No. 1 Seed. One Goal. Bring Gold Back to the Valley

UTRGV freshman Dakoda Dement enters the AAU Junior Olympic shot put competition at the top of the field.

Before his first collegiate meet, Dakoda Dement has a chance to arrive at UTRGV as an AAU Junior Olympic champion.

The AAU Junior Olympic Games entry list has Dement seeded No. 1 in the 17–18 shot put with a 60-foot entry mark.

In an exclusive interview with DITV956.com, Dement said his goal is clear: bring a gold medal back to the Rio Grande Valley.

“Repping the Valley means so much to me, not only with class and character, but by also bringing an energy that no other community could bring,” Dement told DITV956.com.

The AAU Junior Olympic Games bring together many of the nation’s top youth athletes, making it one of the biggest national stages in youth track and field.

Dement recently completed his senior season and will begin his freshman year at UTRGV. He believes the biggest reason he is prepared for this stage is the consistency he has built throughout his throwing career.

“Consistency is super important when it comes to throwing,” Dement said. “That doesn’t necessarily mean consistent marks, but consistently practicing and improving technique every day. Other than that, the big meets like Texas Relays and state meets have given me a look into how JO’s should play out,” he told DITV956.com.

The margin at the top of the field is narrow. Joseph Bockwell enters with a mark of 59 feet, 5.25 inches, while Morgan Cooley and Temitope Ogunyomi are also within two feet of Dement’s top-seeded mark.

Dement knows the No. 1 seed does not guarantee the medal.

“Of course my ultimate goal will be to bring a gold medal home to the Valley,” Dement said. “Currently I am the No. 1 seed, but there are two other guys who I expect to bring the heat during competition,” he told DITV956.com.

His goals extend beyond the Junior Olympics.

“When I start my career in the Valley, I hope to improve my mark every meet and score big at the conference level,” Dement told DITV956.com.

DITV956 Final Word

Dakoda Dement enters Wednesday as the top seed in a tightly matched field. A gold medal would give the Valley a national champion—and give UTRGV an incoming freshman already proven on a major stage.