COMPETE WITH CLASS MOMENT AT STATE CROSS COUNTRY CHAMPIONSHIPS
Competing with Class doesn’t always have to refer to the first-place finisher. Sometimes, the best examples of Competing with Class can happen at the very end of a competition. That was the case at the 2023 Western Sky Community Care State Cross Country Championships.
92 student athletes took part in this Class 3A 5K run at Albuquerque Academy, but the final three who finished were some of the most memorable. 22 minutes and 53 seconds after they started the race, three runners from three different schools, and three different ages, finally crossed the finish line…Together. In a true act of sportsmanship, senior Ezra Televera of Hot Springs, junior Dwight Manygoats of Tohatchi, and 10th grader Kalen Carloye of St. Michael’s ran the final 100 meters of the race hand in hand, supporting each other for the accomplishment of completing the race. It didn’t matter that all three were nearly seven minutes behind the first-place finisher. They finished…together. These three individuals, with a respect for one another, crossed the finish line as a trio, concluding the Class 3A competition.
It didn’t affect any 1st, or 2nd, or 3rd place team result or final score, but it did leave a lasting impression of all those who saw it. Thank you Ezra Televera, Dwight Manygoats, and Kalen Carloye for Competing with Class.
