Today I took part in the National Schools Cross Country Race in Coventry. I was racing in the Year 4 girls’ race, and there were around 100 girls running. I felt really excited because it was my first time running in a national race. I had been looking forward to it for a long time and really wanted to do well.
Before the race started, I found a good spot on the start line. But as soon as the race began, a girl behind me pulled me back, which gave me a really bad start. It was very upsetting, but I didn’t let it stop me. I told myself to stay strong and focus on catching up. I knew I had trained hard and wanted to give it my best.
As the race went on, I started overtaking lots of girls. I was moving up quickly through the pack. But then something else happened—two different girls tried to stop me from passing them by sticking out their hands. That made me feel quite annoyed, but I didn’t give up. I managed to get past both of them and kept pushing forward.
Once I got past the girls blocking me, I began chasing the front runners. I gave it everything I had. In the end, I finished in fifth place with a time of 6 minutes and 20 seconds. My watch said the race was 1.55 km, even though it was meant to be 1.6 km. I was only about 15 seconds behind the girl who came first, so I was really proud of myself.
The weather on the day was lovely. The sun was shining, and it wasn’t too cold. But the ground was very hard, which made it harder to run. The organisers had told everyone that Year 4 runners couldn’t wear spikes, so I had to run in my normal running trainers. They weren’t as comfy as my spikes, but I just got on with it. At the start of the race, there was a steep hill and a sharp bend, which made the first part even trickier.
Even though it was a tough race with a few bumps along the way, I felt really proud of how I ran. I tried my best from start to finish. If I get to run again next year, I hope I can do even better. I also hope that no one tries to pull or block me next time! It was an exciting day, and I’ll remember this race for a long time.
