Aiden Dixon is one of the fastest high school track and field athletes in the nation, and he’s only getting faster.
The senior 400m superstar from Atlantic High School in Port Orange, Fl. has accomplished great things throughout his high school career, and as his career comes to a close, he’s looking to take his game to the next level.
This is only Dixon’s third year in the sport of track and field. It was actually another sport that he participated in that led Dixon to give track and field a try.
“I started running my sophomore year of high school,” he said. “I was only playing basketball. Going into my sophomore season of basketball, the new head coach wanted all his players to run cross country for conditioning. So that was my first time competitively running at that level. I ran cross country winning the basketball and then we just got our coaches our new coach team that we have now we just got those my sophomore year. So I went to the track with them after basketball season. Trained for like, maybe a week and a half before the actual track season started because the basketball season goes on pretty late.”
During his sophomore season, Dixon made it to the state championship meet in the 400m, placing 6th in the finals. Dixon took the confidence that he gained in his sophomore season and used it to do great things during his junior season on the track. He ran a personal best time of 46.97 and finished as the state-runner up in the 400m. His success as a sophomore pushed him to be all-in in the sport.
“Going into my junior year, I dropped basketball and just said I wanted to focus on track,” he said. “I did cross country again. my season opener was 48.46 at the East Coast Classic. So I opened up with the PR and then I think the next meet I ran 47, and then it just kept dropping and dropping. That just showed me the potential I had.”
Dixon ran a new personal best of 46.97 in the 400m and finished third in the event at the state championship meet. He was also a key member of Atlantic High School’s state championship 4×400 relay team that ran 3:16.31.
Dixon took his game to the next level on the track this season. In his first season participating in indoor track and field, he had the second fastest time in the country with his mark of 46.98. He believes his indoor success was a big confidence boost for him as he heads into the outdoor season. So far, that confidence has led him to run a new personal best in the 400m, while also running a 45.3 split in the 4×400 relay.
“That was definitely big for me,” he said. “And then I had the honor to go up to (Nike Indoor Nationals.) Ran indoor there and had a good time, besides running – just going around the city and everything. And I opened up my outdoor PR with 46.95. And then the split (in the 4x400m.) So it’s only the beginning.”
Dixon enjoyed the experience of running at the Nike Indoor National Indoor Championships. In addition to achieving a great result, he had the opportunity to speak with a Florida legend and World Championships silver medalist, while also seeing his name and face at the center of Time Square.
“When they said billboard I wasn’t thinking like Times Square,” he said. “I thought it was just like somewhere on the side. Marvin Bracy Williams Jr. was there as well. I got to talk with him and take pictures with him as well, so that was also an honor. But yeah, they took us there, they had a professional photoshoot with our photos. I got some with Marvin Bracy Williams Jr. that night. It was a long night, but it was definitely worth everything.”
In addition to meeting and talking with Bracy Williams Jr, Dixon has gotten the opportunity to talk with another world championship medalist who also attended the same school as Dixon.
“I’ve talked to Curtis Mitchell as well,” he said. “He actually went to my high school. So I know I’ve been talking to a few professional athletes from Florida. It’s just nice to have that connection to because it’s just it’s not it’s not every day you can get to talk to people that were at the top of your own sport, so I was definitely on again to talk to either of them whenever I can.”
Dixon will make the two hour trek next fall from Port Orange to Tampa, as he’s committed to run for the University of South Florida Bulls track and field team. The personal connection that head coach Erik Jenkins made with Dixon in the recruiting process made a great impression on Dixon and eventually was a big reason why he committed to the Bulls.
“It was the first team that reached out to me,” he said. “Coach Jenkins, that was the first person I spoke with. I didn’t even speak to a recruiter or anything. Coach Jenkins was the first one to reach out to me. So for him to go out of his way and do it himself, that definitely spoke a lot to me. And then when I went on the visit, I got to hang out with the team a little bit and got to go to a football game with the track team. I just kind of built a bond with them off the bat. Definitely really cool people.
I’m looking forward to keeping up with their season as well. Twitter, TFRRS, everything like that. But I’m definitely excited to join them next season.”
