 |
the Internet home of high school track and field |
|
|
Outdoor Track 1999 |
  |
|
                
|
World Youth Championships - July 16-18, 1999 at Bydgoszcz PolandMonique HendersonWorld Youth Gold Medalist - 400 Metersby Doug Speck
Monique Henderson gets the gold She came in as the World Under 20 leader at 400 meters with her 51.96 best, so the United States' San Diego, California resident, Monique Henderson, was the favorite in the First World Youth Championships (under age 18) in Bydgoszcz, Poland, for the one lap event July 16-18. Competition for the championship developed, but in the end the tenth grader in the U.S. High School system who has been winning age-group titles in her own country since age 10 emerged victorious. After a hectic Final that had the first three finishers in the Women's 400 Meter race finish within a meter and a half, Henderson sat down to talk with the press before she headed off on the final day of the championships to anchor the favored U.S. Medley Relay team. A soft-spoken and confident American lass with braided hair and a seeming slight physique that belies her strong and determined running style, Henderson comes across as a very intelligent young lady who has paid a solid price for her success. When asked her reaction to winning the World Title, her reply was simply, "I can't believe that I was able to win such a championship. I only found out about the competition this past March or April and realized that I would be invited off of my Junior Olympic success of last summer." During heat and semi- final action prior to the finals, which put the young American through her first ever three-round 400 meter contest, Henderson realized her competition would be easy-striding Helen Okpanachi of Nigeria (semi-final winner in 52.98) and Norma Gonzalez (Columbia), who was edged by Henderson 52.78-53.32 in her semi-final win. Henderson commented that her strategy going into the Finals race, coming close on the heels of the Americans' successes in both 200 meter Finals, LaShauntea Moore's big 200 win and Bryan Sears' third place, was nothing very complicated. Henderson was in Lane 6, with her two rivals mentioned above inside of her. The San Diegan expected at least one of her top competitors to come up to and pass her at some time in the event, with a strong stretch run needed for the win. That was exactly how the race went, with Gonzalez first challenging, slightly leading the American off the final turn after a big back-stretch effort. Down the homestretch it was a serious struggle between Henderson and Gonzalez, with Okpanachi mounting a serious challenge over the final 40 meters next to the battling twosome. At the tape it was very, very close, with Henderson very fatigued, slowing mightily in the final couple of meters and Okpanachi closing strongly, with Henderson 52.28- Okpanachi 52.38 and Gonzalez 52.39 to sort out the three medals. Henderson later commented that she was aware of how close the race was, not knowing who was the winner until the replay was shown on the big-screen TV scoreboard. Monique described the homestretch run as very, very tough, realizing that she had to relax if she was going to be able to win during that very tough run-in. Henderson related that her goal coming into the competition was to win, but she did not know if she would be able to meet that goal. She indicated that she was surprised how well she handled the three rounds, with a Fall season of Cross- Country undoubtedy adding special conditioning to our young star. A student at Morse High School in San Diego, she competes for Coach Gary MacDonald's team that has one of the nation's fine sprint traditions. Monique has been coached by a comfortable "teamwork" situation between her father and Coach Mac. Monique does respectable for the Morse squad during the September- November Cross-Country season racing over the 2.5 mile-5 kilometer distances. A strong academic student, Henderson's grade-point average on a 4.0 scale is 3.8. Interestingly, Henderson has two sisters who have been involved in Track. Her twenty-four year old sister set all the sprint records at Morse, with those broken by her second sister who graduated this year at the school, with Monique obviously hoping to totally rewrite the family record book before she is through. Henderson stated that she would like to remain in Southern California for her college academic and athletic careers, with interest thus far in the sciences possibly leading to a career as a vet working with animals. With the magic 2000 an Olympic Year, Henderson hoped to include the Olympic Trials in her schedule, with an eventual goal of representing the U.S. in that competition. When asked about any advice that she would give to other young American stars eligible for this competition in the future, she replied, "Do it, it is a great honor to represent your nation in international competition with people from so many nations cheering for you. It was the experience of a lifetime." As the United States Junior Champion off her seasonal best of 51.96 and already a two-time California State meet 400 meter titlest, we certainly will be hearing more from this star from San Diego along the Southern California coast. |
|
This Web site is maintained by
John Dye [email protected]
|
