Vanessa Aniteye, her husband Brandon Nicholson and their son Josiah pose for a picture.
After racing at UAA from 2017 to 2019, Aniteye decided to leave the program. A few months later she was pregnant with her son, Josiah, and married to her husband, Brandon Nicholson, who was a jumper on the Seawolves track team. The global COVID-19 pandemic caused the cancellation of the 2020 season for everyone in the country, but it wound up being somewhat of a blessing in disguise for Aniteye, who wouldn’t have been able to compete that year anyway.
Aniteye was in Seattle for over a year after having her son when she met up with the staff at Seattle Pacific to discuss the possibility of her joining the team. Aniteye said that while she was happy when she found out she was pregnant, she was sure it meant an end to her athletic career. Felix is a 36-year-old recently retired Olympic sprinter who competes in the same events as Aniteye. After giving birth to her daughter in 2018, she returned to competition in 2019 and won a gold medal and a bronze medal at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
She would go to practice from 7 to 9 a.m. and hoped that by the time she got home, her husband and son would still be sleeping. During times when she isn’t having her best days at practice, her coaches regularly remind her that track serves as an escape and brief reprieve from her parental responsibilities.
Despite having what was deemed a high-risk pregnancy, Aniteye was able to give birth naturally, but their stay in the hospital was prolonged. She earned her seventh All-American honor and first individual after finishing sixth in the finals of the 400 meters at the 2022 NCAA Division II Outdoor Track and Field Championship.