He Is Only a Hop, Skip and Jump From Goal

When triple jumper Oscar Nnoli of Torrance one day returns to Nigeria to visit his mother, he might have a Southern Section championship medal to show off, along with sand from the Pacific Ocean and a high school diploma.

But ask him what item he can’t leave America without, and you might end up laughing.

“I’d take at least two boxes of Skittles,” he said.

Nnoli developed his craving for candy while participating in a school fundraising drive, eating away at some of the profits.

Coach Kyle Irvine might promise to buy Nnoli a box of Skittles as motivation if the senior reaches 48 feet in the triple jump.

Nnoli already has set a school record of 47-5, making him one of the contenders to win the Southern Section Division II championship Saturday at Cerritos College.

“I’m not going to leave this school without everyone knowing my name as a track athlete,” Nnoli said.

He arrived from Nigeria when he was 14 with three older siblings to live with his father and take advantage of academic opportunities.

“I love math so much,” he said.

He went out for track when Torrance had Kevin Finney, who set the school record in the triple jump at 46-4 and finished second in the long jump at the state final in 2003.

“When I first started, I said, ‘This is so hard,’ ” Nnoli recalled. “I kept watching [Finney] every day. He was an inspiration.”

Last season, Nnoli twice injured his hamstring, causing him to complain about practices and not trust his body.

“The last two years, I did complain,” he said. “I was prone to injuries. This year, if I say I’m tired, no one’s going to care. I am a senior and captain. I need to set an example. I started to work harder.”

Irvine said Nnoli has “matured like an overnight sensation.”

“Mentally, he has just realized he was the guy and wanted to be a team leader and prove to himself he could break Kevin’s record and excel in the event,” Irvine said.

The triple jump also is known as the hop, skip and jump. Nnoli was struggling with the second phase.

“I had no skip at all,” he said. “My coach told me to use the heel of the foot. I usually bounced off my toes. That gave me more length.”

When Nnoli went 44-11 in a practice meet, his confidence began to soar.

“That really inspired me,” he said.

“I set my mind that I have to break [Finney’s] record.”

Last month, in a meet against North Torrance, on his first jump, Nnoli broke the record with his mark of 47-5 (wind-aided).

“When I hopped, I felt, ‘This is good,’ ” he said. “Then I skipped and went real high. Then I got my third phase and jumped into the sand. I went crazy. I was so excited.”

At 6 feet 1, 195 pounds, Nnoli has a muscular build with long arms and legs. But as much as he enjoys track, he understands education is critical to his future. He wants to become a doctor and appreciates the opportunities he has in the United States.

“It’s a great country,” he said. “If you don’t do well, it’s because you didn’t want to do well. It’s not because the country didn’t have what you needed. It has every resource.”

Now that Nnoli has set Torrance’s school record in the triple jump, he’s hardly feeling satisfied.

“I believe I still have a lot more to do,” he said.

The competition starts to become a lot tougher over the next three weeks, culminating with the state finals, June 3 and 4 in Sacramento. The defending state champion, Nkosinza Balumbu of Union City James Logan, returns and has gone 52-4 (wind-aided).

“Right now, I have no fear at all,” Nnoli said. “I just want to go out there and win.”