 2004 Summer Games in Athens.

"He's more relaxed," Dianne said of her son, who recently married his college sweetheart, Lakeshia, last October, and represents the shoe company Mizuno.

"He knows what to expect as opposed to the new guys. All you need is one good jump."

And a touch of faith to go along with it.

"The first time I ever went to Beijing I won with the (2001 World) University Games," Bell said, "so I think this is my place."

GETTING READY: USA triple-jumper Kenta Bell, a native of Kilgore, practices Monday in Dalian, Liaoning province in China. Bell is competing in the Beijing Olympic Games.
(AP Photo By Andy Wong)