Iowa 'adopted him as one of our own': Former Iowa standout Erik Sowinski hunting for title at U.S. Track and Field Championships

He’s technically an adopted Iowan, originally from the northern neighbor of Wisconsin. But Erik Sowinski’s name keeps permeating the Hawkeye State with each passing accomplishment.

It started in the collegiate ranks, where the 800-meter standout dazzled in Iowa gold after the Hawkeyes took a chance on a lightly recruited track star from just outside Milwaukee. Sowinski’s journey continues in Iowa City, which has remained his training hub even after his career turned professional five years ago.

Now, another Iowa chapter will be written this weekend.

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On the heralded Blue Oval in Des Moines — where he competed just two months ago in the Drake Relays — Sowinski is hunting down his first outdoor championship at the USA Track and Field Championships. After running the opening round of the 800 meters on Thursday, Sowinski will enter the weekend as one of the title favorites.

The semifinal race begins Friday at 7:05 p.m., followed by the final race at 3:13 p.m. Sunday.

“Drake Stadium is definitely somewhere that I’m super comfortable with,” Sowinski told the Register this week. “I had a lot of great races there in college, a lot of excited races there as a professional.

“To be able to go back, I’ll have a lot of friends and family there. It’s definitely comforting knowing that it’ll be a place I’m familiar with.”

Keeping that familiarity has been a driving force behind Sowinski’s rise on the track-and-field scene. Since signing with Nike in May 2013, he’s won three U.S. titles (two 800-meter and one 600), has represented the United States at three World Championships and was on two U.S. indoor record-holding relay squads (4×800 and the distance medley).

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Unless athletes ran in track hotbeds — places like Boulder, Colorado, or Eugene, Oregon — it’s not common to see guys continue training professionally at their collegiate home. But the bulk of Sowinski’s regimen is completed in Iowa City, a place he’s called home for close to a decade now.

Same facility, same workout approach, same support staff — led by Iowa director of track and field/cross country Joey Woody.

“I’m super comfortable here,” Sowinski said, “and I think that especially in this sport, you need to be in an atmosphere that you’re comfortable with to succeed. I couldn’t imagine training anywhere else.

“There aren’t a ton of 800-meter guys (who train professionally where they went to college). There a couple big professional training groups that a lot of guys hover toward. But a lot of times with that, you’re switching coaches, switching where you’re living — a lot of things. It works for some guys, and it doesn’t for others. It wasn’t really a risk I wanted to take with how much success I had with coach Woody in college and in just a couple years post collegiately.”

Much of Sowinski’s training is simplified — often just him, Woody and a stopwatch. It’s a refreshing approach, in a time where athletes can let their inner circle of voices get too big and too vocal.

“That’s pretty remarkable for somebody to do that on the world stage that he’s on,” said Mike Jay, a longtime track-and-field figure in the state who will call this weekend’s event. Not too many guys run 1:45 in the 800 and train by themselves. It just doesn’t happen.

“Even the really good ones, they’re not driven to do that solo. So that speaks very, very highly of what this kid is capable of and what he’s done and what he’s going to continue to do.”

With an eye on the 2020 Olympic Trials in Los Angeles and the 2021 World Championships in Eugene, Sowinski will look to clinch his first outdoor title this weekend.

There’s been heartbreak mixed among the success; Sowinski has finished second, third and fourth at the outdoor championships, also experiencing near misses at the 2016 Olympic Trials and 2017 U.S. Championships.

Yet through it all, the 28-year-old Sowinski has stayed true to his ever-expanding Iowa roots. In the prime of his career, the state continues to push him forward.

“The state has adopted him as one of our own,” Jay said, “It’s been a great ride, and it’s far from over.

“Ninety percent of the fans here at the Blue Oval will know coming in that Erik Sowinski is from Iowa. And the other ones are going to catch on really fast.”   

Dargan Southard covers Iowa and UNI athletics, recruiting and preps for The Des Moines Register, HawkCentral.com and the Iowa City Press-Citizen. Email him at msouthard@gannett.com or follow him on Twitter at @Dargan_Southard.