Kenneth Rooks Rocks the Steeplechase
by Mark Cullen
We should have seen it coming.
After all, a prescient fall tells all.
Kenneth Rooks took quite a tumble early in the 2023 USATF steeplechase championships. Memorably, he got up, worked his way back from a 40-50 meter deficit and unleashed a withering kick to win.
While he was at it, he set a personal record of 8:16.78, in spite of his brief close up visit with the surface of Eugene's track.
That kick should have foretold all.
Last Wednesday, Rooks unleashed it on the global stage and won steeple silver at the Olympic Games.
Following Cole Hocker’s 1500m win, this was the second day in a row the US gave a shocking distance performance at the Paris Games.
It was a transformative two days.
At the very least, the final sprint was expected to be between Soufiane El Bakkali of Morocco, defending Olympic and two-time World steeple champion, and Lachema Girma (Eth), 4x World and Olympic silver medalist.
Kenya’s Abraham Kibiwot, bronze medalist at the 2023 Worlds, was certainly expected to be in the mix as well.
Rooks’ finish was final drive as much as sprint. He jumped the field and stormed to the front with one lap left. An audacious move, one which caught the entire field completely off guard.
Rooks led the Olympic final by almost ten meters with 250m left, and was in a clear position for a medal with 150m to go.
At that point El Bakkali, Rooks, and Kibiwott had separated themselves from the pack, and winning an Olympic medal was a matter of clearing the last hurdle.
El Bakkali caught up to Rooks and took the lead, even as Rooks stormed down the homestretch with Kibiwott in close pursuit.
El Bakkali passed Rooks and won in 8:06.05, while Rooks’ 8:06.41 for silver is a personal best by over 8 seconds. Kibiwot’s 8:06.47 earned him major meet bronze for the second consecutive year.
El Bakkali deserves credit for coming back from so far off the pace. He was 7th with more than 250m, two hurdles, and a water jump to go.
But this was uncharted territory for Rooks – over a second per lap faster than he had ever run before. El Bakkali knows this territory well, as his PB is 7:56.68.
Rooks knows territory of a different kind.
He won the 2015 Washington State small schools (1B/2B) cross country title as a high school sophomore. His winning time was 15:46.6 on the rolling 5k course at Sun Willows Golf Course in Pasco.
It was his 1A XC title in 2017, his senior year, that foretold how he would employ the gritty, fearless running style he now is known for.
Rooks blasted from the starting line and up the 100m hill that defines the challenging Sun Willows course.
He passed the mile mark in 4:50.4, with second place already six seconds behind.
It was not much different at two miles: a 9:59 split with second place now 8 seconds in arrears.
Rooks continued to apply relentless pressure in the third mile and won by almost 17 seconds in 15:18.80.
Sound familiar?
At the Olympic Games, he turned the screws on everyone but the defending Olympic Champion. He stuck with the pack and never let go. In a sometimes crowded field - and with the whole world watching - he maintained both composure and place.
As an official at the State cross country championships for 35 years - and stationed 40m from the finish - I’ve seen every Washington State cross country champion cross the finish line since 1988.
Including Rooks, twice.
As a coach, I’ve coached in both of the classifications of which Rooks was a part.
Which gave us the basis for a conversation in the mixed zone in 2023, the day he got up off the track and won.
First, we established that he is from College Place High School and not Walla Walla High School, which is up the road a piece in Eastern Washington, and several times the size of College Place.
In that neck of the woods, it’s very important not to conflate the two.
We spoke of coaches we knew in common, and of Washington State high school athletes who were succeeding on the national stage.
We spoke about his NCAA title that year, and of his USATF national title that day - the one which said that the NCAA win was no fluke and that he was here to stay.
“I just reminded myself of Henry Marsh who ran from the back of the race,” he said in the mixed zone. “I wanted to run competitively today, whether I was able to be in the top three or not.”
On Wednesday, Rooks ran competitively alright.
Imagine the post-race conversations in the Kenyan, Ethiopian, and Moroccan camps. They now have someone new to contend with, not to mention a fresh approach to the event.
A fearless one.
A courageous one.
Kick with 400m to go – why not?
Epilogue: August 7, 2024
They’ve gotta begin somewhere, and it’s most gratifying of all when you’ve seen them from the start.
Sometimes that start is the Washington State small schools cross country meet. Remarkably, that race was created by sports equity legislation I wrote in 1996, 28 years ago.
Sometimes the reward for a life in track and field is a day like this.
Special thanks to Cindy Adsit of the Washington Interscholastic Activities Association (WIAA) for arranging use of the photo of Kenneth Rooks, and to Northwest Sports Photography for allowing its use. I am grateful to you both.
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