Getting his first chance to run on varsity full time, junior Stephen He continued a trend of hard work which led to a drop in times at meets.
“Running varsity full time put me in a different mindset than last year,” He said. “Going into meets [last year], I wouldn’t know which race I was running until Bergeron told me. Now that I know I’m running varsity, it makes it a lot easier to focus and prepare for my race.”
The extra mental preparation that He had went a long way. At the Conference meet this year, he ran a personal best time, improving by thirty seconds from his best time last year. This happened in unfavorable circumstances for the junior runner as he slipped in the first 100 meters of his race.
“Instead of letting it bring me down, I felt more determined to run as fast as I could,” He said. “Throughout the race, I pushed myself to keep up with the front pack. It was such a relief to succeed, and the effort that I had put in over the years paid off. It was amazing.”
That determination to succeed that He displayed in his race might be what keeps him motivated throughout the offseason.
“I run regularly in the offseason,” He said. “During the winter, I go to Banta’s winter conditioning, and over the summer I run with my cross country team.”
Improvements can’t happen without hard work in He’s eyes. His work ethic is not just motivated by improving his times, however.
“I plan to train hard over the off season, and hopefully inspire the younger runners to do the same,” He said. “That way, we can make huge improvements as a team.”
He recognizes the importance of teamwork to win. Now, as he steps into a leadership role as a senior next year, he plans to lead by example to better both himself and his teammates.