University of Tennessee Athletics
WORLD CHAMPION LADY VOL TIANNA MADISON LEAPS TO PRO CAREER
January 09, 2006 | Women's Track
Jan. 9, 2006
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. -- The allure of a lucrative professional track & field career became too much for University of Tennessee long jumper Tianna Madison to resist. The junior from Elyria, Ohio, quit wrestling with a very difficult decision and went public on Monday by sharing that her days of competing for the Lady Vols had reached a conclusion.
Madison will immediately begin competing on the U.S. and international circuit. Like former Big Orange teammate Dee Dee Trotter, who turned pro after her junior season in 2004 and graduated from UT in 2005, Madison will continue to train in Knoxville and remain in school with plans to complete requirements for a degree in social work over the next year and a half.
The defending national champion UT women opened their season on Friday night (Jan. 6) at the Tennessee All-Comers Meet at Stokely Athletics Center, doing so without Madison in an orange uniform. Instead, Madison ran unattached in a black singlet and claimed victory in the 55-meter dash in 6.80 seconds. She did not, however, compete in the long jump.
A stellar sophomore campaign, which included a sweep of the 2005 NCAA and Southeastern Conference Indoor and Outdoor titles in the long jump and a stunning triumph at last summer's IAAF World Championships in Helsinki, Finland, catapulted Madison to international stardom. That notoriety resulted in offers of contracts and other opportunities that, in the end, were too good for a 20-year-old college honor student to pass up.
"It took me this long to really weigh the pros and cons of staying or leaving," Madison said. "It had been a recurring thought since the conclusion of the World Championships. I didn't want to make a decision there, because it would have been mostly influenced by emotion and the environment of a win at that meet.
"I had 18 hours of classes during the fall semester, and I really didn't have time to handle all the pressure of deciding whether or not to pursue this. Over Christmas break, though, I had a long time to really think about it. Unfortunately, my decision came just as the college season is beginning."
Madison said relinquishing her collegiate eligibility wasn't an easy choice to make, but the fact she could keep nearly every other facet of her competitive situation the same was helpful in her decision.
"I love this team, and that was part of the reason it was so hard for me to make this decision," Madison said. "I wanted to be with my team every step, no matter what. My schedule will be the same, except for SECs and nationals, and even though I won't be wearing orange now, I still bleed orange."
The six-time All-American reflected fondly on her days at Rocky Top and expressed her gratitude to the coaching staff.
"The NCAA title we won was a great feeling, and just improving on our places nationally each year really meant a lot. I am thankful for Coach Caryl (Assistant Coach Caryl Smith Gilbert) and Coach Clark (Head Coach J.J. Clark) for recruiting me in the first place and giving me the opportunity to receive this coaching and develop my skills over the years."
While hating to lose an athlete of Madison's caliber, Clark considers Madison's departure an affirmation of his program's attributes.
"This shows what we do here," Clark said. "We develop people to be the absolute best, whether its SECs, NCAAs, World Championships or Olympics. It is fortunate that we are at the level that youngsters have a choice about a professional career in the sport of track & field. She is able to stay in school here and complete her degree while pursuing this dream, so this is great moment to see someone who came through our program be rewarded in this manner."
"Of course, she will be greatly missed, but we will have to go on, just like when Dee Dee left or when athletes like Nicole Cook, Kameisha Bennett or Toyin Olupona graduate. We will rebound and make sure this program continues to move forward."
While the announcement seemingly comes at a difficult time for his program, Clark said he does not take issue with Madison's departure at the outset of the 2006 campaign.
"The timing is not a factor," Clark said. "Whether she decided a month ago or yesterday, the fact of the matter is that she is not going to be here. That's the reality of the situation. We weren't competing for any titles Friday; we're competing in 10 weeks.
"I just wish her the best and look for good things from Tianna in the future."
After winning the world title on Aug. 10 with a school-best leap of 22-7.25, Madison was peppered with questions from the attending media as to whether she would turn pro immediately so she could accept the prize money that is awarded to the victor. After consideration, Madison opted to return to UT for the fall semester and retain her amateur status, but the questions continued as to whether she would eventually collect the purse and forego her final two seasons of collegiate eligibility. Her Christmas break deliberations resulted in exactly that conclusion.
Madison winds up her UT career as a six-time All-American, having finished first indoors and out at last year.s NCAA Championships in the long jump with outcomes of fifth and 10th, respectively, at those meets as a freshman in 2004. Additionally, she took third in the 60-meter dash at the 2005 NCAA Indoor meet and was a member of UT's third-place 4x100m relay unit at the 2005 outdoor competition.
Last season, Madison claimed long jump titles in four of five meets indoors and seven of nine competitions outdoors. She did so despite suffering from recurring strep throat for most of the outdoor schedule. She also contributed significantly to Tennessee's record-setting sprint corps, notching a third-place NCAA Indoor finish in the 60-meter dash that helped the Lady Vols win the first women's NCAA track & field championship in school history. She also aided UT's cause in an SEC Indoor team triumph a year ago and tied Carol Lewis. American collegiate record in the long jump with a leap of 22-3 at the NCAA Indoor Championships.
Among Madison's awards last season were AOPi Lady Vol Athlete of the Year, Sports Illustrated On Campus Indoor Women's Track & Field Athlete of the Year, SEC Indoor Women's Field Event Athlete of the Year, USTCA Mideast Region Outdoor Athlete of the Year, finalist for the Honda Sports Award for Track & Field and USATF National Athlete of the Week (Feb. 15). She also was chosen SEC Athlete of the Week three times, Edamerica Lady Vol Athlete of the Month in April, and Lady Vol Athlete of the Week on four occasions.
Academically, Madison was a second-team member of the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District IV Cross Country/Track & Field squad and made the SEC and Lady Vol Academic Honor Rolls for the second consecutive season.
