Hard work pays off for Simcoe athlete
Denis Tzvetkov is a self-made athlete.
The 15-year-old, Grade 10 student at Governor Simcoe showed up at the track in Grade 9 with a moderate amount of natural talent and a work ethic that just wouldn’t quit.
“He’s a self-made man,” said Simcoe and Thorold Elite Track Club coach David Lavictoire. “He’s not somebody who walked in in Grade 9 and was beating people. He’s worked his butt off to get to where he is now.
“There’s some natural ability but he’s made the most of what he has. He shows up to every single practice and in the off season that’s what you want.”
In just over a year, Tzvetkov’s hard work and dedication has increased his results to the point where he has a legitimate chance to medal in three events — long jump, hurdles and javelin —at the provincial level.
Tzvetkov nearly made it to the Ontario Federation of School Athletic Association (OFSAA) championships last year, but came up just short the South Regionals.
“I want to medal at OFSAA,” Tzvetkov said Tuesday at the Niagara Olympic Club where the 18th Annual Bulldog/Cougar Classic was held. “I’m just excited for it.
“Not making OFSAA last year was really hard for me so I put a lot of effort into it.”
Tzvetkov is a multi-dimensional athlete who also participates in the decathlete, a 10-event competition featuring the 100-metre race, long jump, shot put, high jump, 400-metre race, 110-metre hurdles, discus, javelin, pole vault and 1,500-metre held over a two-day period.
“I like doing everything. I just can’t sit down and keep myself to one event. I like to try everything,” he said.
Tzvetkov began the decathlon last season.
“I knew I wanted to be a multi-eventer. I did my first one in July at the York track. It was pretty bad. It wasn’t my best but then I did another one at West Park and had the flu but did better.”
Tzvetkov said the key is to try and balance knowing what events need work without sacrificing the others.
“I just try to get better at my weaker events and keep my good events good,” he said.
Tzvetkov rarely takes a day off, something Lavictoire said the staff at Simcoe and Thorold Elite needs to monitor.
“He just has to look after his health,” Lavictoire said. “He’s done all the work throughout the winter. He’s done everything we’ve asked him to do. He has to be cautious not to overtrain.
“We’re trying to limit him but he’s one of those kids who tries to do everything. He shows up to practice and wants to do everything.”
Tzvetkov, who joined Thorold Elite about two years ago, said his work there has shaved about a second off his time in the 100-metre race.
And while his work habits are never called into question, he admits patience is a key at times, particularly in the hurdles.
“I probably didn’t start to get good at hurdles this indoor season. It took a long time for me to get comfortable with the form and the movements,” he said.
Next up are the Zone 3 (Tuesday, May 14) and Zone 4 (Thursday, May 16) meets at NOC.
BPSN coverage of the track and field season is made possible with the support of the Niagara Olympic Club (https://nocrunners.com).
