By Hannah Bartlebaugh, Staff Writer
On July 31, Gracie Crowder, a high jumper on the Wheaton College women’s track and field team, represented the U.S. in the high jump at the 2026 FISU America Games in Lima, Peru. The FISU America Games took place from July 20 to Aug. 1. The games are held every two years in varying locations and feature the top university athletes from across the Americas.
Crowder, a senior studio art major, was studying abroad in France when she learned that she had been selected for the FISU Games. Her boyfriend, Ty Bova, a Wheaton high jumper, was also selected to go to the FISU Games. However, he was working at an internship in Texas for the summer and was unable to attend the games. Crowder and Bova were recruited by David Stone, the director of track and field and cross country at Elmhurst University, who was serving as an assistant coach for the FISU U.S. team.
Stone said the team selected athletes who had medaled in previous competitions and were available to compete during the summer. “It can be a challenge to find athletes who fit all those criteria, so Gracie was a blessing to us,” he said.
Wheaton track and field head coach David Walford said Stone texted him about an athlete who had withdrawn from the U.S. team and asked whether Crowder could take her place. “I was just totally shocked and thrilled,” he said. “What a wonderful gift and experience that she was able to have.”
Crowder had planned to stay in Europe up until the day of the games, so she flew home to New Hampshire, stayed for 15 hours and then flew to Lima. She was accompanied by Wheaton track and field assistant coach David Harris, who has been her direct coach since her freshman year, and his wife.
The complex where the track competition was held was designed for the Pan American Games, but Crowder said that they were not told that they would be competing on the practice track, due to the Olympic-level track being renovated. Despite the unexpected change, Crowder says that the athletes persevered through the challenges.
The women’s high jump competition was on the first day of the three-day track meet. Crowder described the atmosphere of the event. “We did this whole walkout thing, and they were broadcasting the whole thing, and they lined us up,” she said. “They would say your name, and you’d wave to the camera and to the crowd.”
Crowder finished fifth, a result she was not pleased with, but she said she was grateful for the opportunity to compete. “It was definitely one of the best points in my career,” she said. “Maybe not athletically, but this was just more like ‘Wow, you can be hanging with the big leagues.’”
Crowder’s appearance at the FISU Games was the culmination of a successful athletic career at Wheaton. She has competed in both soccer and track and field and is also a member of Chapel Band. Her older brother also attended Wheaton and competed as a high jumper, and Crowder says that she draws inspiration from him.
Crowder originally committed to Wheaton to play soccer, but she emailed Brianna Hawthorne, a track and field assistant coach, about competing for the team as well. Hawthorne invited Crowder to join the team. Crowder said her teammates have shown her grace as she navigates the challenges of being a dual-sport athlete at the collegiate level.
“I really wouldn’t be able to do it without other people giving me so much mercy,” she said.
Walford said that Crowder initially competed in multiple events, but the coaching staff decided after her freshman year to have her concentrate on the high jump. The decision allowed her to focus on one event while balancing the fall soccer season and spring track season.
“We just want to hone in on high jump and make sure that we keep her healthy there to be able to perform our best there,” Walford said.
At the end of her sophomore year, Crowder missed the qualifying mark for the NCAA Division III Track and Field Championships by one centimeter. Despite this disappointment, she continued training and returned the following season with renewed intensity.
“She just approached the next year with so much intensity, doing her best to bounce back and beyond any records that she’s gotten,” said Harris.
Crowder qualified for the National Championships in the high jump at the end of her junior year, where she placed 19th. She is also a two-time College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin (CCIW) champion in the high jump, and she set the school program record for the women’s outdoor high jump at 1.71 meters during the Drake Relays in April. She said that winning the conference title with her team has been a highlight of her career.
“The most fun thing is knowing that people are relying on you for 10 points for the team,” she said. “But once my event’s done, being able to support other people — because we had a ton of outdoor conference winners last year — was the most fun thing ever.”
Walford hopes that Crowder will be able to build on her success at the FISU Games as she goes into her senior season. “I’d love to have her place higher at Nationals and break the school record even more than she already has,” he said.
Crowder also hopes to increase her personal record in the high jump, and she also hopes to qualify for the FISU World University Games, which will take place next summer in Chungcheong, South Korea. The FISU World University Games are a step up from the FISU American Games, and the second-largest competition featuring university athletes in the world, behind only the Olympics.
While she was honored to have the opportunity to jump for Team USA, she does not want her accomplishments to overshadow the Wheaton track team’s accomplishments as a whole. “We’re all equals, and it’s amazing,” she said. “We’re all going for one greater purpose of serving God.”
