Gateway, Cal (Pa.) grad Jae'Len Means joins elite runners at national championships

Jae’Len Means’ list of collegiate sprint accomplishments during his time at Cal (Pa.) is long and illustrious.

The Gateway graduate was a multi-time All-American who won eight individual Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference titles while with the Vulcans through the spring of 2019.

Means said while he was proud of all he had achieved in his running career, qualifying for USA Track and Field Senior National Championships remained high on his radar.

He recently was able to check that off his list of goals as he ran the 200 meters at the national meet earlier this month at Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore.

“It was a super cool experience,” said Means about his national-championship debut.

“These top guys, you never get to see them run in person. They are running in Europe and all over. It was special to be able to look over and see someone like (Florida’s) Robert Gregory in my heat and know that he ran 19.8 this year. There are now only 120 or so people to ever go sub-20 (seconds). That was a great experience and humbling because I know there are next levels to shoot for.

“Everyone was so fast. They start so quick. (The sprinters) look every bit of a pro athlete. Sometimes, you could say distance runners can kind of blend in. Sprinters don’t blend in. They have that look that stands out. To see them run so fast is special.”

The top eight from the semifinals ran in the 200 finals July 9, and Tampa resident and recent high school graduate Erriyon Knighton won with a time of 19.72 seconds. The top six finishers, including Gregory in fifth, went under 20 seconds.

Means, who turned 27 on July 2, qualified for nationals in the 200 with a time of 20.93 recorded in May at Track Night NYC.

He ran in the preliminaries July 8 and finished 24th overall with a time of 21.74.

Means said he didn’t do as well as he had hoped, but, he said, he expected it might happen after being away from training for three weeks last month.

“My coach (Cal sprints coach Sandy Estep) and I didn’t know I would make nationals in the 200,” he said.

“I thought I would make it in the 100, but it didn’t pan out. I ended up sneaking in for the 200.”

Means’ last meet before nationals was June 10 at a Star Athletics Sprint Series (100, 200, 400 dashes and hurdles) event in Orlando.

“It was a great event,” he said. “I got to see Sha’Carri Richardson run there in her tune-up before nationals.”

Richardson finished second in the women’s 200 at nationals (21.94).

Means, a senior data analyst for a pharmaceutical company, didn’t find out he had made nationals in the 200 until June 30. A couple of days before, he was moving from Monroeville to Austin, Texas with his girlfriend.

“I didn’t know from June 10 until the announcement,” Means said.

“So, I stopped training. In my mind, looking at the data, my time in the 200 shouldn’t have made it. But every year, there are some different times that do make it. It just depends on the year. I didn’t train for about three weeks. In my mind, my season was over, and then we moved to Austin on June 27. It’s hard to train when you are driving 24 hours. I was focusing on working and moving.

“The race (at nationals) didn’t feel terrible, but I just didn’t feel that I was as fit as I could’ve been. Next year, I will know to train through and keep going after it.”

Means got to share the nationals experience with 2023 Cal graduate Divonne Franklin, a sprint specialist who capped her collegiate career with national titles in the 100 and 200 at the NCAA Division II national championships.

Franklin, who also competed at the USATF Indoor Championships in February, took 25th in the women’s outdoor 200 dash July 8 with a time of 23.48. She qualified for nationals with a time of 22.65 at the PSAC Championships in May.

“Divonne and I were teammates for one year (2019), and we trained together that year,” Means said.

“She just came off her winning the 100 and 200 at nationals. That was huge for her. It was awesome to see her do so well and also get that opportunity to run at nationals.”

Means competed at NCAA nationals four times and earned first-team indoor All-American laurels in the 200 meters as a senior in 2019.

“I felt my career was validated with that first-team All-America,” he said.

Means continued to train at Cal and served as a graduate assistant while obtaining a master’s degree.

Competition for Means came to a halt and training was limited during the first few months of the covid pandemic in 2020, but, he said, he kept at it the best he could.

He took an 18-month break from training and competing from May 2021 until last November when he resumed work with coach Estep.

“I wanted to get my life together and my career going,” Means said.

“To come back to the sport and have the year of training and competing I did, I never would’ve guessed it with personal bests in the 100 and 200. It was really special to continue to work with Sandy. That made all the difference.”