DEDICATION, modesty and talent are just some of the athletic attributes Lily Winward draws upon.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Lily used all those attributes recently to win gold medals at two major cross country events.
The Ulladulla High School student won gold at the NSW All Schools and the NSW Combined High School championships.
She was obviously pleased with her efforts at Eastern Creek's Sydney Motorsport Park - particularly at the NSW All Schools.
"My goal was to win at All Schools," she said.
Eastern Creek is not her favourite place to run but she was happy to win gold, stand on the podium [above] and was also pleased to be able to compete again after COVID-19 stopped such events from happening.
"The last time I was at All Schools was in 2019 and I finished in the top 10," she said.
Lily's winning time at All Schools, for the four-kilometre event, was 15.40 minutes and recently she competed at the well-known Willandra cross country course, noted for its testing hills, and ran 14.50.
She trains hard to get such results and Friday is her only day off.
"I find running a really rewarding sport and you also get to make lots of friends," she said.
Winning also makes things better for athletes like Lily.
"Apart from thinking 'thank God that over' I am always buzzing with emotions afterwards," she said.
"I am not much of a tactician and I like to lead from the front."
The Year 11 student is eyeing success at the National Cross titles in Adelaide later this month.
"My goal is to get on the podium at the national titles and hopefully this will happen," she said.
The 17-year-old is racing on Sunday at the short course titles in Bathurst.
"Bathurst is hosting the world cross country titles [February 2023] and we are testing the course on Sunday," she said.
She also wants to qualify for the world titles in Bathurst and would love to compete at an Olympics and Commonwealth Games
"To wear the green and gold is my dream," she said.
Lily said she was happy to have Andae Kalemusic as her coach and mentor.
The Ulladulla High student enjoys training with her local squad.
With Year 12 looming Lily said she was confident of being able to juggle her school and sporting commitments.
"I do like school," she said.
Track season is also coming up and Lily will be competing in 1500 and 3000 metre events.
