Shakia Forbes, 22, is one of the brightest rising stars on N.C. A&T’s track team and she almost wasn’t an Aggie.

Shakia Forbes, 22, is one of the brightest rising stars on N.C. A&T’s track team and she almost wasn’t an Aggie.

Forbes transferred from Seton Hall University in South Orange, N.J. to N.C. A&T after its track and field program was cancelled.

During her one-year stay with the Pirates, she won the Big East Championship in the long jump her freshman year.

Usually one of the shortest competitors, the 5-foot-1-inch Forbes finds a way to triumph over her opponents. She is a two-time MEAC champion in the long jump, and finished second in the 2011-2012 indoor conference championships in the event.

“She has world class potential,” said A&T head track coach James Daniels. “I really believe she can be a world class long jumper.”

In 2009, Forbes showed off her athleticism and leaping ability and made the USA Track & Field team as a rising sophomore. She competed in the Junior Outdoor Championships in Bydgosczc, Poland where she took first place and jumped her personal best of 20 feet and 10 inches.

After Forbes’ success overseas, she had a major setback at A&T. A stress fracture in her left foot kept her out of the long jump pit and off the runway making her unable to compete her entire sophomore season.

“I don’t do well with failure,” she said. “After I jumped 20 feet, 10 inches, I made it a goal to jump 21 feet, and when I fractured my foot it kind of set me back and I haven’t reached it yet.”

Although Forbes astonishes some with her small size and great jumps, that is only half of what she can do.

The difficulties some student-athletes usually face have not proven to be a distraction for the senior from Ahoskie, N.C.

Forbes was unsure if she would have been able to handle both athletics and academics, but she has done so under a demanding schedule.

“At first I thought it would be hard to do both,” said Forbes. “I thought I would have to focus more on one than the other, so I always thought it was interesting that I was able to excel in both academics and athletics.”

As a member of Alpha Kappa Mu Honor Society, she has been able to maintain an impressive 3.92 grade point average earning her title as A&T’s co-Female Academic Athlete of the Year.

“Kia has always been academics first,” said Daniels. “She’s very goal driven as a young person and she’s committed, dedicated, and coachable.”

Forbes has come a long way since running the 800 and mile in high school.

She was named the MEAC Track & Field Athlete of the Week and qualified for nationals this year after jumping an indoor personal best of 20 feet and 9 inches at the Penn State Invitational in February.

This is the first time that Forbes has ever qualified nationals. She is currently ranked seventh in the nation in long jump.

“Running track has helped me to learn that I’m going to need to have balance in my life,” she said. “It’s taught me how to be responsible, and I plan to keep progressing.”

Forbes will be graduating in May with a degree in speech pathology and plans to attend graduate school at UNC-Greensboro to pursue her ultimate goal of owning a speech language therapy center in her hometown.

But before walking across the stage, Forbes is focused on obtaining another championship in her outdoor season.

[email protected] and follow her on Twitter @KayRob_

 

 

• Karmen Robinson, Sports Editor