By Bella Ghile
This past Monday, students that had qualified at Track and Field Regionals had competed at the VHSL State Indoor Track & Field 2021 Championships meet in Virginia Beach. There were masks amidst as usual, tensions high, and students running at a rather fast pace. Two students from Herndon placed in the top two. One of them, Gillian Bushée, was victorious in her race. Coming in first place, she had more than a ten-second lead from the second-place runner. Luckily, I was able to have her answer a few questions about her recent victory at states.
The VHSL State meet had been different than most regular meets. Runners were allowed to take off their masks during their race. Gillian had been familiar with wearing masks due to past meets, so without it, she felt “it was much easier to stay relaxed and run my race.” The masks don’t affect oxygen levels entirely, but not having a piece of cloth covering your mouth definitely elevates a runner’s performance, reducing distractions and stuffiness.
“Right after I crossed the finish line I knew I had officially won the race,” said Gillian. She recalls being, “so happy and in shock.” Admittedly, Gillian says, “I knew what the competition would be like.” Gillian had raced at multiple meets with her competitors, and also at States last year. She was prepared and was well aware of the stakes. Gillian acted as a fierce competitor, and ultimately that set her apart from the other runners.
Regardless of COVID and the effects it had on the sports calendar, Gillian says, “my training was really good,” and “my team and I all stayed motivated and trained together.” Having a team that supports each other has proved to help members perform better, even if Track is mainly an individual sport.
There will be no New Balance Nationals (T&F National Meet); this was the second year that this meet had been canceled, and had been an upset to many runners that made it this far. Gillian will continue her running career in Cross-Country, and says, “Track has strengthened my cross country training with my speed and ability to maintain speed in my race.” Gillian will sure be making headway at Cross-Country, so be sure to keep her on your radar.