, BY SCOTT HUNTER HADDOW
Over the last two years, Sudbury runner Lisa
Labrecque has rekindled her love with the sport that once ate
away her passion and forced her into a two-year hiatus.
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Lisa Labrecque took a two-year
hiatus from running but now that her passion for the
sport is back she's competing in a number of track and
field events this summer. |
Labrecque, 28, will compete at the 2005
Canadian Track and Field Championships this weekend in
Winnipeg.
Labrecque, representing the Track North
Athletic Club, will be racing in the 1,500-metres event and
she's ready for the challenge of competing
against the best runners in the
country.
"My workouts have been great," Labrecque
said. "Since I have been off school (Labrecque is a elementary
teacher at Wanup Public School), running has been my total
focus. I also have full confidence my coach, Dick Moss, has me
prepared. I know when I step on that line in Winnipeg I will be
ready to race because I have done everything Dick Moss has told
me to do."
Labrecque's confidence and renewed passion
for running is giving her the emotional lift she needs to be a
true competitor.
"I quit track for two years after being at
the University of Michigan," said Labrecque. "I didn't like the
sport anymore. It just became way too serious.
Now, I am doing it for myself and it's
awesome. I love pushing myself, and I am really excited to race
against the top runners in Canada."
Labrecque is in fine form heading into the
championships. She recently won gold in the 800-m race at the
Ontario Senior Championships.
"Lisa is very determined and highly
motivated," her coach said. "She'll do anything she has to do,
especially the little things like stretching, strength training
and nutrition, to perform on her own. Her dedication is
incredible, and she's one of the few runners, at her level, who
also works a full-time job. She crams her training in at some
strange times and when she's already fatigued. But, she gets it
done. Lisa loves to compete and when she gets on the track,
she's an absolute tiger."
This will be Labrecque's second national
championship. Last year, after her two-year self-imposed
hiatus, Labrecque finished sixth.
She's shooting for a better result this
year.
"I really want to finish in the top-five,"
Labrecque said. "But, if I finish 10th, so be it. As long as I
feel I have given 110 percent, than I will be happy with the
outcome. I should crack the top five though, but you never know
who will have a phenomenal race that day and bump me
out."
Labrecque doesn't expect a cakewalk at the
event.
"The depth of the 1,500-m field is as strong
as it has ever been," Labrecque said. "Girls are getting fitter
and faster. The 1,500-m is starting to become more of a sprint
than a distance race. Success in the 1,500-m comes down to
having a big chunk of injury-free training leading up to
the
race and a mix of speed and endurance."
Labrecque is heading into the competition
with a tight Achilles tendon, but feels it will be a non-factor
in the race.
"If that's all I have, than I will be fine,"
Labrecque said. "It will work itself out, and I am taking care
of it."
Labrecque's stop at the nationals will also
become a launch pad for the rest of her summer
activities.
"Three hours after my race in Winnipeg, I
will hop on a plane with a friend and fly to Amsterdam,"
Labrecque said. "I will be going over to Europe to compete in
invitational track and field events. I have progressed to where
I am ready for nationals and more."
Labrecque couldn't compete at this level
without help.
"The team behind me is phenomenal," she
explains. "I have a great massage therapist, Rickey Goudreau,
chiropractor, Al Dumencu and coach of course. And, I am lucky
as heck to have my husband, Pierre, who has been
supportive."
Labrecque will be competing Saturday and
Sunday.
