Westmont Magazine German Track Stars Shine on Campus

The German National Track and Field Team found a home at Westmont July 3-18 ahead of the team’s competition in the 2022 World Athletics Championships at the University of Oregon. The athletes used the campus as their transitional training base for this first-ever World Championships held in the United States.

“Remarkably, a lot of the German managers have visited Santa Barbara on vacations,” said Russell Smelley, track and field and cross country head coach. “After taking a liking to the area, they found Coach Tom FitzSimons on Instagram, contacted him and made a connection.”

About 135 athletes, coaches, trainers, doctors and managers arrived on campus, sleeping in the Global Leadership Center, eating in the Dining Commons and working out at the track. 

The logistics proved challenging with people arriving and leaving on different days. “The size of this camp put me on high alert, but we got into a routine, and everybody had a good time,” says FitzSimons, who ended his career as assistant track and field coach in September. 

In Eugene, the German team claimed a gold medal in the women’s long jump (Malaika Mihambo) and a bronze in the women’s 4x100-meter relay (Tatjana Pinto, Alexandra Burghardt, Gina Lückenkemper and Rebekka Haase). 

With Los Angeles hosting the 2028 Summer Olympics, the Germans expressed an interest in returning to Westmont in six years.