Kevin Kong / Staff reporter

Gleneagle’s senior girls team took home a ribbon after placing seven at the Cross-Country BC Championships at Royal Roads University on Saturday, November 5. The junior boys team were ranked number eleven, the senior boys 22. Overall, three teams qualified for the event, and most of the athletes ran personal bests.

Gonzalo Aranda, grade 10, was a runner at the championships. He used to run in Spain and thought that running at the provincials was a fun experience. “The music… the landscape… we were really close to the Pacific Ocean,” Aranda described. “There’s a lot of people cheering the runners.” He also enjoyed the free food given when he finished his run.

“The team did really well because everyone did their best,” Aranda stated, also adding that he, too, performed well. Everyone was supporting, cheering, and helping each other. The entire team was involved in the races. “If someone didn’t run well, they support them… it was really helpful.”

Before the race, Aranda ate pasta and slept a lot, both of which were important to running fast. The team learned about the routes of the race. “The hills, the downs, when to do a sprint…” Aranda listed. “We were really prepared for the race.”

Aranda believes that Patty Anderson, coach of the cross-country team, did a good job, taking the team to practices at parks and other places. “She taught us what to eat before our race, what to do after running,” Aranda recalled. He also believes that Anderson was a huge reason they qualified for provincials.

“[Cross-country] is a new experience I never had when I was in Spain,” Aranda described. “It was really fun with a lot of good people.” Furthermore, this inspired Aranda to join athletic teams when he returns to Spain. He would also recommend cross-country to other people, as he believes that it’s a good experience. “You meet a lot of people, do a lot of exercise, and the races are really fun,” Aranda concluded.

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