Men's Track and Field Announces 2020-21 Incoming Class
8/20/2020 12:00:00 PM | Men's Track & Field
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- Head coaches Jerry Clayton and James Henry of the University of Michigan track and field and cross country program announced Thursday (Aug. 20) the full contingent of 14 student-athletes in its deep and competitive men's incoming class for the upcoming 2020-21 school year.
The class, made up of two incoming graduate students and 12 first-year collegians, bolsters the Wolverines' depth in the sprints, in distance events and in the field.
Joining the Michigan roster starting this fall are transfers Tom Dodd (Birmingham, U.K.) and Austin Lin (Northeastern), and recent high school graduates Dubem Amene, Chris Chuparkoff, Leo Gabaron, Anthony Hancock, Michael Hancock, Jozef Meyers, Oli Raimond, Shane Ross, Henry Sheldon, Jack Spamer, Zach Stewart and Eli Winter.
Among the class are 11 men originally from the state of Michigan, including three who have individual state titles to their names and seven more who have finished top-five in state championships competition.
Several have already made names for themselves at the international level. Raimond, an Australian national, represented his home country at the 2019 IAAF World U20 Cross Country Championships, and twin brothers Anthony and Michael Hancock competed for Team USA at the 2019 World Mountain Racing Championships.
Nationally, Spamer finished top-20 at both the 2019 Foot Locker National Championships and Nike Cross Nationals in cross country as one of three men in the class who competed at either of those meets. On the track, he is among seven in the class who have competed at New Balance Nationals. Chuparkoff comes to Ann Arbor with a pair of NBN crowns to his credit as part of sprint medley relay teams that won in 2017 -- including one featuring current Wolverine Anthony DeKraker.
Dubem Amene
Sprints | Southfield, Mich. | Southfield Christian HS
2019 MHSAA Division 4 state champion at 400 meters ... Two-time indoor MITS state winner in the 400 meters and the 4x400 relay ... Ran a leg of the winning 4x800 relay team in the 17-18 division at the 2019 AAU Junior Olympic Nationals, to go along with a 10th-place finish in the 4x400 relay ... Ran 48.57 for the fastest time among Michigan high schoolers for the 2020 indoor season, and ranked 21st nationally
Christopher Chuparkoff
Sprints | Saline, Mich. | IMG Academy
Four-time competitor at New Balance Nationals, winning national titles in the 800-meter and 1,600-meter sprint medley relays (the latter as a teammate of current Wolverine Anthony DeKraker) ... Finished runner-up in the Emerging Elite 400 meters at the 2019 New Balance Nationals Indoors, and fifth in the Freshman section of the event at the 2017 NBN Outdoors
Tom Dodd
Distance | Birmingham, England |Â University of Birmingham (Transfer)
Will have two seasons of NCAA eligibility at Michigan ... Clocked 1:48.84 for 800 meters in 2019, making him the seventh-fastest U23 athlete in the United Kingdom for the season ... Ran 3:45.63 over 1,500 meters in 2019, making him the 12th-fastest U23 athlete in the United Kingdom for the season
Leo Gabaron
Sprints/Hurdles | Ann Arbor, Mich. | Ann Arbor Pioneer HS
2019 AAU Junior Olympic Nationals qualifier both in the 110- and 400-meter hurdles ... Finished top-10 at the MHSAA Division 1 State Finals in both the 110- and 300-meter hurdles events, placing fourth in the latter and fifth in the former
Anthony Hancock
Distance | Dearborn, Mich. | Dearborn Divine Child HS
2019 MHSAA Division 2 state champion at 3,200 meters ... Finished 31st overall at the 2019 World Mountain Running Championships as a member of Team USA ... Three-time top-10 finisher at the MHSAA Division 2 State Finals in cross country, including a runner-up finish in 2019
Michael Hancock
Distance | Dearborn, Mich. | Dearborn Divine Child HS
Won the 2019 New Balance Nationals Outdoor Emerging Elite title in the two mile ... Finished 26th overall at the 2019 World Mountain Running Championships as a member of Team USA ... Finished 32nd at the 2019 Foot Locker Nationals and 48th at the 2019 Nike Cross Nationals ... Three-time top-10 finisher at the MHSAA Division 2 State Finals
Austin Lin
Sprints | Watertown, Mass. | Watertown HS
Attended and competed for Northeastern during the 2017-2020 seasons, and will come to Michigan with one year of outdoor eligibility ... Claimed the bronze medal over 400 meters at the 2017 CAA Championships, and won silver medals on the 4x400 relay team in both 2017 and 2019
Joe Meyers
Distance | Kalamazoo, Mich. | Kalamazoo Loy Norrix HS
Three-time qualifier for the MHSAA Division 1 State Finals in cross country ... Finished sixth overall at 1,600 meters at the 2020 MITS Indoor State Finals ... Took 22nd at the 2019 Foot Locker Midwest Regional in cross country
Oli Raimond
Distance | Sydney, Australia | Caringbah HS
With 2020 outdoor bests during the COVID-19-shortened season, ranked No. 1 in the world among U20 athletes at 3,000 meters in 8:09.95 and No. 5 globally at 1,500 meters in 3:46.31 ... Won the 2019 New South Wales All-Schools title in the 5,000 meters and finished runner-up at 1,500 meters ... Won the 2019 Oceania Athletics Championships U20 title in the 3,000 meters ... Finished 78th overall at the 2019 IAAF World U20 Cross Country Championships
Shane Ross
Sprints/Hurdles | Oxford, Mich. | Oxford HS
Finished top-seven in both the 110- and 300-meter hurdles at the 2019 MHSAA Division 1 State Finals, taking third in the 300-meter hurdles and seventh in the 110-meter hurdles ... Finished 26th overall in the Championship section of the 400-meter hurdles at the 2019 New Balance Nationals Outdoor and seventh in the Emerging Elite section of the 110-meter hurdles
Henry Sheldon
Pole Vault | Dexter, Mich. | Dexter HS
Finished runner-up in the pole vault at the 2019 MHSAA Division 1 State Finals and fourth at the 2019 MITS Indoor State Finals ... Between 2018 and 2019, improved his personal record in the pole vault from 4.50m (14 feet, 9.5 inches) to 4.92m (16-2) ... Finished ninth in the emerging elite pole vault at the 2019 New Balance Nationals Outdoors ... No. 3 vaulter in Michigan in 2019
Jack Spamer
Distance | Brighton, Mich. | Brighton HS
Finished top-20 at both Nike Cross Nationals (17th) and Foot Locker Nationals (19th) in 2019 ... Won the 3,200-meter title at the 2020 MITS Indoor State Finals ... Finished fifth in the Emerging Elite section of the two mile at the 2019 New Balance Nationals Indoor meet and ran a leg of the ninth-place distance medley relay team at the 2019 New Balance Nationals Outdoor meet
Zach Stewart
Distance | Brighton, Mich. | Brighton HS
Two-time top-10 finisher in the New Balance Nationals two-mile in 2019, placing seventh indoors and 10th outdoors ... Finished 26th at the 2019 Foot Locker National Championships in cross country ... Four-time top-30 finisher at the MHSAA Division 1 State Finals in cross country
Eli Winter
Throws | Alpena, Mich. | Alpena HS
During the 2020 indoor season, set the state record in the weight throw at 21.05m (69-1) and won the MITS Indoor State Finals title ... Finished the 2020 winter season ranked No. 17 nationally in the weight throw ... Finished third in the 2020 NSAF x AthleticNET Virtual Nationals discus competition and 10th in the hammer throw
Players Mentioned
