All athletes at SHS strive for greatness in their respective sport. Elisa Filippi, 11, is no exception, training tirelessly to compete in triathlons, a unique sport that requires excellence in not one, but three disciplines: swimming, biking, and running.
Participating in one sport is time consuming enough, yet Filippi manages to juggle her training schedule for all three sports while keeping up with academics. “In the winter when swim is heavier, I don’t have much time for running or biking, but on most week days I get up early to practice, and then I will run and bike on the weekends,” Filippi said. Filippi’s rigorous schedule makes it difficult to balance her social life and school. However, she mentioned, “I try to get ahead on my homework over the weeks that I have many tests and in turn do less training, I try to go back and forth and still find time to be with friends.”
Filippi’s favorite part of triathlon is the community she has built with other athletes. “People from the triathlon camp I go to are from all over the United States, but every year we see each other at races. It’s kind of like being cousins,” she said, “where you don’t see them all the time but go back to being close friends quickly.”
In addition to the relationships she has fostered through the sport, Filippi has also gained many valuable life lessons. She has learned through the sport that “you can do anything you set your mind to. It’s very cliché, but very true.”
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