Ever since the last time I posted, amazing accomplishments were made, yet I didn't have a chance to write about these achievements! As I am lying on the couch off on spring break, I thought this would be the perfect time to share with you the great track meets and times I had after my first sub-5 mile race on January 18th! Hope you enjoy :)
MERCER COUNTY CHAMPIONSHIPS (January 25th) - NEW PR
After running a sub-5 minute mile in the previous meet, I headed into the Mercer County Championship with confidence and excitement. The Mercer County Championship was held in the John Bennett Indoor Sports Complex, often referred to as 'The Bubble'. The indoor track arena was stunning, and the idea of running inside a bubble filled with gas was bizarre and exciting at the same time! 'The Bubble' was hands down one of the best tracks I've been to, and it was a pleasure to run in such a great facility. Moreover, in South Korea, we didn't have the Korean national anthem play before meets or sporting events. Thus, there was a whole new feeling of pride when the American national anthem was being played (always gets me pumped up before a race as well) and once again showed how all sports brings us all together regardless of our differences.
Performance-wise, I ran another personal best for the mile with the time of 4:54:41! Running in a competitive competition with talented runners from all around New Jersey definitely contributed to making this possible, as I was motivated to push until the very end. Especially as I struggle with 1200M and 1400M marks, competing in the same heat with incredible distance runners helped me overcome the pain and continue with everything I had. In addition, our team performed exceptionally well in multiple events, and Lawrenceville placed 3rd for the competition! The Mercer County Championships was another significant step that reflected the determination and effort I put into track. Last but not least, the meet once again motivated me to work harder to become an even better athlete.
PRINCETON UNIVERSITY INVITATIONALS (January 30th) - 2 NEW PR
Following a successful performance at the Mercer County Championship, on January 30th, the team traveled to Princeton University for an invitational meet against the Hun School of Princeton, The Pennington School, Princeton HS, Lawrence HS, and West-Windsor Plainsboro North HS. This was my first time running on Princeton University's Jadwin Gym, and similar to the Mercer County experience, both the indoor and the outdoor track were exceptional and were at the highest quality! Another arena that I just had to stand still for a few moments and take in.
Once again, I set another personal record in the mile with a time of 4:50:16!! This meant a lot for me as I could finally see the sub 4:50 coming up. Once again, running with numerous experienced athletes was an excellent opportunity for me as a freshman to continuously push and reach my maximum potential. Like always, I was extremely proud of the improvement I made ever since the beginning of the indoor track season and knew that better things were waiting if I worked harder throughout the upcoming weeks. Most importantly, I would like to thank my coaches, Coach Wallis and Coach Streeter, for providing the opportunity to run in these competitive track meets as I learned so much. The experience has helped me develop into a greater athlete with greater ambitions.
Alongside the mile, I doubled up and ran the 800M right after. Another PR with a time of 2:13:88! This new PR was a representation of all the training I had done with Lawrenceville since November as I finished my middle school season with a not-so-great time of 2:19. I am looking forward to running more 800M races in the spring season and possibly concluding the 2020 outdoor track season with a time between 2:05 - 2:08. Hitting 2:05 by the end of the spring season would be great!!!
Down below is the film for the mile at Princeton:
The first lap wasn't filmed but the split was a 32 (sorry for the bad quality video)
MAPL INDOOR TRACK CHAMPIONSHIPS (February 15th) - CHAMPIONS
The last main event in the 2019-20 indoor track season was the MAPL (Mid-Atlantic Prep League) Championships, where we were competing against Blair Academy, The Peddie School, The Hill School, Hun School of Princeton, and Mercersburg Academy. Unfortunately, I didn't PR this time in the mile (4:56) as I was isolated throughout the entire race. Initially, there were two heats, yet due to multiple scratches from other teams, the organizers decided to combine the two heats into one. While my seed time was a 4:50, the next seed ahead of me was a 4:40, and the next seed after me was a 5:05. Thus, throughout most of the race, I was on my own in no man's land, trying my best to catch up to the 4:40 runners. Nonetheless, with no one on the sides, it was harder to push through the race during the 1200M and 1400M marks. I totally know that these circumstances can never be an excuse, and I have once again learned the importance of running your own race regardless of who your opponents are - the importance of trusting yourself and depending on your own strength and mentality.
On top of the mile, I was given the opportunity to run the 4X400M at the MAPL competition. Although this was a last-minute decision after one of the runners decided to drop out, I tried my best to stay focused throughout the race. When I received the baton as the third runner, we were in 1st place after amazing 400M performances from the first and second legs. The only thing I was thinking about when I received the metal baton was to stay in first place because that's all it mattered. The first 200M was smooth, yet starting from the 250M mark, the pain really started kicking in. It got worse at the 300M mark. However, I knew I couldn't let the team down, so I poured everything I had and maintained the first place position as I handed the baton to our anchor runner (ended up running my best 4X400M leg!). Once again, a truly memorable experience that further taught me about track and the 400M.
Fun Fact: Lawrenceville has been unbeaten MAPL Champions since 2004!!!!!
Lawrenceville 2019-20 Indoor Track Season Re-Cap COMING SOON!
Comments