Speeding across the finish line to excited cheers, junior Steve Tchana anxiously waits to see if he broke yet another track record. During the indoor and outdoor track seasons, Tchana set multiple new Jefferson records.
On Feb. 3, Tchana broke the Jefferson record for the 300-meter dash with a time of 36.20 seconds at the district meet. The previous record of 36.54 seconds was set over 25 years ago in 1996.
“I’ve been saying I would break [the 300-meter dash] record as a joke, and then I did it,” Tchana said. “The 300 meter record wasn’t as hard as the other records I’m trying to break, so I kind of expected that one.”
Tchana is carrying his success to the outdoor track season and already broke the outdoor 400-meter record on April 15. His ultimate goal is to run for a college track team.
“This season, I’ve been trying to break the 100 and 200 meter records,” Tchana said. “I probably can’t make recruit times, but hopefully, I’ll become fast enough to walk onto a [team].”
Jefferson’s indoor track season also saw record times from senior Aidan Singer, who broke the school record for the 1000-meter run at the state championships meet on Feb. 24.
“When I broke the 1000-meter record, I was exhilarated,” Singer said. “I had just placed fifth at states to make the all-state team and earn a medal, and I was insanely excited.”
Tchana and Singer were also part of the record-breaking 4×400 meter relay with sophomore Ryan Power and senior Jack Klopson at the regional championships meets.
Related Stories
Lead Editorial: Chatting with nobody
Empathy of a sticker
Breaking free from the comparison trap
“[The record] was definitely on our minds, but we really went in just to race our hardest. We weren’t just thinking about the record,” Klopson said.
The relay team broke the record again at the state championships meet.
“When we broke the 4×400 record [at regionals], I was hyped as we had just qualified for the state meet,” Klopson said. “We went even faster at the state meet.”
The relay team’s strong performance came after years of hard work.
“I run every single day, seven days a week. Occasionally, I’ll take a break on Sundays, but I run 50 miles every week,” Klopson said. “We go to the weight room twice a week, and I’ll also do cross-training once in a while.”
Although exhausting at times, Singer finds the physical challenge of running highly rewarding.
“I love every aspect of training and the people in the sport are incredible,” Singer said. “My favorite part is the feeling of pushing my body to the limit after a hard workout.”
Klopson also enjoys less intense, slower-paced runs, which give him the opportunity to converse with friends.
“There’s a lot of easy mileage that takes a long time. It’s at least an hour of running every single day, so you get to talk to your friends while you’re doing the sport, which is a lot of fun,” Klopson said.
Through track, Klopson has learned to persevere throughout everyday difficulties to maintain his routine of running.
“Whether it’s rain or shine, whether you feel like it or not, you have to go out, because it’s all about consistency,” Klopson said. “Running every single day is how you make progress.”
From the May 2023 Issue of tjTODAY