1999 Foot Locker Northeast

Melissa Donais
new face in the Northeast Elite

read her coach's view

Bronx, NY, 11/27/99 - She wasn't on any of the "experts" list of contenders for the Foot Locker Northeast regional,  and she didn't even think herself that she had a chance of winning.  

Melissa Donais attends a private school (Phillips Academy, Andover MA), so she is left out of the big public school championships.   Although she was 4th a year ago in the freshman race here, she missed the spring track season with anemia.  She took a steady diet of iron supplements and worked her way back into shape with 25-30 mile weeks.

"I thought I was borderline to qualify for nationals, I never dreamed I would win," said Melissa Donais to the gathering reporters trying to find out about the surprise winner of the seeded race.

But the experts should have noticed a string of performances that foreshadowed her emergence today.  Melissa won the big Manchester Invitational September 25 over better known runners such as Codi Vachon and Amy Ruston of New Hampshire.  Then she set a record on the notorious Northfield MA mountain course in winning the Massachusetts private school championship.  And a week ago, she came to Van Cortlandt Park and ran a very fast 18:18 in the Junior Olympic age group regional championship.

So it seemed less shocking in retrospect that she stole the race from more publicized rivals.  

Afterward, Melissa spoke touchingly of her grandfather, elite marathoner Tony Sapienza, who died 5 minutes after winning a US Masters race at the age of 57.  She knew the exact date:  March 17, 1987.  

"You can say I run for my grandfather.  I always think of him whenever I race.  I am sure he was here today." 

Who is Melissa Donais?
Bronx, New York, 1999

By Mick Grant (coach of Greater Lowell Road Runners)

reprinted from waycoolrunning, Carol Goodrow's web site for young runners

To read the post-Foot Locker reports, one might think that the Foot Locker Northeast Regional was Melissa Donais' first race ever. Like all "overnight sensations," though, this is most definitely not true.

Melissa has been running for many years and has had good times and bad. Like a true champion, Melissa has had the strength of character to work through and learn from the bad times. She has put to use all of her experiences to make herself a better competitor.