Rochelle’s Jack Tilton is an international gold medalist in the high jump.
The 2024 Rochelle graduate, who won an Interstate 8 Conference title and took seventh at state in the high jump as a senior for the Hubs, took flight and won the high jump event at the FISU World University Summer Games in Lima, Peru, on July 31. Tilton cleared the bar set at 6-foot-6 to blow away the competition at the fourth such games that highlight college standouts from North and South America.
“I just kept going and going; it felt pretty good to be so far out front,” said Tilton, who won the gold medal by five inches. “There was a point there early on when I thought, ‘I’ve got this one in the bag.’ That’s a pretty good feeling.”
Tilton soared over the bar set at 6-9 to win the CCIW conference championship with his personal best as a true freshman at Carthage College back in May, which helped secure his spot on the USA Team for the World University Summer Games. Now that effort, along with his dominance in Peru, might vault him to the next level of the international game.
“I really want to keep this going,” Tilton said.
He is hoping for a spot on the top USA team that will compete in next summer’s world games in Korea, which includes every country in the world. The 2027 FISU World University Games will take place in the Chungcheong region of South Korea from Aug. 1-12, 2027.
First, he will jump through his sophomore season at Carthage College, shooting for another conference title, and more. He heads back to Kenosha, Wisconsin, to go back to school early next month.
Jay Taft is a Rockford Register Star sports reporter. Email him at jtaft@rrstar.com and sign up for the Rockford High School Sports Newsletter here at rrstar.com. Jay has covered a variety of sports, from the Chicago Bears and Blackhawks to local youth sports, since the turn of the century at the Register Star.
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Reporting by Jay Taft, Rockford Register Star / Rockford Register Star
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By Jay Taft, Rockford Register Star | USA TODAY Network
