Next month, New Haven High School’s track and field 2022 season is starting with the winter sports coming to an end and spring sports beginning. One of the most widely participated in, Track and Field has been a valued sport for many of New Haven's students. The participants are all either very excited, very nervous, or both.
“I'm a bit nervous since I wasn't in basketball this year so I'll be a bit out of shape but overall I'm really excited,” sophomore Julia Faris said.
Track consists of a wide variety of events. Athletes with different interests and skills are able to participate in the sport by competing in individual events. A majority of the sport that participants have the option to do includes running individual races or relays.
“I do long distance running. In the past I’ve competed in the 800 meter run and the mile, but this year I’m trying the 400 meter run along with the 800,” sophomore Elaina Cronin said.
Although a lot of the sport does consist of running race events, there are many events that don’t. These include pole vault, high jump, long jump, shot put, and javelin.
“I throw shot-put and discus. I might try doing javelin this year also, which will be new for me. This will be the 4th year I have done shot-put and discus,” sophomore Abby Seitter said.
Throughout the entire school year there are multiple sports that take place. For some students, track and field is their personal favorite sport of all.
“I do track because I enjoy the feeling of running. It's definitely my favorite sport by far to participate in,” Faris said.
Though it might not be everyone’s personal favorite sport, almost everyone that participates in it enjoys it very much. A main part of track is that it is individually done, meaning that most of it isn’t done with a group effort.
“I like track because it is an individual sport. Every other sport I have done, you have a team, and when someone messes up, it affects everyone. With track, that is not the case,” Seitter said.
Many students have high standards for themselves and high hopes overall for this year's track season. Some have set personal goals, that with hard work and dedication, can be done.
“I think that I’ll do well this year. My goals are to improve my arm strength and footwork, get higher in rankings, and perfect my throwing form. I hope that track season is good this year,” Seitter said.