Jack Hicking
Photo by David Tarbotton
"I have been a part of the Seahawks squad since 2011 and have found it to be a supportive and enjoyable environment to be in. Zsuzsa is an amazing coach with a huge knowledge base in each and every aspect of track and field. Her level of professionalism is superb, yet she is highly personable and can inject fun into every session. I would highly recommend Zsuzsa and the Seahawks Track and Field Academy to anyone who wishes to participate in track and field, whether it be for recreation or at a professional level." - Jack Hicking
Alec Diamond
Photo by David Tarbotton
"After doing my first U20 decathlon without doing specific decathlon training, I joined the squad in October 2015 with a distant but potential prospect at qualifying for the World U20 championships in 2016.
I originally was playing a reasonably high level of rugby and doing on and off athletics training that fit around rugby training. After my final year in high school and breaking my jaw playing rugby I decided to turn my focus to Athletics specifically attempting to qualify for the World U20 Championships. With a pb of 6432 entering the squad I had 6 months to improve my decathlon score to the qualifying 7200. This would most importantly involve learning to pole vault.
As the months went past my performances were noticeably improving, as the NSW Combined events championships in January 2016 rolled around. I had been training in the squad for 3 months and had already improved my overall score to 6688, including a pole vault pb by 80cm. I then went to compete in the Victorian Combined event championships in February 2016, where I had further improved my overall score to 7012 an overall improvement of 580 points in just 4 months of training with Zsuzsa.
Before I knew it the 2016 Australian combined events championships in April had arrived competing at our home track at Sydney Olympic Park. The competition started and in the first event, the 100m, I did a 0.17 pb. This continued on producing pbs in long jump, 400m, 110m hurdles and pole vault, as well as, decathlon best performances in shot put, and discus. Resulting in a overall point score personal best of 7271 and qualifying for the 2016 World U20 Championships.
I had reached my goal and exceeded m expectations, however, none of this would have been possible without the support of my coaches and training partners that taught me so much in such a small time frame. With the support of everyone around me, I am ready to move onto even greater achievements." - Alec Diamond
I originally was playing a reasonably high level of rugby and doing on and off athletics training that fit around rugby training. After my final year in high school and breaking my jaw playing rugby I decided to turn my focus to Athletics specifically attempting to qualify for the World U20 Championships. With a pb of 6432 entering the squad I had 6 months to improve my decathlon score to the qualifying 7200. This would most importantly involve learning to pole vault.
As the months went past my performances were noticeably improving, as the NSW Combined events championships in January 2016 rolled around. I had been training in the squad for 3 months and had already improved my overall score to 6688, including a pole vault pb by 80cm. I then went to compete in the Victorian Combined event championships in February 2016, where I had further improved my overall score to 7012 an overall improvement of 580 points in just 4 months of training with Zsuzsa.
Before I knew it the 2016 Australian combined events championships in April had arrived competing at our home track at Sydney Olympic Park. The competition started and in the first event, the 100m, I did a 0.17 pb. This continued on producing pbs in long jump, 400m, 110m hurdles and pole vault, as well as, decathlon best performances in shot put, and discus. Resulting in a overall point score personal best of 7271 and qualifying for the 2016 World U20 Championships.
I had reached my goal and exceeded m expectations, however, none of this would have been possible without the support of my coaches and training partners that taught me so much in such a small time frame. With the support of everyone around me, I am ready to move onto even greater achievements." - Alec Diamond
Angus Armstrong
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"To be honest, when I first began pole vault, I would never have expected things to have turned out the way they have. I first got into pole vault after I had joined the Seahawks for high jump. After a couple of training sessions Zsuzsa suggested I try pole vault. Pole vault intrigued me, it was just such a different event and I thought it would be great fun! I was not disappointed, jumping was great and the gymnastics sessions were pretty exciting.
After about a year my goals began to change, from just having fun at training to really working hard and trying to exceed my previous efforts. Medaling at nationals became an achievable prospect and I began to really get into pole vault, with the help of my training mates and Zsuzsa I began to learn more and more about pole vault. Unfortunately a back injury I had got from Rugby began to really disrupt my training. It took some convincing but finally I realised that if I really wanted to succeed I would have to quit Rugby. Looking back on it now it was probably one of the best decisions, it really helped me focus on pole vault and it definitely stopped the injury progressing. As the Brisbane All schools approached I knew this was the competition where I had to prove myself. Having come around 5th and 6th in similar competitions nerves were high and sleep was an issue!
Luckily I was competing with two of my training partners, Mudith and Alwyn. They definitely helped me settle down and I ended up with a silver medal (Mudith won the gold and Alwyn became third). This result helped my confidence. Back at training I began to learn the intricacies of pole vault, the complex technique, physical requirements, mental strength and I little bit of ‘craziness’.
As the Australian championships approached my PB slowly rose along with my resolve. I was seed number 2 behind Alwyn and I was ecstatic. But, I failed to register a height in the competition and I was shattered along with my resolve. Luckily, my training squad, parents and coach Zsuzsa really helped me move on and just work harder for the next nationals in Tasmania.
As off season began, talk of the World Youth Championships arose and my goals completely changed again, from wanting to medal at a national competition I now wanted to qualify for an international competition. Training was harder than ever but enjoyable at the same time.
Fast forwarding to late 2012 the on season began, I had learnt so much and I wanted to put it to use. Not to mention wanting to prove myself after my horrible result at the Australian Junior champs.
I have recently competed for NSW in Tasmania at the Australian All schools and came 1st (Alwyn became 2nd). I have also recently jumped a NSW U16 record of 4.35m. This is great but I still must work much harder to achieve my goal of qualifying for the World Youth Championship in Ukraine. My ‘pole vault journey’ has certainly presented me with many challenges and provided me with great experiences. I am excited to see what obstacles the future ‘journey’ will present to me and I look forward to overcoming them with the help of my parents, training mates and my coach Zsuzsa."
- Angus Armstromg
After about a year my goals began to change, from just having fun at training to really working hard and trying to exceed my previous efforts. Medaling at nationals became an achievable prospect and I began to really get into pole vault, with the help of my training mates and Zsuzsa I began to learn more and more about pole vault. Unfortunately a back injury I had got from Rugby began to really disrupt my training. It took some convincing but finally I realised that if I really wanted to succeed I would have to quit Rugby. Looking back on it now it was probably one of the best decisions, it really helped me focus on pole vault and it definitely stopped the injury progressing. As the Brisbane All schools approached I knew this was the competition where I had to prove myself. Having come around 5th and 6th in similar competitions nerves were high and sleep was an issue!
Luckily I was competing with two of my training partners, Mudith and Alwyn. They definitely helped me settle down and I ended up with a silver medal (Mudith won the gold and Alwyn became third). This result helped my confidence. Back at training I began to learn the intricacies of pole vault, the complex technique, physical requirements, mental strength and I little bit of ‘craziness’.
As the Australian championships approached my PB slowly rose along with my resolve. I was seed number 2 behind Alwyn and I was ecstatic. But, I failed to register a height in the competition and I was shattered along with my resolve. Luckily, my training squad, parents and coach Zsuzsa really helped me move on and just work harder for the next nationals in Tasmania.
As off season began, talk of the World Youth Championships arose and my goals completely changed again, from wanting to medal at a national competition I now wanted to qualify for an international competition. Training was harder than ever but enjoyable at the same time.
Fast forwarding to late 2012 the on season began, I had learnt so much and I wanted to put it to use. Not to mention wanting to prove myself after my horrible result at the Australian Junior champs.
I have recently competed for NSW in Tasmania at the Australian All schools and came 1st (Alwyn became 2nd). I have also recently jumped a NSW U16 record of 4.35m. This is great but I still must work much harder to achieve my goal of qualifying for the World Youth Championship in Ukraine. My ‘pole vault journey’ has certainly presented me with many challenges and provided me with great experiences. I am excited to see what obstacles the future ‘journey’ will present to me and I look forward to overcoming them with the help of my parents, training mates and my coach Zsuzsa."
- Angus Armstromg
Mudith Jayasekara
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"I originally trained for sprints and this is what I did for the first year with the squad while I competed in other sports like Basketball, Cricket and Soccer. During my training, I had seen the other athletes training for Pole Vault and it always sparked my interest watching the event. I wasn’t sure at the time whether it was right for me, but one day, one of my coaches asked whether I would like to try it and I anxiously accepted the offer. I began off a smaller approach and this comforted the nerves. I don’t what it was, but the prospect of jumping excited me and I looked forward to every session trying to increase my personal best.
However, with the two events, Pole Vault and Sprints, I was juggling between them and as All Schools approached, sprinting took priority. I was very satisfied as I had medalled which was considerably more than I had expected and I was off to my first national’s competition. Unfortunately, due to injury and sickness I couldn’t train for the majority of time before nationals and my goals and hopes were dismissed.
Conversely, now that I think about it, it was gift and a curse. It allowed me to take a fresh approach to training and find the event right for me. Through this thought process, my coaches and I tried different events like hurdles and triple jump. Yet after all the events, pole vault was the event I was improving in the most so we decided to stick to Pole Vault and Sprinting gave me a good head start. I began to train more seriously for Pole Vault and it had taken priority, I also stopped my other sports to concentrate on athletics. My personal best went up and it looked like it had paid off but the NSW All Schools was rapidly approaching and I knew this was the competition to prove to myself that this was the right event.
At the event I had achieved a gold medal and a new personal best of 3.60m and I was over the moon. However, I had to stay grounded as my height was short of athletes in other states and I knew I would have to work harder than ever to medal at Nationals. The training had started. Training with athletes of various levels helped me greatly as it pushed me to the limit.
Before I knew it the 2011 National All Schools competition had arrived and we travelled to Brisbane to compete. The competition started and all three NSW athletes were from our squad. All Schools being a team event, our goal was to get an all NSW finish. As the bar went up, nerves did to and before I knew it, it was at my personal best. After all the athletes had jumped, I was left standing and was now national champion. I was jumping out of my skin.
I had exceeded my expectations by so much and I was so grateful that all my sacrifices and time had paid off. However, none of this would have been possible without the exceptional support and guidance of my coaches on and off the track who have taught me so much in such a short space of time. I know this is not the end, but just the beginning of a long road and that I will have to train and work so much harder to achieve my future goals."
However, with the two events, Pole Vault and Sprints, I was juggling between them and as All Schools approached, sprinting took priority. I was very satisfied as I had medalled which was considerably more than I had expected and I was off to my first national’s competition. Unfortunately, due to injury and sickness I couldn’t train for the majority of time before nationals and my goals and hopes were dismissed.
Conversely, now that I think about it, it was gift and a curse. It allowed me to take a fresh approach to training and find the event right for me. Through this thought process, my coaches and I tried different events like hurdles and triple jump. Yet after all the events, pole vault was the event I was improving in the most so we decided to stick to Pole Vault and Sprinting gave me a good head start. I began to train more seriously for Pole Vault and it had taken priority, I also stopped my other sports to concentrate on athletics. My personal best went up and it looked like it had paid off but the NSW All Schools was rapidly approaching and I knew this was the competition to prove to myself that this was the right event.
At the event I had achieved a gold medal and a new personal best of 3.60m and I was over the moon. However, I had to stay grounded as my height was short of athletes in other states and I knew I would have to work harder than ever to medal at Nationals. The training had started. Training with athletes of various levels helped me greatly as it pushed me to the limit.
Before I knew it the 2011 National All Schools competition had arrived and we travelled to Brisbane to compete. The competition started and all three NSW athletes were from our squad. All Schools being a team event, our goal was to get an all NSW finish. As the bar went up, nerves did to and before I knew it, it was at my personal best. After all the athletes had jumped, I was left standing and was now national champion. I was jumping out of my skin.
I had exceeded my expectations by so much and I was so grateful that all my sacrifices and time had paid off. However, none of this would have been possible without the exceptional support and guidance of my coaches on and off the track who have taught me so much in such a short space of time. I know this is not the end, but just the beginning of a long road and that I will have to train and work so much harder to achieve my future goals."
Alwyn Mi
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"To be frank, Pole Vault was a new prospect for me and I had never expected Pole Vault to be good for me. The complexity of the technique as well as the scare factor made for hard work which required long amounts of time and practice. Having a weak body at the beginning had many disadvantages which I learnt the hard way. I remember planting the pole and just falling back on the runway. At first I slowly progressed from learning the takeoff followed by the swing and hopefully in the not so distant future; the turn. The amount of knowledge and fundamentals that my coaches have provided me with has been more than adequate.
After 2 months of preparation, The NSW All Schools had approached with a clearing height of 2.6m. From there my main goal was the Nationals in March 2011. My coaches put time and effort to prepare for my first National competition. By coaching me through strenuous amounts of training from strength and conditioning to coordination. This effort paid off when I was placed 2nd in the NSW Junior Championships. I felt like something inside me had come to life and the prospects of a Pole Vaulting future.
On the day of Nationals, I felt prepared but a bit anxious as this was my first National competition. I cleared the starting height of 2.9m and the competition progressed. I soon realised that my main competitors were a South Australian athlete who was the National All Schools Champion and an unheard of Victorian athlete (James Alavuk, Australian Junior Pole Vault Champion, 2010). At the height of 3.2m, it was intimidating after I hit the bar on my first attempt, whilst the Victorian athlete cleared it on his first attempt.
When the height was raised to 3.35m, I was anxious as getting past this height would mean a solid personal best as well as a chance for NSWIS ETS selection. Hitting the bar on both the first and second attempt, I knew this was going to be a tough physical and mental fight. I could see that the other competitors were particularly nervous; this height was to be the decider on who would take the Gold.
As I slowly walked onto the runway, I thought about what I would need to do to make this jump. Lifting the pole, I ran, planted and swung up and crossed but not perfectly, as I landed on the mat the bar was bouncing and I held my breath. And as time passed it didn’t fall down. I was delighted; I knew I was within striking distance of gold. But with 2 competitors left anything could have happened. After both competitors hit the pole, I was victorious.
Three attempts at 3.45m were far-sighted and I couldn’t make that height. However I was still filled with pride. I realized that if I hadn’t made the 3.35m height earlier on, I would have been placed 3rd even if both competitors didn’t make it past 3.35m.
After my first ever National Pole Vault competition, I am ranked number 1 in Australia for Under 15’s. My goals had been achieved: Firstly a new personal best as well as a 5cm clearance of the NSWIS ETS standard of 3.30m for the U15 age group. Looking forward, the competition and standards look promising but to get to that level, I will need to be enthusiastic, train harder and work harder and more comitted. “If there’s no effort, it’s just fitness” was stated by my coach inspiring me to jump what I did at Nationals. I knew that going to this level would have been hard but maintaining and improving this level would be harder. With my coaches’ help, I am prepared and ready for what will happen in the future."
After 2 months of preparation, The NSW All Schools had approached with a clearing height of 2.6m. From there my main goal was the Nationals in March 2011. My coaches put time and effort to prepare for my first National competition. By coaching me through strenuous amounts of training from strength and conditioning to coordination. This effort paid off when I was placed 2nd in the NSW Junior Championships. I felt like something inside me had come to life and the prospects of a Pole Vaulting future.
On the day of Nationals, I felt prepared but a bit anxious as this was my first National competition. I cleared the starting height of 2.9m and the competition progressed. I soon realised that my main competitors were a South Australian athlete who was the National All Schools Champion and an unheard of Victorian athlete (James Alavuk, Australian Junior Pole Vault Champion, 2010). At the height of 3.2m, it was intimidating after I hit the bar on my first attempt, whilst the Victorian athlete cleared it on his first attempt.
When the height was raised to 3.35m, I was anxious as getting past this height would mean a solid personal best as well as a chance for NSWIS ETS selection. Hitting the bar on both the first and second attempt, I knew this was going to be a tough physical and mental fight. I could see that the other competitors were particularly nervous; this height was to be the decider on who would take the Gold.
As I slowly walked onto the runway, I thought about what I would need to do to make this jump. Lifting the pole, I ran, planted and swung up and crossed but not perfectly, as I landed on the mat the bar was bouncing and I held my breath. And as time passed it didn’t fall down. I was delighted; I knew I was within striking distance of gold. But with 2 competitors left anything could have happened. After both competitors hit the pole, I was victorious.
Three attempts at 3.45m were far-sighted and I couldn’t make that height. However I was still filled with pride. I realized that if I hadn’t made the 3.35m height earlier on, I would have been placed 3rd even if both competitors didn’t make it past 3.35m.
After my first ever National Pole Vault competition, I am ranked number 1 in Australia for Under 15’s. My goals had been achieved: Firstly a new personal best as well as a 5cm clearance of the NSWIS ETS standard of 3.30m for the U15 age group. Looking forward, the competition and standards look promising but to get to that level, I will need to be enthusiastic, train harder and work harder and more comitted. “If there’s no effort, it’s just fitness” was stated by my coach inspiring me to jump what I did at Nationals. I knew that going to this level would have been hard but maintaining and improving this level would be harder. With my coaches’ help, I am prepared and ready for what will happen in the future."
Nathan Rushworth
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"For me stepping into the unknown event of decathlon with just stories of other people’s experiences and my own dreams weren’t all that comforting, but I knew the only way to understand them was to experience the decathlon
myself. Which I did for the first time in the NSW U20 Combined Championships.
Spending my entire athletics career as a hurdler, I had limited experience and knowledge of the other events. 9 months passed quickly, with me learning the different techniques of each event, and pushing my mind and body to its limits. With the help and guidance of my coaches, we managed to be prepared for my first decathlon competition.
DAY 1
The day started off as me a bundle of nerves. During the warm up the nerves began to fade and I started to become pumped. The first event was the 100m. Standing behind the blocks, numerous amounts of feelings flooded in. But I managed to keep them from showing. When the race was finished I felt excited and satisfied, because I knew that it was a good time, the best time I have done in my life. Next up was the Long Jump. Coming 3rd in the 100m, I knew that I needed to pull out a good jump to stay in the running. Which I managed to do on the 3rd and final attempt. The last attempt shot me to the lead for the event. Once again another personal best. I was even more excited than after the 100m, but my coach helped calm me down, by reminding me that there are eight more events left. Next event to be held was the Shot Put. This event was a struggle for me, because I switched off on the first two attempts, but fortunately for me my coach snapped me out of it, and the final attempt was decent. High Jump was next, being off the shortest run-up in the group was a bit intimidating, but I stayed focused and determined and jumped another personal best. The 400m was up before I knew it. I completed the race in a personal best time, but was disappointed to realise that I did about 4 mistakes in my run. The time came to rest my mind and body, and to prepare for day 2.
DAY 2
Day 2 started off with the 110mH. This event is the one that caused me the most concern, having run a terrible race a few weeks before. But I was determined to erase that memory and replace it with a much better one. Which I did, replacing it with the best hurdle race of my life! Next up was the Discus, and much like the day before, I switched off. Thankfully, my coach was there once again to snap me out of it, and I able to throw the discus a decent distance. The long awaited Pole Vault was up next. Having a rough start to my jumping, failing the first 2 attempts at my starting height got me and my supporters a bit worried. Once the starting height was cleared, I became more focused and determined. Despite the poor start I jumped the best I have ever done and performed another personal best. With Pole Vault over and done with I started to focus on the Javelin. Still being pumped after my feat in the Pole Vault, I threw a personal best of more than 4 meters in the javelin. The final event 1500m was up. I was fatigued, sore and tired, but I knew that this event was needed to get a good point score. Knowing that, I put my feelings to the back of my mind and ran, only listening to my feet hitting the ground and the advice of my coaches!
After my first decathlon competition I was ranked number 2 in NSW U20. Overall I achieved 8 out of 10 new personal bests and a point score of 6286. Even though I had many mistakes over the 2 days, all I can say is that a flame has been ignited inside me to train hard, to fix my mistakes and to improve my strengths. Watch out nationals coz HERE I COME!!"
myself. Which I did for the first time in the NSW U20 Combined Championships.
Spending my entire athletics career as a hurdler, I had limited experience and knowledge of the other events. 9 months passed quickly, with me learning the different techniques of each event, and pushing my mind and body to its limits. With the help and guidance of my coaches, we managed to be prepared for my first decathlon competition.
DAY 1
The day started off as me a bundle of nerves. During the warm up the nerves began to fade and I started to become pumped. The first event was the 100m. Standing behind the blocks, numerous amounts of feelings flooded in. But I managed to keep them from showing. When the race was finished I felt excited and satisfied, because I knew that it was a good time, the best time I have done in my life. Next up was the Long Jump. Coming 3rd in the 100m, I knew that I needed to pull out a good jump to stay in the running. Which I managed to do on the 3rd and final attempt. The last attempt shot me to the lead for the event. Once again another personal best. I was even more excited than after the 100m, but my coach helped calm me down, by reminding me that there are eight more events left. Next event to be held was the Shot Put. This event was a struggle for me, because I switched off on the first two attempts, but fortunately for me my coach snapped me out of it, and the final attempt was decent. High Jump was next, being off the shortest run-up in the group was a bit intimidating, but I stayed focused and determined and jumped another personal best. The 400m was up before I knew it. I completed the race in a personal best time, but was disappointed to realise that I did about 4 mistakes in my run. The time came to rest my mind and body, and to prepare for day 2.
DAY 2
Day 2 started off with the 110mH. This event is the one that caused me the most concern, having run a terrible race a few weeks before. But I was determined to erase that memory and replace it with a much better one. Which I did, replacing it with the best hurdle race of my life! Next up was the Discus, and much like the day before, I switched off. Thankfully, my coach was there once again to snap me out of it, and I able to throw the discus a decent distance. The long awaited Pole Vault was up next. Having a rough start to my jumping, failing the first 2 attempts at my starting height got me and my supporters a bit worried. Once the starting height was cleared, I became more focused and determined. Despite the poor start I jumped the best I have ever done and performed another personal best. With Pole Vault over and done with I started to focus on the Javelin. Still being pumped after my feat in the Pole Vault, I threw a personal best of more than 4 meters in the javelin. The final event 1500m was up. I was fatigued, sore and tired, but I knew that this event was needed to get a good point score. Knowing that, I put my feelings to the back of my mind and ran, only listening to my feet hitting the ground and the advice of my coaches!
After my first decathlon competition I was ranked number 2 in NSW U20. Overall I achieved 8 out of 10 new personal bests and a point score of 6286. Even though I had many mistakes over the 2 days, all I can say is that a flame has been ignited inside me to train hard, to fix my mistakes and to improve my strengths. Watch out nationals coz HERE I COME!!"
Stephanie Langride
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"I haven’t yet discovered anything that is as satisfying as achieving something that I have worked hard for. Competing in the State Open Heptathlon after a year of solid work with my coaches was the first time that I felt such a feeling of pride within myself. Throughout all my years of competing I’ve been very lucky to have been successful across different areas, and while I’ve always been happy with how I placed or how I had performed, winning the state championships was different because I was focused on testing myself to see just what I was capable of.
Despite only deciding to compete in the heptathlon just over a month before, I was fortunate to have somewhat of a base to work from, to quickly try and prepare skills. Although when I started training with my coaches I wanted to be a pole vaulter and my preparation revolved mainly around that, I realised when I started training seriously for heptathlon that I’d acquired much more experience than in just the one event. I’m tougher than before. I know myself better. I know when I’ve reached the point where it’s no longer comfortable, and I now know what it’s like to push through that. Heptathlon is challenging when done properly, and despite not having had a long preparation period for the state championships, I know that I can work harder, train harder and achieve more when I go to nationals. My coaches always maintained that a little taste of success runs through you like wildfire and lights something within, and it’s true. There’s no looking in any other direction except forward, towards working harder and achieving more.
I’m the athlete I am today because of my coaches. Their knowledge of the events and coaching style is incredible and I’m lucky to be able to benefit from it. What has truly helped me achieve my goal of State Open Champion is their heart and commitment to training and to me. I’ve always wanted to be great athlete, but my coaches have taught me that we must work for greatness and that you only get out of competition and of life what you put into training and invest in yourself. The state championships proved one thing over all to me, and that’s that hard work, knuckling down and focusing on what your true goals are is the way to success in any area, and any event."
Despite only deciding to compete in the heptathlon just over a month before, I was fortunate to have somewhat of a base to work from, to quickly try and prepare skills. Although when I started training with my coaches I wanted to be a pole vaulter and my preparation revolved mainly around that, I realised when I started training seriously for heptathlon that I’d acquired much more experience than in just the one event. I’m tougher than before. I know myself better. I know when I’ve reached the point where it’s no longer comfortable, and I now know what it’s like to push through that. Heptathlon is challenging when done properly, and despite not having had a long preparation period for the state championships, I know that I can work harder, train harder and achieve more when I go to nationals. My coaches always maintained that a little taste of success runs through you like wildfire and lights something within, and it’s true. There’s no looking in any other direction except forward, towards working harder and achieving more.
I’m the athlete I am today because of my coaches. Their knowledge of the events and coaching style is incredible and I’m lucky to be able to benefit from it. What has truly helped me achieve my goal of State Open Champion is their heart and commitment to training and to me. I’ve always wanted to be great athlete, but my coaches have taught me that we must work for greatness and that you only get out of competition and of life what you put into training and invest in yourself. The state championships proved one thing over all to me, and that’s that hard work, knuckling down and focusing on what your true goals are is the way to success in any area, and any event."
