TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL) - For the second straight season, the Florida State track and field team is hosting the ACC Outdoor Championships. They'll be a lot of talented athletes in house, including some Olympic hopefuls, but one Seminole is just happy to be back competing.
Kellion Knibb is ranked fifth nationally in the discus, so when it comes to her concentration in the field events, there are few that do it better.
"There's never a doubt in her mind that she's going to throw well, it's how well," said head coach Bob Bramen. "Kind of that really, really, micro managing of the event is what makes her great."
The road to greatness wasn't easy, as after winning back to back ACC outdoor discus titles in 2013 and 2014, Kellion missed all of last season due to injury, but that's only fueled her fire to get back to peak performance.
"To watch people you've competed against for the past couple of years come to your home and do things you want to do, so I guess this year it makes things a little more exciting," she said of missing last season.
"Nothing worse then a great athlete that has to sit out," said Bramen. "They're angry, they're frustrated, they want to get after it. They key is to bring them along correctly so that they are going to peak at the right time, and she's throwing the best of her life right now."
The best of her life means winning four out of five meets this seasons, and a new found confidence that Kellion says comes thanks to that frustrating year of sitting out.
"At the end of the day, if I'm supposed to go against a physically prepared person who is weak mentally, I think I would overcome her because she's not very confident regardless of my physical strength at the moment," she said.
"She had the angry face on for about five months there," laughed Bramen. "Now, she's back out here, doing her thing. She'll be in the Olympic games for Jamaica, she's got the Olympic standard in the disc, so now she's trying to win a National Championship not just this year, but next year."
Kellion competes in her specialty, the discus, on Sunday at noon. She will compete in the shot put for the Seminoles on Saturday at 3:00.
