Richmond
Oct 16, 2008
Having traveled all over the country for cross country competitions, Susannah Piersol might just win a junior national championships in her backyard.
At the 2008 USA Track & Field National Junior Olympic Cross Country Championships set for December 13, 2008 at Pole Green Park in Mechanicsville, Virginia, more than 3,000 athletes from across the United States will be vying for a shot at the title of cross country All-American and junior national champion. Piersol, who was second in her age group last year, will be one of them.
“Personally, I think it’s really neat to have competed on a national level,” says Piersol, a 17-year-old senior at Maggie Walker Governor’s School. “You get so nervous, but it’s a good nervous because you can just let it out in your run. And I think the intensity is good prep for college racing.”
Already an all-American cross country runner thanks her second place last year (the top 25 runners in the JOXC earn all-American status,) Piersol is grateful that such an important event falls in familiar territory. “I’m going to have fun on my home course,” says Piersol, “and still remember that it’s the national so I want to do my best.”
Last year’s competition in Lawrence, Kansas attracted athletes from around the country who had progressed through USATF’s Junior Olympic Cross Country Program. The series of competitions is made up of Association Championships in USATF’s 57 local Associations, 15 Regional Championships, and ultimately the National Championships where the “best of the best” take the stage. Competition takes place in five two-year age divisions, from ages 10 & under to age 18.
Note: MileStat.com is helping organize an All-Star club team of Richmond area athletes for the high school age groups to compete for the Richmond Track & Field Club and race for USATF Junior Olympic national team titles at Pole Green Park on December 13th. If interested in competing on this team, contact Brandon Miles at milestat@gmail.com
