This summer has
turned into a wonderful season of warmth for Virginia track fans. I’m sitting
here on a Friday night watching the USATF Outdoor Championships from historic
Hayward Field in Oregon, and Francena McCorory has just won her semi-final race
of the women’s 400-meters in a world-leading time of 49.85. Tomorrow’s final
should be very intriguing. Sanya Richards-Ross, the defending 400 Olympic
champion, didn’t make it to the final, but Allyson Felix, a dominating short
sprinter with four Olympic gold medals, did. Felix, with sub-22 speed in the
200, is capable of breaking 49 in the quarter, and tomorrow’s winner may have
to do just that to take the crown.
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| Francena will run for the 400-meter USATF Championship on Saturday. She will need to beat her best time of 49.48 and defeat Allyson Felix to win. |
And that’s part
of the reason why I love this sport.
The other reason
why I love track, and running in general, is that there is a closeness, a
proximity, that this sport allows, something that may not be seen in others.
Francena is a
local star, a legend here on the Peninsula. She was starring at Bethel High
years ago, when I was coaching at Denbigh, a district rival. While our boys had
some success at the district level and even got as high as 4th in
States, Bethel dominated the girls scene, mainly because of the young woman who
opened up leads that 18-wheelers could drive through.
But my local
ties also reach to the northern end of the Commonwealth. Hours earlier, at
Hayward Field, Noah Lyles, a rising 12th grader at T.C. Williams, in
my hometown of Alexandria, VA, won the junior 100-meters in a state record time
of 10.14. Noah, and his twin brother Josephus, have dominated Virginia high
school sprinting for a couple of years now, and are now taking their talents to
a whole new level. They had the opportunity to race in Cuba last week, and I
think that’s a good example of where their speedy legs are taking them this summer. Other parts of the world will be seeing both of them soon.
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| Noah and Josephus Lyles - Remember THESE Titans from T.C. Williams! |
Several months
ago, I got to meet the Lyles twins, just before the indoor state meet. After
Nolan Jez, the webmaster for Milestat.com, made the introduction, I listened to
them for a couple of minutes and heard a few things that piqued my interest. (You
play ball at the Courts, then walk down to 7-11?) I had to ask the question –
what part of Alexandria are you guys from? It turned out my instincts were correct.
They are from the old neighborhood – literally a stone’s throw (seriously, 40
yards) from where I lived as a kid.
There is a
wonderful common denominator, one that is shared by Francena and the Lyles
brothers. They are great people. After T.C. won the state indoor title, both of
the Lyles brothers spoke of the impetus gained from their two-miler’s points
toward the end of the meet. (You guys did OK too, right?). I have seen Francena
take endless pictures with young children at a few meets. She even taught me
how to take a selfie when I requested a picture. Great snapshot – even I looked
decent!
And here’s the
point – if Francena and the Lyles brothers are examples of our track and field
stars for now and the near future, I think that our sport is in great shape. There are others, and I'll tell you their stories soon.
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