After her impressive 600m victory at the first CGA Sub-Youth Track and Field meeting on September 24, Quinn Schonken confirmed herself as one of Central Gauteng’s most improved young middle-distance athletes.

This time last year, the Benoni Northerns Athletic Club (BNAC) athlete was nowhere near the level she displayed on Heritage Day. A change in mindset, coupled with a new approach to coaching, has helped unlock her potential and put her among the province’s exciting young prospects.

That transformation was on full display at Germiston Stadium, where Schonken powered through a lap and a half to clock the fastest time of the meeting in the U9 girls’ 600m and make an emphatic start to her sub-youth season.

“The race went well today. My usual strategy of staying with the group and then giving my all in the last 200m worked well today,” she said.

Schonken clocked 01:57.34, knocking eight seconds off her personal best of 02:06 and winning her heat by 03.32 seconds. Her time was also enough to secure overall victory, with Mpho Mlonyeni finishing second overall in 01:59.63 after winning the first heat, while Lia Oberholzer, who finished second behind Schonken in the second heat, was third overall in 02:00.66.

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“I knew I had to run fast because there were two heats, and coming first in my heat wouldn’t necessarily mean I was the winner. I’m incredibly happy with my start to the season and improving on last season’s time by eight seconds.”

The performance follows a successful cross-country season in which Schonken finished 13th at her first national championships at Curro Hazeldean in Pretoria.

She believes the cross-country season played an important role in improving her endurance and fitness, giving her a stronger platform from which to attack the track season.

Her racing acumen has also developed, with Schonken planning to make the 600m her primary focus while continuing to compete in the shorter sprints to sharpen her finishing speed.

She clocked 09.70 in the 60m and 12.65 in the 80m, with the benefit of that speed evident when she produced a powerful finishing kick over the closing stages of the 600m.

“I think the cross-country season helped a lot with my fitness. I think I can improve this season by focusing more on training for the 600m than the 60m and 80m sprints. However, I still plan to race sprints as it helps with my finish,” said Schonken.

With her season now off to a flying start, Schonken has set her sights on qualifying to represent CGA at the ASA sub-youth track and field championships, which will be hosted by Athletics North West North in Rustenburg in December.

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