To call Karen Boakye a late bloomer to track and field is an understatement.

Boakye never did any sports before arriving at Downers Grove South. She planned to be a “non-athletic” person in high school, or maybe try volleyball, until her brother convinced Boakye to go out for track.

She had done triple jump for just four weeks before her first state meet.

She blossomed into a state champion.

The Downers Grove South senior soared to the Class 3A triple jump state championship, becoming the school’s first state champion in a field event since future Olympian Tori Franklin won the triple jump in 2010.

“For me, from where I started, it was just really shocking and unexpected,” Boakye said.

Breaking Franklin’s school records along the way, winning her third state medal and first championship, Karen Boakye is the Suburban Life girls track and field Athlete of the Year.

Boakye understood that it took a village for her to realize her state title.

She noted the amount of effort she put into her endeavors, but also the work of her coaches and athletic trainers.

“Last year being injured, throughout the process last year and this year, the athletic trainers have done a good job with recovering and preventing future injuries,” she said. “Coaches played a huge role, not just training me physically to perform well, but to support me mentally.”

It was a climb for Boakye to return to peak form.

Sixth in the triple jump as a freshman, 14th as a sophomore, she strained her right hamstring early in the spring of 2025. It wiped out almost her entire outdoor season. She returned just for conference, sectionals and state, where she placed fourth in triple jump.

“I remember three days after the injury I thought I could get back into running. I couldn’t even run, walking was hard, and jumping was nowhere in sight,” Boakye said. “It was hard. Trying to run still hurt. I don’t think I jumped as well as I could have my junior year. It held me back.”

Boakye returned to form in sensational fashion as a senior.

Her jump of 39 feet, 10 inches at her final indoor meet broke Franklin’s 39-9 1/4 indoor school record. At the May 7 outdoor conference meet, Boakye’s 40-1 1/4 finally broke Franklin’s 40-0 1/4 outdoor school record.

“Beginning of indoor season I was just working on jumping distances I hadn’t done before,” Boakye said. “Breaking her indoor record was a confidence boost.”

A fast sprinter as a freshman, Boakye was approached by Downers Grove South’s jumps coach to first try long jump. By the end of indoor season she was doing triple jump and medaled at state.

“Placing was like, ‘Oh shoot, I’m actually good at this,’ ” Boakye said. “When I came back sophomore year, it was in my head, I had to prove to myself that was actually good at this. It was hard putting pressure on myself, and people had high expectations for me.”

Boakye has never met Franklin, but they share teachers and coaches at Downers Grove South that told Boakye stories of Franklin, who went on to star collegiately at Michigan State.

Boakye will attend the College of DuPage in the fall and run track, with designs of eventually transferring to a Division I school after a couple years and pursuing a degree in electrical engineering.

“I definitely never thought that I would beat [Franklin’s] records,” Boakye said. “I’m extremely surprised and unexpected. It is something that is magic in my opinion. I was not an athlete.

“To randomly join a sport and be this good at it is insane to me.”