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Pau Tonnesen, left, and his coaches were honored by the Arizona Diamondbacks
Pau Tonnesen, left, and his coaches were honored by the Arizona Diamondbacks
Pau Tonnesen, left, and his coaches were honored by the Arizona Diamondbacks
Posted: Jun 13, 2015

Tonnesen places second in NCAA decathlon; betters Olympic qualifying mark

  EUGENE, Ore. - Former Mesa track and field All-American Pau Tonnesen placed second in the decathlon at the recent NCAA Track and Field national championships and easily met the mark needed for him to pursue Olympic qualification. He is competing for the University of Arizona.

  He finished with a total of 8,247 points, easily passing the Olympic qualification mark of 8,075 and shattering his personal best of 7,823 set while winning the PAC-12 championship.

  Tonnesen earned the right to compete for Olympic qualification and has two options. He could be invited to the United States Olympic trials where the three-man U.S. pole vault delegation will be selected.

  However, he could compete for Spain, as his mother was born in that country, making him eligible.

  During the NCAA championships he placed first in his speciality, the pole vault with a leap of 17-5, as well as in the shot put at 49-9 1/4. He was also second in the discus, high jump and long jump.

  While at MCC he won NJCAA championships in both the pentathlon indoors and the decathlon outdoors in each of his two years. It is believed to be the only time in NJCAA history that feat has been accomplished.