From shin splints to sprints for speedy youth
Lucas selected for Oceania Athletics Championships
I love competing, meeting new people, and building friendships is a massive plus. Lucas Lambert
Lucas Lambert was going to great heights in the competitive sport of high jump when he started to get shin splints. Shin splints are caused by repetitive stress on the shinbone and the connective tissues that attach your muscles to the bone.
“The shin splints only flared up when I was doing high jump,” said the 17-year-old, whose personal best was 1.83m.
So he decided to put all his efforts into sprinting — and the results have been impressive, to say the least.
“I decided to take a break from high jump, and was going to go back to it if sprinting wasn’t going the greatest, but then my sprint times dropped massively, so I decided to stick with it.”
His times at the national secondary schools championships, at the end of last year, and more recently, the Jennian Homes track and field championships, were super quick.
“The quickest I’ve gone in the 100m is 10.97s, and in the 200m, it was 22.39s, both at the secondary schools championships.”
After the Jennian Homes championships, athletes could register their expression of interest for the Oceania Athletics Championships, in Suva, Fiji, in early June.
“They look at the times you’ve been running, how you did at that competition, and depending on that, you might make the team.”
Lambert, who goes to Paraparaumu College, was “quite amazed” to be selected for the New Zealand team for the Oceania championships.
He will line up in the under-18 100m and 200m events.
“I made the New Zealand secondary schools team that goes to Adelaide [last week] for the Australian national championships.
“It was great finding out about that, and then to add the Oceania on top, is really amazing.”
Preparation for Oceania includes working on speed endurance.
“I will start doing longer reps but keeping fast, working on my acceleration, and going a bit heavier in the gym.”
Lambert trains at the Paraparaumu Domain four times a week, and three times in the gym.
He is coached by his father Carey, and often gets to sprint against his brother Ben, who is a few years older than him, and is an accomplished sprinter.
“It has been good to train with Ben, because he really pushes me, and he has been to the Oceania championships before.
“He has told me to simply enjoy the experience no matter what the results are.”
Lucas has been involved in athletics since a young age and is an inspiring figure at the Paraparaumu Track and Field Club.
“I love competing, meeting new people, and building friendships is a massive plus.”