Whisper Running ran the USATF Junior Olympic National meet on Saturday, December 11, in Lexington, Kentucky, with the following 10 runners participating:

Emma Will (7-8), 2k 10:08, 88/130
Rip Nitszchke (9-10), 3k 13:22, 104/258
Sofia Soto (9-10), 3k 13:24, 42/264
Wyatt Nitszchke (11-12), 3k 12:37, 114/367
Brody Will (13-14), 4k 16:52, 191/374
Cohen Butler (13-14), 4k 16:01, 111/374
Sam Soto (13-14), 4k 14:17, 2/374
Dylan Yates, 4k 17:11, 70/332
Addison Crum (15-18), 5k 23:19, 69/129
Joseph Blanshan (15-18), 5k 19:04, 64/167

Click here to view full results.

The race was in Paris, Kentucky, which was 200 miles from the tornado that ripped through Kentucky. The rain was intermittent, between heavy downpours and glimpses of blue skies at times. The wind was consistent from the start, which delayed the races by almost two hours. I've never been in a race postponed by mere wind and rain. I had rented a heavy duty canopy by a local rental company. The stakes used to hold the canopies in place are 3' long and jackhammered into the ground with through the use of a compact fork lift. As sure as the footing was for these canopies, the weather stoked great fear that they would be blown away (us included), but we are grateful the bulk of the storm passed in just a few (20) minutes. That was around 10am, and the rest of the day was cold, windy, and rainy - nothing like the storm that had passed through over the night and into the morning.

Nonetheless, the kids persevered. The course was a muddy mess and race times went out the window. Runners were 10-30 seconds per 1k off their PR's, but the experience they've gained provides so much more. I am proud of the determination they showed in stepping up, pushing through, and fighting for a strong finish of the season. This was highlighted by Sam Soto's 2nd place finish in the boys 13-14 4k race. All of the kids showed signs of resilience and fight, which really was the only option.