Letrell Frederick

Benton’s Latrell Frederick: All American Times 3

Latrell Frederick won All America honors in track and field three times in his collegiate career at Northwestern State University and established himself as one of the best javelin throwers in the United States.

The Benton High School graduate finished in the top five at the NCAA championships on three occasions and that earned him his All America laurels in 2000, 2001 and 2003.

In the 2003 NCAA Mid-East Regional he threw the javelin 261 feet, 3 inches, which ranked as the best distance by an American that year. It also broke, by more than 32 feet, the Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium record at Ohio State, which hosted the regional. That performance caught the eyes of the U.S. Track Coaches Association which gave Frederick one of the region's five Athlete of the Year awards.

Frederick won the championship of the Southland Conference in 2000 and 2001 with the Demons. In 2002 competing unattached in the USA Championships, Frederick uncorked a 255-7 throw that garnered a second-place finish for him. But he suffered an injury that nearly ended his career in the meet.

Reconstructive surgery repaired his right elbow and extensive rehabilitation got him back on the field in 2003 and he claimed his third SLC title and finished high enough for his third track and field All America honor.

Frederick's performances over the years and his determination and perseverance to fight back from injury truly stamp him as a world-class athlete.