Homecoming held for Olympic gold medalist Jenn Suhr

Posted at: 09/28/2012 11:31 PM | Updated at: 09/28/2012 11:35 PM
By: Don Hudson | WHEC.com

A homecoming to remember on Friday night in Rochester. An Olympic champion returns to her college to share her talents and her gold medal.

The event at Roberts Wesleyan College may be over, but memories that were made and the excitement that was felt is going to last a long, long time.

About an hour ago local hero Jenn Suhr came home and put on a show.

As Jenn Suhr vaulted along with other competitors at her former high school, the crowd, including the Cook family who live just down the road, brought their 5 and 3 year old children to see her. They watched in amazement and applauded with pride.

Kevin Koch is a fan of Suhr. He says, "I wanted to bring them to see an Olympic athlete."

The Cook family, like everyone else, came to watch Jenn.

While she did not set any records, she did not disappoint.

News10NBC caught up with the gold medalist after the event to talk about her return home and what it feels like becoming a role model.

Jenn Suhr says, "It's inspiring to have kids here and the energy they bring, more so than the adults. You can see it in their eyes and I hope it inspires them.

She continues, "It makes me feel special... almost like I have a responsibility, like a role model. And that's what I want to do for them. And I want to inspire them."

A couple of thousand people turned out for the event as part of homecoming at Roberts Wesleyan. It was an amazing thing to witness and to watch the best in the world in action.

While other vaulters started at 10 feet, Jenn started at 15'4" and 15'6" tying the best jump by any American woman this year.

She tried 16'0", just 2 inches from her record, but fell just short from her record.

It did not matter and the fans still loved her and the event.

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