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IN 16 DAYS, ARNOLD'S LIFE CHANGED FOREVER MARIA CARRILLO GRADUATE FINDS HIMSELF WITH A SPOT ON THE U.S. TEAM FOR THE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS DATE: Sunday, July 1, 2007 BYLINE: By ERIC BRANCH THE PRESS DEMOCRAT In a recent span of 16 days, Santa Rosa's Jake Arnold won an NCAA title, qualified for the year's most prestigious international meet and discovered that, yes, people really will pay him to keep hanging around a track. It has been an eventful month for the former University of Arizona star. In about the amount of time it takes to earn a paycheck, he's moved from college star to international presence in the decathlon world. Arnold's latest feat came last week at the U.S. Track and Field Championships in Indianapolis. He scored 7,921 points to finish third behind five-time U.S. champion Tom Pappas (8,352) and 2004 Olympian Paul Terek (8,064). His top-three performance earned the 23-year-old a spot on the U.S. team for his first international meet, the World Championships in late August in Osaka, Japan. His finish came two weeks after he claimed his second consecutive NCAA title in his final college meet, scoring a career-high 8,215 points. His winning total ranks 13th in the world and third in the United States this year. Things have happened so fast that Arnold admits he's a bit stunned. He still seems surprised that he met with agents and spoke with a Nike representative about a possible contract in Indianapolis. Said Arnold, ``I'd be talking to someone and I'd feel like saying `You're going to pay me money to run track? Are you serious? I love doing this.' '' Arnold, a 2002 Maria Carrillo High graduate, is home in Santa Rosa and will return to Tucson on July 8 to begin training for Worlds. He hopes to finalize his finances in the next several weeks and will likely take advantage of the Home Depot Olympic Job Program, for which he has qualified. Home Depot offers Olympic hopefuls full-time pay for a flexible 20-hour work week. In addition, Arnold figures to earn more money with an endorsement contract. But Arnold's coach, Arizona assistant Sheldon Blockburger, a former world-class decathlete, says typical contracts for multi-event athletes aren't lucrative. ``He's a two-time national champion,'' Blockburger said. ``I really hope he gets something that's not too insulting.'' Blockburger says Arnold will likely become a volunteer coach at Arizona in the fall, which will allow them to continue their successful partnership. Arnold, who finished 19th at NCAAs as a sophomore, won his national titles in the two years after Blockburger arrived in Tucson. After Worlds, their focus will be on the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing. Arnold has qualified for the 2008 U.S. Olympic Trials, which will be held next summer in Eugene, Ore. He figures to be involved in a battle with four others for three spots on the Olympic team. Besides Pappas, 30, and Terek, 27, there is Bryan Clay, 27, the two-time defending world champion, and Trey Hardee, 23, who holds the all-time NCAA decathlon record (8,465). Blockburger is focused on the '08 Games, but he can't resist looking ahead given Arnold's age. Decathletes typically peak in their late 20s. The past three Olympic gold-medal winners have been at least 29, including American Dan O'Brien, winner in 1996 at age 30. ``I really think Jake could be a major contender for 2012 Games in London,'' Blockburger said. ``I really think he could be a medal contender. Realistically, just making the Olympic team next year would be a huge accomplishment. But I really think 2012 could be the year for him.'' For his part, Arnold is excited about the next chapter in his career. He arrived at Arizona as a walk-on who was just hoping to compete in college. Now armed with a degree in retail and consumer sciences, he's hoping not to use it for a while. ``As long as the financial stuff works out and as long as I'm able to do it and do it well, I can't think of a better job than being on the track,'' Arnold said. ``It's great. Track is my job, and I'm the product.'' You can reach Staff Writer Eric Branch at 521-5268 or eric.branch@pressdemocrat.com. INFOBOX: IN A LEAGUE OF THEIR OWN The top decathlon marks of 2007: 1. Roman Sebrle, Czech Republic, 8,697 2. Andrei Krauchanka, Belarus, 8,617 3. Dmitriy Karpov, Kazakhstan, 8,553 4. Bryan Clay, United States, 8,493 5. Aleksey Drozdov, Russia, 8,373 6. Tom Pappas, United States, 8,352 7. Andre Niklaus, Germany, 8,340 8. Romain Barras, France, 8,298 9. Janis Karlivans, Latvia, 8,271 10. Arthur Abele, Germany, 8,269 11. Norman Muller, Germany, 8,255 12. Maurice Smith, Jamaica, 8,241 13. Jake Arnold, United States, 8,215
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