Girls Track Sprints to Finish Line with Many Personal Bests

Jaida Victory ‘26 sprints in the City Championship at the Armory Track on February 17. *Photo: Continental Studios*

By SAFOWANA ISLAM

The Girls Indoor Track season came to a close February 17 as seniors Nicole Liu and Mehribon Khakimova made it to the top three at the City Championship on February 17.

“The championships consisted of many tough races,” said Alesha Qayoom ‘25. “But the team pulled through and brought home multiple records.”

Liu and Khakimova both race-walked in the 1500 meter division and, with performances of 8:40.75 and 8:46.65 respectively, secured the second and third place spots on the podium.

“This was a super cool experience,” said Liu. “All our dedication to long practices and workouts led up to the moment where my teammate and I were able to place together. I’m extremely grateful for getting a chance to compete at the championship with other great competitors.”

Khakimova said, “Given that it was my final indoor meet, the feeling was bittersweet. But I had an incredible experience being part of the team and did achieve many personal best times.” Her time in the 1500 meter race-walk was a huge improvement on her sophomore year time of 11:01.30.

Noelle Barone, the only freshman to represent Midwood at the meet, finished with a 10:44.92 in the 4x800 meter relay and a 12:00.59 in the 3000 meter run, coming in 10th and 16th place respectively.

“I was racing almost every weekend to qualify in events for cities,” she said. “I was able to get a lot of new personal records this season and have fun while racing.”

Despite three competitors placing at the meet, Midwood didn’t bring home enough points to secure the title of the City Champions for 2024.

“You never always win your races,” said Jahzara Garcia-Tucker ‘26. “For some races, we definitely looked back for improvement, and others showed the improvement we’ve learned. Either way, we always fix our mistakes.”

All in all, the girls had a smashingly successful regular season with many stand-out performances.

“We had to keep a positive energy in our team,” said Christina Cen ‘25. “We would cheer until we didn’t have voices for school the next day, and we’d tie bows in our hair to represent each other.”

The girls used this energy to pull through during their Brooklyn Borough meet on February 4. Barone placed in the top five there and swept up three wins in her divisions, and Khakimova and Liu led their races into first and second place, respectively.

“Even though I was really tired, I had a fun time and placed in every race,” said Barone. “It was a good memory.”

The team also held strong at the Holiday Classics Meet at the Armory Track on December 27.

“I was able to break my time and set a new personal record of 1:08.54,” said Ava Alexandre ‘26, who placed fourth overall in the 4x4 meter relay division. She and her teammates received engraved medals.

Michelle Forester ‘26, Alexandre’s relay partner, said, “This meet was where I won my first race. It was, overall, a hard but rewarding experience.”

Another memorable event was the Ocean Breeze Freedom meet on March 3, where every girl was able to race, a rare occurence.

“The whole team was unexpectedly subbed in for an extra relay race,” said Cen. “We were all freaking out, but it was a great bonding experience.”

“It was chaotic,” said Liu. “I had just woken up from a bleacher nap when I found out every person on our team had to run.”

“We worked really hard as a team,” said Garcia-Tucker. “We put in work to race and we were all super grateful.”

Injuries were a hurdle to cross. Qayoom, who couldn’t race for the first few months of the season, said, “Being injured definitely impacted my motivation, especially when I would watch the other girls run, knowing I couldn’t. Thankfully, with the help of my team, I was able to push through it and end with a personal record in the 800 meters [at the City Championship meet].”

Barone, who, like Watson and Qayoom, was also injured at the start of the season, said, “I was scared I wouldn’t be able to run all season. But I recovered and got back in shape and was able to race.”

The dedication and friendship built within the team allowed the runners to continue putting their best foot forward, despite the obstacles thrown at them.

“[If] you were injured or you had doubts about yourself, you gained a whole new set of friendships to help you become physically and mentally stronger,” said Qayoom.

“I gained an amazing support group that you can’t get anywhere else,” said Cen. “My team kept me motivated and supported me through the season, which inspired me to keep going for them.”

Senior Kenisha Saloman credited the girls’ “ability to push through, no matter the circumstances.” “Even if our day wasn’t the greatest, we made it to practice,” she said.

“A lot of people think getting the medals and winning [is rewarding],” said Garcia-Tucker. “For me, it’s winning with my teammates, us all having big successes together, and seeing what we can work on.”

Despite the ups and downs, the girls are determined to come back even stronger next season.

“When we work together and focus, we do amazing things,” Barone said.