I live in a "talent weak" State. 20:30-40 would have placed her 40th+ place in Class 6A at State. Most of these girls probably don't run more than 30 mpw.
There are probably 10,000 girls that can run that time. Come talk to us when Freshman post sub 18:20.
I know this thread is 8 years old, but my god, the arrogance in it. in 2023, Ohio (my state), near end of season there are a total of 8 freshman girls under 19 minutes. 20:30 is approximately the 100th best time for freshman in the state. So yes... 20:30 is an excellent time for a freshman. Does it forecast as a future Olympian? No, but it's an excellent time and I hope she was proud.
We got a 9th grade girl on our XC team this year, and she's phenomenal... she got 2nd place in the entire league and her primary sport is basketball (she doesn't run outside of the practices).
Her PR this year is a 20:30 - 20:40 for the 5k, soemwhere in this range.
Is this a fantastic time for a freshman girl? I remember on this thread, some people said that a 19:00 5k for girls was supposed to get you to states.
20:30 is a good time for a freshman girl. Not excellent, but certainly not a bad place to start. And the bigger question is whether or not she can improve - there are plenty of younger girls who run 20:00 or so for 5k, but then never get faster - their bodies are completely different by the time they finish high school. Guys may have minor challenges when they go through growth spurts, but nothing like girls developing.
That being said, there are plenty of girls who start out at around 20 minutes for a 5k who can just keep on improving - all depends on where they are at body-wise (and similarly, how motivated they are to keep working harder each year, even if it seems like they may not be getting short term results).
20:30 is excellent if as you say she has never run. Otherwise, among xc athletes, it usually gets you on varisty (easily or barely ...depending on program)Basketball is decent x training but nothing special. 20:30 on no training is something that would catch my eye with a true greenhorn. Hard to believe she isn't sub 19 with one season of running or even base. Possibly better, but genes are hard to predict.
There are probably 10,000 girls that can run that time. Come talk to us when Freshman post sub 18:20.
I know this thread is 8 years old, but my god, the arrogance in it. in 2023, Ohio (my state), near end of season there are a total of 8 freshman girls under 19 minutes. 20:30 is approximately the 100th best time for freshman in the state. So yes... 20:30 is an excellent time for a freshman. Does it forecast as a future Olympian? No, but it's an excellent time and I hope she was proud.
No sh!t, jeez 20:30 would currently be the 14th 9th grade girl in my state and the ~100th girl overall.
OP, if you're still out there (I know, doubtful), whatever happened to this runner?
I guess a lot of people on this thread would have dismissed Abdi Nur in HS, when he was a full time soccer player who ran a bit for conditioning and couldn't break 18min in his first 5k.
This post was edited 2 minutes after it was posted.
She progressed to 18:45 by her sophomore year. Then the summer between her sophomore and junior year, she “matured” and couldn’t break 22. Determined to beat her sophomore time her senior year, she became anorexic and bulimic and dedicated her self to training. Shortly before the first meet she ran a 2mi time trial in 11:20. But then she got a stress fracture which ended her running career.
We got a 9th grade girl on our XC team this year, and she's phenomenal... she got 2nd place in the entire league and her primary sport is basketball (she doesn't run outside of the practices).
Her PR this year is a 20:30 - 20:40 for the 5k, soemwhere in this range.
Is this a fantastic time for a freshman girl? I remember on this thread, some people said that a 19:00 5k for girls was supposed to get you to states.
I was a fledgling male middle distance runner. Did the local 4th of July 5k after first season of outdoor track. Top female distance/xc runner from our school also ran. My first 5k. She absolutely crushed me, breaking 20. I had no idea how to race longer than a mile. 20:30 is good for any young female. Not excellent. But fast enough to embarrass plenty males.
I always like these posts with vague superlatives, like “fantastic” where the goal isn’t to get answer. Is 20:30 fantastic for a new 14 year old runner? Absolutely. Is it fantastic for a 14 year old that’s training for 5ks? Eh.