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DESPITE OBSTACLES, SISSON CAPTURES USA JUNIOR 3000M TITLE

Published by
ross   Jun 26th 2010, 8:40pm
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DESPITE OBSTACLES, SISSON CAPTURES USA JUNIOR 3000M TITLE
By Chris Lotsbom
(c) 2010 Race Results Weekly, all rights reserved - used with permission

High schooler Emily Sisson has had a whirlwind of a senior year.  The 18 year-old from Chesterfield, Mo., has endured a series of ups and downs in her final year as prep athlete.  But despite the challenges, the diminutive distance runner always seems to take the bumps in stride, stays positive, and keeps smiling brightly.  And nothing could make her smile more than her win today in the 3000m at the USA Junior Outdoor Track & Field Championships in Des Moines, Iowa.

Outkicking Oregon All-American Jordan Hasay by .19 seconds down the blue homestretch at Drake Stadium, Sisson earned a national championship title and a berth on team USA for the IAAF World Junior Championships in Moncton, Canada, next month. 

Sitting in third through the 800m mark in 2:33, Sisson was biding her time behind New York state champion Aisling Cuffe, with Hasay, a University of Oregon freshman, in between the two. 

As the widely favored Hasay took the lead at about the halfway mark, the pace quickened from 76 to 72 seconds per lap.  Sisson drew even with the six-time junior national champion with 200m to go, and never eased off the gas.  Matching Hasay stride for stride down the stretch, Sisson, eyes hidden behind a pair of sunglasses, took the lead with only a meter or so left, mustering enough strength to reach the line first in a personal best time of 9:18.73. With the win, Sisson earned her second junior national title.

But before Sisson arrived on the start line in Des Moines, she had to travel quite a journey.  From Seattle to Boston, Europe to Washington, and many places in between, Sisson still managed to shine.   

To begin 2010, Sisson earned a trip to the IAAF World Cross Country Championships in Bydgoszcz, Poland, by placing second in the junior division of the USA Cross Country Championships in February. 

Focusing on the World Championships, Sisson had a tough choice to make.  She wanted to run at the Nike Indoor Nationals in Boston as a final tune up before the trip to Poland.  But, the Missouri State High School Activities Association did not view the Nike Meet as a sanctioned event, because it is not a USATF-sponsored event and was being held before the official start of the track season.

"When I made [the USA Junior team] I realized that I needed to take a break after [the World Cross Country Championship], and I wanted to run Nike Indoors as a race gearing up for that event," Sisson told Race Results Weekly.

After discussing the situation with coach Ryan Banta, Sisson felt her best option was to run at Nike Indoors, where the competition would be strong and the timing right, two weeks before World Cross. 

Her decision, though, would come with a harsh penalty.  Running at a non-MSHSAA sanctioned event forced Sisson to give up her remaining eligibility for Parkway Central High School, putting her on the sidelines for her final high school outdoor season.  So, in what would be her final track season before moving on to the University of Wisconsin in the fall, Sisson would not be able to defend her state titles in the 1600m and 3200m.  But that wouldn't deter her from running well at Nike Indoors and the World Cross Country Championships, nor the rest of her outdoor season.

After finishing second to Meghan Goethals by .07 seconds in a dramatic sprint finish at Nike Indoor Nationals, Sisson went on to finish 18th in Poland, the top finisher from the USA.  She finished the 6000m course in 20:08.

As Sisson told Race Results Weekly two weeks ago at the adidas Grand Prix in New York City, "it's worked out, I'm very happy with my decision." 

But Sisson's streak of fantastic races wasn't about to end with the muddy finish line in Poland.
   
As she shifted her focus to the outdoor track, Sisson would have to find open races.  Her first stop was at the Kansas Relays, where she ran a 16:20.44 personal best for 5000m, dominating the competition which was comprised of collegians from around the Midwest. Wanting to see if she could run under 10:00 for 3200m, Sisson held a time trial in St. Louis, where she ran 9:51.1h. 

To follow that up, she was selected to compete at the inaugural Jim Ryun Dream Mile in New York City during the adidas Grand Prix IAAF Diamond League Meet.  There, she ran a personal best of 4:44.02 to place fourth. 

"It's been going exactly how I hoped," said Sisson of her season so far. "I was nervous coming in.  A lot of things happened my junior year, injury-wise, a lot of things that weren't planned. Senior year everything has gone like I hoped it would.  It's been amazing, I have been able to do a lot of cool things.  I feel really blessed getting to experience everything."   

Like a dream come true, everything has paid off for Sisson.  Now she can add today's win to her list of accomplishments.  But, she is not done yet.

Set to run the 5000m junior race on Saturday, Sisson has her eyes on one last prize.  Forgoing the New Balance High School Nationals last week in order to prepare for the Junior National Championships, Sisson will be running against some of the same competition faced in the 3000m.  Cuffe, as well as Georgetown's Emily Jones (who was a teammate to Sisson on the USA Junior World Cross Country team), will toe the line with her.

When the 5000m is over with, Sisson will have time to look back over her high school years, while looking ahead to her future at Wisconsin.  In typical Sisson fashion, she tries to look at the positive side of things.  Asked in New York what will stand out the most from her high school days, Sisson says she has too many great memories.  But all of the Foot Locker National Championships, as well as the trip to Poland for the World Cross Country Championships are most vivid in her mind.   

"It would be really cool to make another team," she said two weeks ago.

Now, Sisson she has made another national team, and has yet another memory for the vault.



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