OFSAA or bust for Clark
A motivated Lexi Clark won the open girls 2,000-metre steeplechase Wednesday at the Southern Ontario Secondary Schools Association track and field meet at Welland Centennial.
Last year, the Grade 12 student at West Niagara placed fifth in the steeplechase and 800 metres at South Regionals and missed qualifying for Ontario Federation of School Athletic Associations in both events by one placing.
“When you come that close to something you worked so hard for and you don’t make it, it knocks you down but you always have to get back up, train harder and put in more work,” the 17-year-old said.
She wasn’t sure that extra work would pay off in results this spring until her first couple of races.
“I kinda thought this could be it,” she said.
Clark broke her own record at last week’s Niagara Region High School Athletic Association Zone 4 meet and her 7:31 time Wednesday beat the next closest athlete by 29 seconds. The time also broke her personal best by more than 15 seconds.
“I just wanted it really badly and I pushed myself through,” said Clark, who also won the senior girls 800 metres at last week’s Zone 4 championships. “It is my last year and that is a big part of it. I didn’t make it to OFSAA for cross country this year either so that was even more of a motivator.”
She is heading to the Ontario College of Health and Technology this fall to study to become a paramedic and there will be no victory lap at West Niagara.
“It is kind of sad, especially because last year was my first track season. It never felt like I really got a shot at it but this year I feel I can do it.”
She admits wondering where she might have got to in track if she had started earlier and if COVID hadn’t wiped out two years of competition.
“Every once in a while, I think about it but gymnastics was a lot of training — 25 hours a week — so I couldn’t really do anything else.”
Clark was a competitive gymnast for 13 years and competed in Level 8 at the provincial level. She now coaches the sport and her gymnastics training has come in handy in her track and field career.
“I feel that gymnastics is a lot of the same mentality as running. Obviously it is a different setting but if you fall off a beam you just don’t stay down. You have to get back up and finish your routine and I have the same mentality for running.”
She only ran track in elementary school and didn’t take it to the club level.
“I was always a back of the pack kid and once COVID hit in Grade 9, I started running just for fun. Then I joined Edge Triathlon and started running with them.”
Her goals for this spring are to make it to OFSAA in both the 800 metres and steeplechase.
“I just love running and it would be such a huge accomplishment to get to go this year. It is almost like a symbol of all my hard work paying off.”
Running the steeplechase and going through water was anything but a walk in the park in Wednesday’s cool conditions. But it was still better than last week.
“I can feel my feet today which is good. All the other meets, it was a lot colder than this.”
