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My main goal for 2018 is…

2016 Olympian Andrea Seccafien says her absolute 'A goal' for 2018 is to break the Canadian 5,000m record

Andrea Seccafien
Andrea Seccafien
Photo: provided.

On the international stage of track and field, 2018 is what we call an “off year” as there isn’t an IAAF World Championships or Olympics. With our Commonwealth Games team having been capped at 36, many distance runners are going to be looking for other targets in 2018. While I am disappointed to not be representing Canada on the Gold Coast, Australia, I’m looking to 2018 as a year for growth.

I’ve already moved across the world, joined a new training group, and have varied my training as a result. The transition to the training that MTC [Melbourne Track Club] does has been difficult, but I can see why this group has been successful on the international stage. This year, I’m being patient with myself this year with this training transition because I know that this is the group that will elevate my career to the next level.

My main goal for 2018 is to become a more well-rounded runner and I believe joining the Melbourne Track Club will be integral to this. For the past few years, I have been fully focused on running the best I can in the 5,000m. But if you look at those who are at the very top of my event, they are able to run well in events both shorter and longer than the 5,000m.

Without a global championship to target, there is more opportunity to race a variety of distances and events, free of the pressure to focus on one event. I’ll try to lower my personal best [15:08.59] in the 5,000m, and hopefully become just the third Canadian woman to break 15:00. My absolute “A Goal” for 2018 is to break the Canadian 5,000m record [14:54.98]. I also hope to race the 1,500m and 3,000m as well as more road races up to 10K.

https://www.instagram.com/p/Bewh2_MHkOI/

I hope that 2018 will lay the foundation for the next two years of my career. I want to come away from 2018 better equipped to be able to compete and be successful at the 2019 IAAF World Championships and 2020 Tokyo Olympics. I’m yet to make a global final, but I believe that after a year of racing shorter distances and becoming faster over them, I will be better prepared to try to kick with the best in the world the next time I line up at a major championships. I also hope that the racing and training that I do in 2018 will prepare me to make my first national team in both the 5,000m and 10,000m in 2019.

On a mental level, I want to be more joyful in training and racing, and learn to enjoy the process. Truth be told, much of the beginning of 2017 was riddled with stress about sponsorship, agents, getting into races and hoping that I could replicate my 2016 success. This year, I am instead simply focusing on doing the work and having faith that these things will work out with the help of my support group.

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