Behind the Cards 2

Track Stars App created a set of free digital track and field cards. These cards are not for profit and were made specifically to promote the sport of women's track and field and the athletes that were selected. These are not NILs. Forty-nine cards are included featuring 48 different athletes, most of whom are currently competing in college.

This is the second installment of our series which tells the story of each card, while providing information about the talented women who will shine during the Track & Field 2k22 season which we have dubbed "Rise of the Woman." We live in a time where many talk about women's sports needing more exposure and attention. Track Stars App has decided to take action.

Cards #10, 6, 7, 4

Kennedy Marable

Kennedy Marable is one of three athletes from the University of Cincinnati that was chosen in this collection. She was however the first one of the three that we learned about. We first saw her at Louisville's Lenny Lyles-Clark Wood Invitational back in 2018, which was her first season. Since then she has become one of the best jumpers in the American Athletic Conference. She was second at the 2021 conference outdoor meet in the triple jump. She is one of the most graceful athletes who has a real air of confidence. We really look forward to seeing her capture the gold in the AAC. Her photo was captured by us when we covered her at Cincinnati's Oliver Nikoloff Invitational in 2021.

Charokee Young

Charokee Young is the only athlete in this series that has two different cards. We decided to try something unique with her and celebrate her collegiate accomplishments as well as the fact that she became an Olympian in 2021. We have other athletes in this series who qualified for the Olympics but Young was a very accessible Olympian who embraced our acknowledgement of her. She's also our favorite track athlete when it comes to style. All her uniforms look so fly on her.

Ok, now back to business. It is scary to think about how she has already been a part of the all-time best NCAA 1,600-meter relay times in both indoor and outdoor seasons. She has only run two indoor seasons and one outdoor season. Young is also the third fastest outdoor 400 meters runner in school history at 50.85. She only trails world champion and Texas A&M Hall of Famer Jessica Beard and former teammate Athing Mu, who holds the NCAA record and won the 800 meters gold medal at this year's Olympics.

We made a prediction that Kentucky's Alexis Holmes was going to win the 400 meters in the NCAA in 2022. Young is hands down the only person who makes us nervous about our prediction. She has the ability to dominate college track and field for as long as she chooses to remain a collegiate athlete.

Kayla Thompson

This journey of providing more coverage to the sport of women's track and field did not start yesterday. For the past three years we have committed to telling the stories, celebrating and elevating the awareness of great women. Kayla Thompson was one of the first athletes that we pushed to the forefront of our audience's eyes and minds.

While at Northern Kentucky, she has excelled as a student, an athlete, campus leader and activist. She competed in the Horizon League, which has been dominated by Youngstown State for a while, despite that Thompson competed as if she belonged at the top of the conference no matter where her team may have ranked in the standings. Her final season was in 2021 and though we begged her to compete as a pro in 2022 and offered to sponsor her, she has decided to leave the sport behind. Despite that, we could not create a card series and not celebrate this amazing young woman.

She was in college during a trying time in the United States and while the nation was troubled with race issues and a health crises Thompson led her campus' NAACP chapter and helped organized health events that gave back to the on and off campus communities.

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