Iowa first-year track and field multi-event specialist Annie Wirth spent her high school career playing as many sports as she could. Even as she narrows her athletic expertise down to track and field as a Hawkeye, she isn’t sticking with one event.

“From doing multiple sports to doing seven events, it has paid off in a sense,” Wirth said. “I can’t be content in one event.”

At Geneseo High School in Geneseo, Illinois, Wirth was a student-athlete in multiple sports and made her school’s first honor roll. Without realizing it, Wirth was developing the foundation of balance, time management, and dedication it takes to become a multi-event athlete on the University of Iowa track and field team.

“I’m going in with the mindset of doing what I did in high school but better,” Wirth said.

As a multi-event athlete, Wirth participates in the pentathlon. The pentathlon consists of five events from which a point total is calculated based on the athlete’s performance. The events include the 60-meter hurdles, high jump, shot put, 800-meter race, and long jump.

“I really enjoy all of it,” Wirth said. “But it’s also really exhausting.”

Until December 2023, Wirth had never competed in a pentathlon. During her first attempt, Wirth won the event with a score of 3,835 points, which now ranks sixth-all time at Iowa.

But Wirth still isn’t content.

“I’m trying to cut down my [800-meter race] time and get better at [long jump], but that’ll come over time,” Wirth said.

Though Wirth is a newcomer to the Iowa track and field program, her teammates are noticing the immediate impact she is making on the team.

“There are a lot of events she hasn’t done a ton before, but it doesn’t make her give up on them,” second-year multi-event athlete Isabelle Woody said. “She’s always dialed in.”

Wirth’s dedication in practice and willingness to learn created a smooth transition for the first year. Not only is Wirth fitting in on Iowa’s track and field team, but she is already finding ways to test the program’s limits.

“[Wirth] stepped up big and is adapting really well,” first-year multi-event athlete Carlee Rochford said. “She pushes our fifth-years.”

“She has never competed in these events before, but she is already training to beat the best people,” Woody added.

Wirth attributes her immediate success to her competitive spirit, hard work, and hunger to improve. Most of all, Wirth aims to contribute to the team on the biggest stages in collegiate track and field.

“I am very, very competitive,” Wirth said. “And I’m in it for the team. I want to win no matter what.”

Wirth believes she brought her competitiveness to the right place. Within her first year in college, she feels at home with her teammates, coaching staff, trainers, and the Hawkeye community.

“Being around a team environment that pushes you to be better and focus on yourself has really helped me,” Wirth said.

In turn, the rest of the Iowa track and field program is excited to welcome Wirth’s winning spirit and promising talent to the team for the next four years.

“She’s already super good, and I think we all admire that,” Woody said. “She’s worked really hard to get to this point, and she will keep going.”