12-year-old Wilmington long jumper finishes sixth in the nation at AAU Junior Olympics

WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) –At just 12 years old, Nina Lewis is already competing against some of the best young athletes in the country. The Wilmington long jumper traveled to Des Moines, Iowa, for the AAU Junior Olympic Games, representing Port City Track Club on one of youth track and field’s biggest stages.

For Lewis, the runway is more than a place to compete. It’s where a dream takes flight.

“When I found out that I was going to be traveling to AAU Junior Nationals, I was very excited and thrilled that I was going to be going, because not everyone gets a chance like that,” Lewis said. “So I was really thankful to be able to go.”

Representing Wilmington on a national stage made the trip even more special. But when Lewis arrived in Iowa, she quickly learned the competition would be tougher than anything she had faced before.

“I definitely feel nerves but I also feel excited because it’s track. It’s an exciting sport,” Lewis said.

Lewis qualified for nationals after competing at regionals, earning her a chance to test herself against some of the top young long jumpers in the country. Coach Roderick Bell, co-founder of Port City Track Club, knew the moment would be a big one.

“She qualified in regionals and made it to nationals. Like, oh, okay, now we’re really gonna see some of the big girls jumping out there,” Bell said.

But Lewis’ competition got off to a difficult start. She scratched on her first two attempts, leaving her with just one jump to keep her hopes of advancing alive. Bell said the two made an adjustment – and Lewis delivered.

“All I did was make an adjustment. She made the adjustment and popped out her best jump, which pushed her to the finals,” Bell said.

When the pressure was at its highest in the finals, Lewis soared 15 feet, 2 1/4 inches. That jump was good enough for sixth place in the nation in her age division and earned Lewis AAU All-American honors.

“I was like, ‘Oh my gosh, I get a medal!’” Lewis said. “I was like, ‘I placed! I’m sixth in the nation for my age division,’ which is crazy. It was very exhilarating to have an experience like this.”

Getting to that level, however, takes plenty of work long before competition day. Lewis has been competing in the long jump for two or three years and says she has fallen in love with the event.

“I’ve been doing long jump now for two or three years and I’ve definitely enjoyed it and it’s definitely taken me far,” she said.

Bell says that success comes from months of preparation and a commitment to getting better every day.

“There’s a lot, a lot of practice,” Bell said. “We start indoor season around October and practice all the way up to August.”

That means late-night practices, cold practices and hot practices — along with hours spent working on speed, drills and form.

For Bell, Lewis’ success is about more than how far she can jump.

“To see her with a great PR and her buying in and continuing to get better and better every day, I think that just shows the great competitive athlete she is,” Bell said.

And after finishing sixth in the country at just 12 years old, Bell believes Lewis has plenty of room to grow.

“The sky is the limit now. We can see what she can do on a national level, and we are just going to continue to build on top of that,” he said.

Lewis is now back home in Wilmington – but she isn’t done jumping. With a national finish, All-American honors and plenty of goals still ahead, the 12-year-old says this is only the beginning.