Cross country may just be about running, for some. For Clements’ Mikael Leul, the deeper meaning of the sport is what compels the incoming senior.
“No one likes running, repetitively,” said Leul. “But the way I see it, you get better with every step you take. It’s about improving from who you were before, which means giving everything to shave off a couple seconds on your final time. That aspect is really invigorating for me.”
Recommended Videos
Leul’s journey to becoming a competitive runner is unlike any other. It first began with him getting locked out of his home due to being lazy.
“Well, it was a COVID-year and I was going into ninth grade,” he said. “It’s kind of funny, but when I got lazy and addicted to video games, my mom locked me out of the house and told me not to come back until I had exercised. So, I figured I’d try running since my sister was a runner and I got hooked on it, which led me to where I am now.”
Clements cross country has been the perfect landing-spot for him thus far.
Last season saw Leul set a new personal best time of 17:42 in the 5000m run. Furthermore, he finished 12th overall in the district championship, and would go on to compete in the Region III Finals.
Given his experience, Leul should continue to see improvement as a senior.
“My time here has been amazing,” he said. “Cross country is a sport where you really put all of your energy into it and it’s been fun to see how it’s changed me on multiple levels. I may not always like waking up at 6:30 in the morning, but the mental and physical discipline it’s given me is so valuable.”
Competing in high school is all well and good. But it’s his motivation for his future career that helps to distinguish Leul as a runner.
“In college, I would like to major in Kinesiology,” he said. “I hope to become a sports medicine physician, because as a runner I know we go through a lot of injuries. It happened to my sister during her junior year. She suffered a stress fracture and we never really knew how to take care of it. That injury and the experience that my sister went through spanned for quite some time and I don’t want that to happen to anyone. That’s why I want to help other athletes to get better and be more cautious about how they treat their bodies in sports.”
Leul has certainly come a long way from playing video games during the COVID quarantine.
Expect him to keep pushing for more.