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TOKYO - Nile C. Kinnick High School’s girls’ varsity cross-country team placed first at 2012 Kanto Finals at Tama Hills in Tokyo Oct. 13. This is the girls’ cross-country team’s first win since 1985. The team’s average time was 14:05.80.
Carydaliz Fontanez, junior, placed third with an individual time of 13:36.80, Elisha Dareing, junior, placed fourth at 13:42.70. The rest of the girls’ varsity cross-country team includes Cassie Burger, Mia Floyd, Kate Greathouse, Shannon McCallister and Lisa Williford.
“Cary Fontanez is the third and Elisha Dareing is the fifth fastest Kinnick girl to race the Tama course - the course we use most of the season and for our league finals,” said Rich Ringling, co-athletic director at Kinnick High School and cross-country head coach. “But they are not the only fast ones. The whole varsity group is fast. Our sixth runner is faster than some other DoDDs (Department of Defense Dependent schools) Japan schools' first runner.”
Cross-country is considered both a team and individual sport that is run on natural terrain under open skies. Race distances are usually four to 12 kilometers in distance.
“Cross-country is more of a mental game rather than a physical game,” said Dareing. “You have to be really strong-minded and very motivated because those long runs are really tough. Your body may handle it, but your mind can’t. You definitely have to be in the right state of mind.”
Running seems easy to do and inexpensive, but the benefits of cross-country goes beyond the course.
“I run because it gets my mind off stress, and I run because I like the feeling I get afterwards, like I completed something,” said Dareing. “The feeling of accomplishment is irreplaceable. Cross-country has made me a stronger person both mentally and physically. I play other sports like soccer, and I can stay on the field longer because I have more endurance and mentally I have a stronger mindset now. I don’t let things get to me, and I know that I can just push through it.”
Starting in early August with two-a-day practices, Kinnick’ cross-country members Ringling set up workouts at Purdy Gym in the morning because of the heat and running sessions in the evenings.
“Once school started, I trained with my team as much as I could. My coach would set up the workouts which are sometimes hard and sometimes easy,” said Fontanez.
Motivation to run can come for many different places. For one athlete, motivation comes from the home.
“My family pushes me to be the best that I can be,” said Dareing. “I think that running brings that out of me. It is something that I’m really good at, and it feels really nice to run.”
Extracurricular activities like cross-country not just gives an opportunity for students to get exercise, other opportunities open up when students work as a team.
“I met my best friend because of cross-country,” said Fontanez. “One day we had to run a race here to determine who was going to the next traveling meet. She was a new student, and she decided to join the team. We ran our race together, and we just started talking.”
Kinnick boys’ varsity cross-country team member, Robert Beard, a senior and this year’s league champion, set a record for the fastest run time by a Kinnick student at Tama Hills (4417m course) with a time of 15:17. Juniors Aaron Russ and Ethan Russ both had strong performances at Tama Hills setting Kinnick records for second- and ninth-place finishes respectively.
“It feels nice,” said Beard about setting the record. “But then again you now get a target on your back and that’s interesting because it steps up the competitiveness, and I like that.”
| Date Taken: | 10.13.2012 |
| Date Posted: | 10.26.2012 04:25 |
| Story ID: | 96800 |
| Location: | TOKYO, TOKYO, JP |
| Web Views: | 86 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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