Today I ran in the Metropolitan League race at Horsenden Hill. It was a 2 km cross country race on grass, and because it had rained the night before, the ground was a little soft and slippery in some places. This was my first time racing here in the Met League because you can only run in it when you are in Year 5 or Year 6. I felt excited but also nervous because I wanted to do well and see how I compared to the other runners on a brand new course.
In my previous school Metropolitan League race, I finished in third place, so today my goal was to improve on that and try to come either first or second. When the race started, I didn’t get the best start and found myself around fifth or sixth place after the first few seconds. I knew that wasn’t good enough if I wanted to fight for the top positions, so I told myself to stay calm, keep pushing, and slowly work my way forward. The start was tough because everyone was sprinting hard, and the soft ground made it harder to get good speed.
Halfway through the first lap, I started to overtake runners one by one. I focused on staying steady and using my arms to drive me up the little hills. The more I pushed, the closer I got to the front group. Eventually, I managed to fight my way into second place. I could see my teammate ahead of me in first place, and she is a Year 6 girl, so I knew I had to work really hard if I wanted to catch her. I kept telling myself not to give up and to stay strong all the way to the end.
By the time I reached the second lap, I was running at a pace of around three minutes and fifty-two seconds per kilometre, which is quite fast for me. I felt like I was closing in on first place, and every time I looked ahead, she seemed just a little bit closer. I pushed as hard as I possibly could in the final stretch. My legs were burning, and I was breathing really hard, but I didn’t stop trying. In the end, I finished in second place, just two seconds behind my teammate who won the race.
I was really happy with my result because my teammate is older, stronger, and in Year 6, and I am only in Year 5. To finish only two seconds behind her made me feel proud and confident. It also made me excited for next year when I will be a Year 6 girl, because I think I will have a really good chance of winning this race when I am older and stronger. This race showed me that I can compete with the best girls if I work hard and believe in myself.
Overall, I think I ran a very strong and confident race. The main thing I need to work on is my consistency, because sometimes I run much faster and other times I fall behind. If I can learn to keep my pace steady and strong in every race, I know I can keep improving. I’m proud that I came second today, and next time my goal is to at least keep that position or maybe even chase down first place. I finished feeling happy, tired, and excited for the next challenge.
