DORCAS AKINNIYI
WOMEN'S TRACK & FIELD
T
here's little Dorcas Akinniyi hasn't
accomplished during her time with
the Badgers. The Carrollton, Texas,
native has already earned All-America honors six times and won five
Big Ten championships in the indoor pentathlon
and outdoor heptathlon. In her eight total Big
Ten championships appearances between indoor and outdoor competition, Akinniyi finished
first or second six times. She also claimed a silver
medal for Team USA while competing at the NACAC Under-23 Championships in 2010.
She points to her runner-up finish in the heptathlon at the 2012 NCAA Indoor Championships,
which came on the heels of her third-consecutive
Big Ten title in the event, as the highlight of her
career.
"It would be nice if I could beat that and get
first at nationals outdoors, though," she said of
the upcoming 2013 NCAA Outdoor Champion-
32 ยป VARSITY
MAY 16, 2013
ships.
Her athletic success should come as no surprise, with four of Akinniyi's five siblings also
boasting careers as Division I student-athletes.
An Academic All-Big Ten honoree, Akinniyi was
active off the track, as well. Last fall, she organized the Party for Parties event aimed at educating UW students on issues in advance of the
presidential election. Saturday, she will receive
bachelor of science degrees in psychology and
sociology, as well as an integrated liberal studies
certificate.
Once her final athletic season wraps up, Akinniyi plans to stay in Madison this summer to
work for an Americorps project called Schools of
Hope that involves her coordinating tutors and
tutoring elementary school students. Her longterm plan is to work as an adolescent counselor
in a private setting, and she entertains the idea
of opening her own practice.
