Yokota’s Camielle Dixon won the 100 and 200 in last month’s Far East meet, earning the unofficial title of Pacific’s fastest girl. (Dave Ornauer/Stars and Stripes)
YOKOTA AIR BASE, Japan – A bit winded, walking around the track infield, hands on hips, trying to catch her breath, Camielle Dixon made her way over to the scoreboard that showed the runners’ times … and couldn’t believe what she saw.
“I ran 12-what?” the Yokota sprinter said, hardly daring to believe what was on the screen.
Dixon had just clocked a 100-meter dash time that was .02 seconds shy of the Far East meet record, 12.33 in 2016 by Kubasaki’s Kaelyn Francis, and .09 short of the 11-year-old Pacific non wind-aided mark of 12.26, set in 2015 by three-time Olympian Regine Tugade of Guam.
“When I run my best times, it usually doesn’t feel good,” said Dixon, who ran the Pacific’s top 100- and 200-meter times this season, making her the region’s fastest girl. “I’d go back and look at my time and go, ‘Did I do that?’”
“She’s always so nervous before a race,” Panthers coach Bianca Reed said. “It’s getting her to see how good she is.”
Not only was Dixon good this season – the Panthers were as well, capturing their second straight Far East Division II boys, girls and overall school banners in the two-day DODEA-Pacific meet April 27-28 at Matthew C. Perry.
For all Dixon accomplished, she has been named Stars and Stripes’ Pacific high school girls track and field Athlete of the Year.
It was a competitive field. Dixon nosed out sophomore Justice Owens of Nile C. Kinnick, who was named Far East girls athlete of the meet and led the Red Devils to the Far East girls and overall school banners.
Dixon’s season-best and Far East meet 100 time, 12.35, was .13 seconds faster than Humphreys’ Jahydan Johnson, Dixon’s chief rival the last two seasons. Dixon also clocked 25.80 in the Far East 200, best in the region this season and .33 ahead of Kinnick’s Erica Norman.
Johnson was very much a motivator, beating Dixon in the Far East 100 preliminary rounds both this season and in 2025. “The same girl beat me, so I said, ‘OK, I’m going to get you next time,’” Dixon said.
She says she favors the 200 more than the 100. “I feel like I have more time to catch people,” Dixon said.
But she was more than a speedster, Reed said. Dixon was so much of a leader on the team, Reed considered her a coach on the track.
“She was my eyes and ears out there,” Reed said. “They (teammates) looked up to her.”
Dixon would always be checking on one of the younger runners. If need be, she would crack the verbal whip on others if they had to be motivated.
“I would give them rides everywhere, so that they would be on time,” Dixon said, adding that she would commit the team’s practice and meet times to memory. “I’m the walking schedule,” she said.
As for her future, track and field might have a role depending on where she goes to university. Long term, her goal is to join the medical field. “I want to be a nurse,” Dixon said.
“I’m going to miss her so much,” Reed said, indicating she wished that Dixon would stay another year. “But she’s got a sprinter’s heart, and a sprinter’s gotta go.”
Age — 17.
Place of birth — Ramstein, Germany.
Favorite school subject — English.
Least favorite school subject — Math.
Favorite athletes — JaMeesia Ford (USA track and field sprinter).
Favorite forms of entertainment — R&B music.
