Sonic
Boom in the News
Thursday,
August 23, 2007
Franks
wins 800-meter national championship
By
Jennifer Small
Sports editor
"For
the fifth year in a row, we have a national
champion,” Sonic Boom Track Club commissioner
Richard Herman said to the club during its awards
banquet Saturday. “This year, it’s Cordarius
Franks.”
The
14-year-old won the 800 meters at the Amateur Athletic
Union’s Track and Field Junior Olympic Games, held
July 27 through Aug. 4 in Knoxville, Tenn.
Franks,
who lives in Vernondale Village with his family, beat
his personal best time in the first round at Nationals
by 8 seconds, running a 2:04, which seeded him first
in the final.
“The
final was hard; I had the best ranked time, but I was
nervous because I didn’t want to go in with the best
time and then not win,” Franks said. “I promised
everyone here that I’d come back with a gold, and
that’s what I did.”
Franks ran
a 2:03.69 in the final to take the title.
Franks
said that the thing that has helped him win the
national title was working out with the boys from the
4x800 meter relay team, who are a year older.
“When I
train, I train with people older, so it helps me in
meets,” Franks said. “My motto is: if you want to
be the best, you have to train with the best.”
Franks
qualified for the 2006 Junior Olympics in the 800, but
didn’t make it out of the first round; he said that
disappointment was a motivating factor for him
entering the 2007 season.
He also
qualified as part of the 4x800 relay in 2006, which
finished 8th in the nation.
“I said
to myself, if I can get 8th in the relay, I can do
better,” he said. “Last year, how everything
ended, was a big motivator for me.”
After the
2006 season, the other members of Franks’ 4x800
meter relay moved up and age group, so, head coach
Charles Swindell made sure to point that out to
Franks.
“After
the meet in Norfolk [the 2006 AAU Junior Olympics], I
said to him ‘if you want to get back here next
year, you’re going to have to do it on your own,’
“ Swindell said. “So he came into this season with
the attitude ‘whatever I have to do, coach.’
“I told
him, we can’t do the same things in 2007 that we did
in 2006 if you want to improve. He listens, and he’s
not afraid to work.”
The
national champion also plays football and basketball,
and will play all three sports for the Mount Vernon
Majors this fall as a freshman.
“Every
time track comes around, when I’m in one sport I
really focus on that sport, and this year I did that
even more with track,” Franks said.
When track
season comes along, Swindell wastes no time getting
his team ready for Nationals.
“He
trains us for Nationals, not for any other specific
meet,” Franks said of his coach. “We practice hard
the whole year so we’re peaking for Nationals in
July.”
Swindell
reiterated that training concept.
“Cordarius
didn’t win his medal in July, he won it in April,”
he said.
But the
most important thing to the coaches of the Sonic Boom
Track Club is not that their athletes win, but that
they give 100 percent.
“I tell
them all, all I’m going to ask, when you walk off
the track is, ‘did you leave it all on the
track?’ If the answer is yes, then we’ll accept
whatever the outcome is,” Swindell said.
The 800
meter national champion wasn’t always the standout
that he was this season.
“My
first year was horrible, I didn’t want to run track
ever again,” Franks said of the 2004 season. “But,
I stayed in to stay in shape for football; then after
last season, I did well so I stuck with it. I came out
for track to stay in shape for my other sports, but
now track is my best sport.”
And, he
recognizes the benefits he has over his football and
basketball teammates who don’t run track.
“It
keeps me focused and teaches me about limits,”
Franks said of the sport. “I’m in shape
year-round, so, in football when everyone else is
struggling with conditioning, it doesn’t bother
me.”
As for the
2008 track season, Franks has set some lofty goals for
himself.
“I want
to beat the National record,” he said.
Posted
on 08/23 at 12:00 AM
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Thursday,
August 09, 2007
Youth
track team soars at AAU Junior Olympics
By
Jennifer Small
Sports editor
The
Fort Belvoir Sonic Boom Track team competed at
the Amateur Athletic Union’s Track and Field
Junior Olympic Games July 27 through Aug. 4 in
Knoxville, Tenn., and came away with six
medalists and one national champion.
Cordarius
Franks, 14, won the Boys Youth 800 meters in a
time of 2:03.67 to claim Belvoir’s seventh
national title since the team’s inception
eight years ago.
“Cordarius
has really come on in the past couple of
years. A few years ago, he was just an average
runner in our club, and now, he’s one of the
top half-milers in the nation,” said Richard
Herman, Sonic Boom commissioner. “It’s all
about Coach [Charles] Swindell, he got
Cordarius to believe in himself, and [Cordarius]
bought into his system.”
After
nationals, Franks will be ranked fourth in the
nation in the event.
“Going
into the Nationals, he was ranked 24th or so
but after the first round he ran the fastest
time,” Herman said.. “He was kind of
surprised, but then again, knowing him, not
really, because he’s one of those kids who
never quits.”
At
regionals, Franks was tripped up on the final
lap of the race and fell back 100 meters. He
got up and sprinted all the way back to the
front of the pack and won the race, Herman
said.
“He’s
the reason we do what we do. We don’t think
they’re going to improve, and then the light
goes on. He’s become a really great runner,
we’re really proud of him.”
Nigel
Crawley, 14, qualified for the meet in the
pentathlon, triple jump, 100-meter hurdles,
200-meter hurdles, and as a member of the
4x100 meter relay team. Crawley medaled in the
100-meter hurdles with a 7th place finish, and
in the 200-meter hurdles with an 8th place
finish.
Jaquantis
Carter, 12, also medaled, with an 8th place
finish in the 1500 meter race walk with a time
of 9:37.98.
Amanda
Lugo, 12, medaled with a 7th place finish in
the shot put, throwing 32 feet, 7 inches.
The
final Sonic Boom medalist was Olivia Clark,
14, who finished 5th in the high jump,
clearing 5 feet.
All
finishers in the top 20 earn All American
status. Belvoir All-Americans included
Dominique Miller, 14, in the pentathlon; and
Kaleigh Winner, 10, in the 200 and 400 meters.
Also earning All-American honors was the
Intermediate Boys 4x800 meter relay team,
which finished 10th overall, and missed
medaling by two seconds. The team is made up
of Brian Allen, Andre Simmons, Anthony
Swindell and Antwan LaCounte, and alternates
Robert Allen and Kevin Johnson, all of whom
now hold All-American status.
“They
actually improved their time from regional by
15 seconds,” Herman said. “They ran very,
very well.”
Perhaps
the most exciting part of the relay team is
that the team will stay together next year,
with one significant addition.
“Next
year, Cordarius moves up to that age group, so
they’ll all be back with the addition of
Cordarius,” Herman said. “They’re really
going to be good.”
The
Youth Boys 4x100 meter relay also competed in
the meet, made up of Kolin Demps, Crawley,
Cameron Lewis, and Miller.
Deyonna
Harris, 9, competed in the Sub-bantam Girls
100 and 200 meter races. Also qualifying for
the meet were Jason Wellington, 18; and Warren
Simmons, 19, in the shot put; and Tiara
Swindell, 18, in the 200 and 400 meter races,
but they were unable to compete in the meet.
Tiara,
a freshman on the George Mason Track and Field
Team, is the niece of Sonic Boom head coach
Charles.
“Tiara
would have placed in 200 and 400,” Herman
said. “She’s in the upper echelon of those
events.”
According
to Herman, Charles Swindell is the main reason
for the success of the Belvoir youth track
program.
“Coach
Swindell is the one who really prepared these
kids; he needs to get a lot of credit for
these kids,” he said. “He’s the best
thing that has happened to Fort Belvoir track,
he’s a godsend. He’s been around for every
National Champion; before him, we didn’t
have any.”
Overall,
Belvoir claimed one national champion, six
national medalists, and nine All-Americans.
“We
are very happy, considering the amount of kids
we brought,” Herman said. “This year, the
competition was a little tougher. Normally, a
lot of the teams that this year competed in
AAU go to the USA Track and Field Nationals;
but it was all the way out in California, so a
lot of the teams opted not to go. Usually, the
USATF times are faster than AAU, but this year
that wasn’t the case; it was very tough
competition.”
Posted
on 08/09 at 08:56 AM
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Thursday,
May 03, 2007
Belvoir
hosts annual track invitational
By
Jennifer Small
Sports editor
Sonic
Boom athletes break nine club records
Jamarion
Means and Joshua Breece compete in the
preliminaries of the 7- to 8-year-old boys
100 meter dash during the third annual Sonic
Boom Invitational track and field meet at
Pullen Field on Saturday. Means finished in
fourth place in the finals. (Photo by Marny
Malin)
Not
a parking spot could be found on South Post,
as hundreds of track and field athletes and
their families descended on Fort Belvoir
Saturday for the third annual Sonic Boom
Invitational at Pullen Field.
Teams
from all around the D.C. area took part in the
event, including Fort Meade, the Southern
Maryland Striders, and the runners from
Pikesville.
As
music blared from the speakers in center
field, runners raced around the track and
jumpers and throwers competed in their events
on the fields surrounding the oval.
Parents
and other athletes lined the fence two-deep on
both sides of the track for the 5- to
6-year-old 100 meter dash runners took to the
starting line, and Belvoir didn’t
disappoint.
Angelo
Martin won the event, setting a new Sonic Boom
record for his age group. Martin also finished
sixth in the 5 to 6-year-old long jump.
Other
Fort Belvoir athletes placing in their
respective 100 meter events were: Jamarion
Means fourth, 7 to 8-year-old boys; Ricky
Martin, fifth, 11- to 12-year-old boys;
Cameron Lewis, third, 13- to 14-year-old boys;
Dre Dabney, second, 15- to 16-year-old boys.
Paige Lloyd defeated teammate Demi Breece for
first place in the 15- to 16-year-old girls
event.
Belvoir
had three first-place finishers in the 200
meter race: Jamarian Means, 7- to 8-year-old
boys; Gabrielle Bradley, 5- to 6-year-old
girls; and Kaleigh Winners; 9- to 10-year-old
girls. Both Bradley and Winners set team
records with their winning time. Winners also
won the 400 meters in her division, setting
another Sonic Boom record.
Other
first-place performances from Belvoir athletes
included: Anthony Swindell in the 15- to
16-year-old boys 1500 meters in Sonic Boom
record time; Dominique Miller in the 13- to
14-year-old boys long jump with a
record-breaking leap; Amanda Lugo in the 11-
to 12-year-old girls shot put; Olivia Clark in
the 13- to 14-year-old girls discus; Shaquille
Thomas in the 15- to 16-year-old boys discus;
and Jonathan McMillian in the 15- to
16-year-old boys high jump.
Also
finishing first were two Sonic Boom 4x100
meter relay teams, in the 7- to 8-year-old
girls, and the 13- to 14-year-old boys, who
set a new club record.
Fort
Belvoir finishers:
100
Meters
5-6
Boys
Angelo
Martin, first place
7-8
Boys
Jonathon
Means, fourth place
11-12
Boys
Ricky
Martin, fifth place
13-14
Boys
Cameron
Lewis, third place
15-16
Boys
Dre
Dabney, second place
15-16
Girls
Paige
Lloyd, first place
Demi
Breece, second place
200
Meters
7-8
Boys
Jamarian
Means, first place
Stefan
Koss, fifth place
Joshua
Breece, sixth place
5-6
Girls
Gabrielle
Bradley, first place
Ashanti
Martin, fourth place
9-10
Boys
Frankie
Brown Jr., fourth place
7-8
Girls
Maxie
Bradshaw, third place
Dakota
Kindred, fifth place
13-14
Boys
Cordarius
Franks fifth place
9-10
Girls
Kaleigh
Winners first place
15-16
Boys
Dre
Dabney third place
Anthony
Swindell fifth place
400
Meters
11-12
Boys
Brandon
Barnet, sixth place
15-16
Boys
Anthony
Swindell, fourth place
Jonathan
Mc Millian, fifth place
9-10
Girls
Kaleigh
Winners, first place
800
Meters
11-12
Boys
Tyler
Koss, second place
Anthony
Palmer, third place
Marcus
Dunlap, fifth place
13-14
Girls
Riley
Mack, sixth place
13-14
Boys
Corey
Dabney, second place
1500
Meters
15-16
Boys
Anthony
Swindell, first place
13-14
Girls
Riley
Mack, fourth place
3000
Meter Race Walk
13-14
Girls
Jasmine
Davis, fourth place
Hailey
Slay, fifth place
Destinee
Barton, sixth place
100
Meter Hurdles
13-14
Boys
Dominic
Miller, third place
Long
Jump
5-6
Boys
Angelo
Martin, sixth place
13-14
Boys
Dominique
Miller, first place
Cordarius
Franks, third place
Shot
Put
11-12
Girls
Amanda
Lugo, first place
13-14
Girls
Halley
Slay, fourth place
Discus
13-14
Girls
Olivia
Clark, first place
15-16
Boys
Shaquille
Thomas, first place
Dakota
Belcher, second place
High
Jump
15-16
Boys
Jonathan
Mc Millian, first place
4X100
Meter Relays
7-8
Boys second place
7-8
Girls first place
13-14
Boys first place
Posted
on 05/03 at 09:19 AM
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