Zoe Tibbo’s athletic career began on a track – just not the one you’d expect.
When she was seven years old, Tibbo’s parents took her to a Los Angeles Derby Dolls game, and Zoe was captivated by the fast-paced action of skaters blocking each other while jammers blitzed around the track.
By the time she turned eight, she was finally eligible to join a junior roller derby team, and Zoe’s 10-year run of success in the sport had begun – which ultimately included a team world championship win with her team, Los Anarchists.
“Roller derby is very different from track, but I think it helped me get into athletics, and being part of a team,” Tibbo said. “It also helped me in developing a strong work ethic and time management skills.”
In her freshman year of high school, Zoe’s track coach suggested that she try out jumps, suspecting that her background in gymnastics and roller derby would make her a strong jumper.
“In roller derby, I was really into doing apex jumps,” Tibbo said. “The track curves around, and then at a corner, you can jump over a section of the track. I was kind of known for doing apex jumps, which led to me being a jumper in track.”
Once her track coach saw her jumps freshman year, he knew that it was her event. And Zoe had a newfound passion.
“I just like the feeling of taking flight, and I like how technical jumping is,” Tibbo said. “There’s so many different factors that you can work on to improve your distance in jumps.”
By senior year of high school, she was ready to go all in on track, and her recruitment process took her from South Pasadena High School in the L.A. area up to Seattle. Zoe met with other schools in California, but connected with Seattle U’s coaching staff and culture.
“It was very supportive,” Tibbo said. “Everyone on the team seemed like they bonded really well, and that drew me to SU.”
Suffice to say, Seattle U and Zoe have made for a good match.
Zoe is top five in school history in the indoor triple jump, indoor long jump, and outdoor long jump, and top 10 in the outdoor triple jump.
The 2025 season was Zoe’s best; in the indoor season, she recorded the fourth-best triple jump in Redhawk history, along with the 10th fastest 100-meter run in the school’s history. In the outdoor season, she upped the ante with the third-best triple jump in SU history, and an eighth place triple jumps finish at the Western Athletic Conference Championships.
“Jumping goes by fast,” Tibbo said. “You just launch into the air, and I love that feeling of hang time. Last season, I was getting that feeling a lot more because I was getting a lot more air.”
The efforts resulted in second-team All-WAC Triple Jump honors for the 2025 season.
“Those are things at one point that I didn’t think I could accomplish,” Tibbo said. “I attribute a lot of my growth and success in jumps this past year to coach Ron (Atkins). He’s an amazing coach, and he saw my potential and helped me to believe in myself."
As decorated as Zoe’s athletic career has been, her feats off the track are equally impressive. Zoe is majoring in kinesiology and minoring in biology, aspiring to be a physician’s assistant in orthopedics or the ER.
“Majoring in kinesiology has helped me better understand how my body moves, how injuries occur and how to train smarter,” Tibbo said.
If that wasn’t enough, Tibbo also has the trade secrets of the United States Air Force at her disposal.
Through Seattle U’s kinesiology department, Zoe completed a strength and conditioning internship at JBLM (Joint Base Lewis-McChord) with an air force unit.
“Through that internship, I learned new movements and exercises that I’ve been able to apply to my training,” Tibbo said. “It has made me more intentional and knowledgeable about how to train and recover properly.”
With a kinesiology major and bio minor, as well as athletics and her job on campus as a personal trainer, Zoe has her hands full.
“In high school, being able to do competitive roller derby, and high school track, it really helped me build up those time management skills that I still use to this day.”
Entering her final track and field season at Seattle U, Zoe will have the chance to reach new heights as she pursues PR’s in the long and triple jumps.
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