Daily News All-Area Boys Track: Birmingham’s Deshawn Banks

DAILY NEWS ALL-AREA BOYS TRACK AND FIELD TEAM 2024

ATHLETE OF THE YEAR

Deshawn Banks, Birmingham, Junior

Deshawn Banks had to choose a spring sport to play at Birmingham when his junior season of boys basketball ended — the coach was requiring it.

He chose track and field because some friends were doing it and quickly found a love for it, but it wasn’t until his year that he took his high jumping to another level.

Banks, now a senior, won the high jump event in every meet that he competed in this season and he cleared a personal-best 7 feet and one-half inch to win the state title at the CIF championships on May 25.

Birminghan’s Deshawn Banks wins a State Championship with a jump of 7 feet 5 inches at the 104th CIF State Track and Field Championships at Veterans Memorial Stadium on the campus of Buchanan High School in Clovis on Friday, May 24 2024. (Photo by Joseph Vasquez, Contributing Photographer)

“When I started going to bigger track meets like Arcadia or Mt. SAC, the other jumpers were recognizing me,” Banks said. “And they brought it up to me like, ‘Oh, you haven’t lost yet.’ Then it was a thought to me. So I was keeping it in mind. It was a goal of mine to not lose any track meets.”

He achieved that goal with a little bit of effort and not a lot of stress. Banks listened to Bob Marley songs before every meet to maintain his signature relaxed attitude ahead of big meets.

“I never really get nervous,” he said. “People call it a basketball nonchalantness. I just never get nervous. I’m always relaxed and listening to my music, staying focused on what I’m doing.”

Training increased for Banks this season and he went from practicing once in a while on his own to meeting with a coach from his High Jump Nation team on a weekly basis and sprinkling in his own workouts so that he can work on his approach and technique.

The jumping has always been the easy part. People who saw him dunk a basketball encouraged him to pursue high jump because of his vertical reach and the similarities in the motions.

He’s still getting his run-up just the way he wants it as he continues to look for opportunities to jump in college and continue the sport that he’s grown to love.

“It’s by myself more, so I feel like it opened me to getting to workout by myself and practicing by myself and being in my own mental space,” Banks said. “There’s a lot of freedom and I like being out there by myself.”

ALL-AREA FIRST TEAM

(Listed by best times/distances of the season)

100 — Demare Dezeurn, Alemany, Fr., 10.36

CIF-SS Masters Meet champion, CIF-SS champion, Mission League champion, Mt. SAC Relays champion, Arcadia Invitational third place

Demare Dezeurn of Alemany prepares for the 200 meters Invitational during the Arcadia Invitational in Arcadia on Saturday, April 6, 2024. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Pasadena Star-News/ SCNG)

200 — Jordan Coleman, Granada Hills Charter, Sr., 21.01

CIF State runner-up, CIF Los Angeles City Section champion

400 — Seth Shigg, Chaminade, Jr., 48.25

CIF-SS third place, Mission League champion, Mt. SAC Relays seventh place, Arcadia Invitational fifth place, Redondo Nike Track Festival third place

800 — Grant Sykes, Harvard-Westlake, Sr. 1:55.44

CIF-SS fourth place, Mission League runner-up

1,600 — Liam Papavasiliou, Thousand Oaks, Sr., 4:09.94

CIF-SS fifth place, Marmonte League runner-up

3,200 — Sam Franco, St. Francis, Sr., 8:55.82

CIF State 15th place, CIF-SS Masters Meet fifth place, CIF-SS runner-up, Mission League champion, Redondo Nike Track Festival fifth place

110 hurdles — Miles Paris, Notre Dame, Sr.,13.96

CIF-SS Masters Meet runner-up, CIF-SS champion, Mission League champion, Arcadia Invitational sixth place

300 hurdles — Jordehn Gammage, Canyon, Jr., 37.35

CIF State champion, CIF-SS Masters Meet runner-up, CIF-SS champion, Foothill League champion, Arcadia Invitational third place, Redondo Nike Track Festival third place

High jump — Deshawn Banks, Birmingham, Sr., 7-1/2 (Daily News athlete of the year)

CIF State champion, Arcadia Invitational champion, Mt. SAC Relays champion

Long jump — Quincy Hearn, Chaminade, Fr., 22-6.5

CIF-SS Masters Meet 10th place, CIF-SS champion, Mission League runner-up

Triple jump — Addae Ma’at, Golden Valley, Jr., 45-8

CIF-SS third place, Foothill League runner-up, Mt. SAC Relays seventh place

Pole vault — Cade Sommers, Westlake, Sr., 16-1

CIF-SS Masters Meet runner-up, CIF-SS champion, Marmonte League champion, Arcadia Invitational runner-up, Mt. SAC Relays runner-up

Shot put — George Stansell, Canyon, Sr., 51-6.5

CIF-SS third place, Foothill League champion, Redondo Nike Track Festival seventh place

Discus — George Stansell, Canyon, Sr., 168-7

CIF-SS Masters Meet fourth place, CIF-SS runner-up, Foothill League champion, Redondo Nike Track Festival fourth place