Kevin Garcia is fast.

Kevin is the district champion in the 400-meter race and also placed third in the 200-meter race at the All District 5-5A meet this past weekend. He will compete at State on May 18 and 19, along with several other teammates. (See below for other District results.)

A sophomore on the track team, Kevin plays several sports, including basketball and football, and he is an outstanding runner as well.

It started in seventh grade when Kevin’s basketball coach suggested he join the track team, saying that he would enjoy it. People around him always took notice of how fast he was, but he had second thoughts about it.

“I didn’t really see the point in track,” he explained. “I just knew I was fast.”

When track season came around, Kevin decided to “give it a shot.” Many of his teammates envied him and his running ability. He was the fastest runner on the team. In most of open events he placed first or second. But things were different in ninth  grade.

“I got to high school and everything changed,” he said. “There were so many kids that were faster than me and I thought to myself, maybe this sport wasn’t for me. But I never quit because I knew that the only way to get better was by trying.”

He became the top freshman with the fastest times last season. On the medley relay team, Kevin’s team qualified for State and were just three-quarters of a second away from qualifying for the 4×1.

“When I made it to State it was so exciting because we had live TV there, Sport Primo interviews and all the attention was on us,” he added. Early this year, Kevin also got the chance to compete in Chandler, Ariz., in a Nike track event.

This year marks Kevin’s fourth year running, and he has improved drastically. He went from running a 12-second 100-meter to a time of 11.49. He also started a new event, the 400-meter, with his time (52.49) being number two in the district.

“This race has helped my 200 [-meter] time decrease!” he exclaimed. “I went from a 23 [seconds] to a 22.6 just this past weekend. That’s a two quarters of a second from state qualifier,” Kevin said.

He also received a letter from Down Under Sports inviting him to compete in Australia with other track runners around the world. Kevin would like to continue with his track career for many more years.

“I will strive to not only be the best runner in the school but the best in the state!”

The following athletes placed at Districts and will be competing at the State AAAAA meet on May 18 and 19 in Albuquerque:

Boys

Kevin Garcia – 400 meters – District Champion/ 200 meters 3^rd place

Mark Allen – 800 meters 2^nd place

4 x 400 relay – 2^nd place (Mark Allen/Jesus Perez/ Isaiah Madril/ Joel Rodriguez)

Girls

Amber Lucero – Shot Put – District Champion

Judith Allison – 100 meter hurdles 2^nd place / 300 meter hurdles – District Champion

Amber Lujan – Pole Vault 2^nd place

4 x 100 Relay – 3^rd place (Judith Allison/ Riannah Varela/ Megan Tanuz/ Shadae Robinson)

Riannah Varela – Triple Jump 3^rd place/ Long Jump 3^rd place