Throughout Beavercreek High School, we have various dedicated and hard-working team sports that allow students to capitalize on their talents and help provide them with opportunities to expand their future. The track team, in particular, is a group of devoted students who persevere through many challenges to succeed. One outstanding athlete on the track team is Kaden Ellerbe, a senior who specializes in the 400 and the 4×400 relay. He started running track in 6th grade but did not run his 7th and 8th grade years. He claimed, “I didn’t run track again until freshman year. My friend convinced me to do it. I’ve always been fast, so I felt like it was a sport that would come easily to me.” He then elaborated on his training plan for the track season, stating “Now that we are in season, my coach and I try to make a training plan as consistent as we can. Monday is a hard workout day working on speed endurance, Tuesday we try to work on raw speed and acceleration, Wednesday is recovery, Thursday is back to speed and acceleration, and Friday is another hard workout that works on endurance.” Each week, he is committed to improving his speed for track, and he has an unwavering determination to reach a new level of success. With sports, motivation plays a significant role in an athlete’s performance. When asked about what motivates Kaden the most, he said, “My biggest motivation for running track is seeing the results from your hard work pay off. Practices, training sessions, and weightlifting can all be very challenging, but it is worth it when you start to win races and break records. Usain Bolt had a quote saying, ‘I trained 4 years to run 9 seconds.’ That is a great explanation for the process of running track.” This exemplifies the true effort and zeal that Kaden has for the sport. With all of his hard work and exuberant dedication, he was awarded an opportunity to run track in college. When asked if he got recruited for track, he exclaimed, “Yes, I was recruited for track. I took track visits to Ohio State, South Carolina, Iowa, NC State, New Mexico, Minnesota, and the University of Miami. I ended up committing to the University of Miami. Their campus looks like a beach resort, and I thoroughly enjoyed the atmosphere of the school. It was an easy decision.” This shows that hard work and dedication does pay off in the end. This story of Kaden Ellerbe’s track career shows that when you are committed to achieving greatness and you continue to persevere, you will reap the rewards for your future. Overall, Kaden is just one example of the many diligent student athletes at Beavercreek High School.
