Marquis Dendy was destined to be a national-class performer in track because he has an outstanding family heritage, but during his years in seventh and eighth grade he almost gave up the sport before he reached greatness.
"I went through a phase when it was kind of boring and I didn't want to run track," Dendy told MaxPreps. "It was never-ending and I never had any other type of outlet."
Marquis Dendy has chosen Floridafor college.
Photo courtesy of Joy Kamani
His father, Mark Dendy, once a three-sport athlete who specialized in the long jump, explained, "(It was) the pains of losing. It's hard to be dedicated to something and not be on the (victory) podium. Right before high school he took his biggest beatings. He was going through growth spurts."
The turning point for Marquis was making the National Scholastic Sports Foundation team.
"Travel made it more exciting," he said.
Since then his talent has taken him on many trips and as he closes out his senior year at
Middletown (Del.) he is strongly in the hunt for national indoor and outdoor records in the triple jump. He also feels he has a shot at national long jump records.
The 6-foot-3, 175-pounder has a personal record indoors of 52 feet, 1
½ inch in the triple jump. The record is 52-7½ inches. Outdoors, his best is 52-7¼. The record is 54-10¼. The national long jump records are 26-9¼ indoors and 26-10 outdoors. His best is 25-9
½ which he accomplished in the indoor season.
"The national record (in the triple jump) is a very, very big goal that I am trying to crush," Dendy conceded. "It would look really good toward voting for Athlete of the Year."
Track & Fields News record keeper Jack Shepard told MaxPreps in February, "Based upon last year outdoors and his one big jump this year, he appears ready to break the indoor record (in the triple jump). The outdoor record is probably out of reach."
Marquis didn't break either indoor mark (he did finish as the
national indoor leader in both events) which makes him even more determined as the outdoor season, which hits full flight this week.
He got his first taste of track at age 8. Two years later he added peewee football and basketball. By then his athletic path was being mapped out.
"We're an all-work, no-play type of family," Mark conceded. "We (he and his wife, Dionne, who set seven sprint records at the University of Delaware) sat down very early on and set career paths. I said track would be his best fit."
At first, his summer coach had him specialize in the sprints. Mark disagreed.
"I told the coach, 'I just think my son can jump because he is long.' He ended up going to the nationals in Oregon the first time he began jumping. I am absolutely amazed. It's so incredible, because he has come so far in a short period of time."
When Marquis reached Middletown High as a freshman, track coach Bill Dubois knew he had a talent, but he saw him more as a 200- or 400-meter runner than a jumper.
"He was raggedy as a jumper," Dubois said. "His technique had some inconsistencies with his approach. He fell off to his left and didn't jump very far as a freshman. His sophomore year he improved a great deal. He's a year-round track and field guy. He grew, matured, got older and stronger – kind of like Bambi."
Marquis won the Division I state triple jump and long jump outdoor titles as a sophomore and began to soar nationally that summer.
Continue reading
