ARLINGTON – A pair of UT Arlington men's track and field alumni in Emil Blomberg and Tobi Fawehinmi have been selected to compete in the 2020 Tokyo Games.
 
Blomberg, a 2015 UTA graduate, will represent his native Sweden in the 3000m steeplechase at the Summer Olympics. Fawehinmi, a 2017 alumnus, will suit up for Team USA as a jumper at Paralympic Games.
 
"I'm so incredibly proud of both Emil and Tobi on these tremendous accomplishments," stated UTA head coach John Sauerhage. "It's going to be great for UTA to have representation on a world stage once again this summer. The feeling they'll have representing their countries is something very few people ever get to experience. I'm so happy for Emil and Tobi, and also for our program that we are able to continue to produce world-class athletes."
 
This will be Blomberg's first Olympic appearance. A former European Championship finalist, Blomberg set his personal best in the 3000m steeplechase earlier this year with a time of 8:20.55. While with the Mavericks from 2011-15, Blomberg won seven conference championships across indoor and outdoor, including the 3000m steeplechase in three-straight seasons: the 2013 Western Athletic Conference Championships and the 2014 and 2015 Sun Belt Conference Championships.
 
Blomberg will become the 13th different UTA product to compete in the Olympic Games. He will be the eighth all-time former Maverick to compete in a track and field event; however, Blomberg will become the first UTA middle distance/cross country athlete as an Olympian. In addition, alumnae Karin Olsson – a previous Mav sprinter – was a member of Sweden's 2002 Winter Olympics Bobsleigh Team, giving UTA nine total former track and field members as Olympians.
 
Meanwhile, this will be Fawehinmi's third time donning the Stars and Stripes as he also competed for the United States at the Paralympic Games in 2012 (London) and 2016 (Rio).
 
A Mansfield Summit High School graduate, Fawehinmi was born with shoulder dystocia. In the 2017 T47 triple jump, Fawehinmi convincingly leapt to the first world title of his career (14.88m). Just one year prior in 2016, Fawehinmi broke the world record for the longest triple jump among paralympic athletes with a distance of 15.53m (50-11½) at the NCAA West Preliminary Round.
 
In his two prior Paralympic Games appearances, Fawehinmi placed 5th in the triple jump in both London and Rio; he also posted a 10th-place showing in the long jump in 2012.
 
The Summer Olympics begin on July 23 and conclude on Aug. 8. The Paralympic Games start on Aug. 24 and wrap up Sept. 5. More information will be posted in advance on UTAMavs.com.
 
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