Lead photo of Marisa Kwiatkowski by John Todd/ISI Photos; Secondary photo from Children's Champions event.
STANFORD, Calif. -- Stanford track and field always has served as an example of excellence in ways beyond competition. Academics always has been a priority, with Cardinal earning a variety of honors, including the past two national men's Scholar-Athlete of the Year awards in cross country.
Another area of strength is community service. Recently, Stanford team members participated in a series of events at Menlo Park's St. Raymond School that culminated with a Jog-A-Thon.
Leading up to the event, several Cardinal spoke at St. Raymond assemblies under the theme: Be the Difference.
Distance runners Elise Cranny and Sean McGorty, who have 16 All-America honors between them, together spoke to the students, who ranged from kindergarten to eighth grade.
"We talked a lot about the team," Cranny said. "How you can make a difference to the team and how the team can make a difference in your life."
In her speech alongside teammate Jack Keelan, freshman 800-meter runner Sarah Walker told about the experience of being the new kid at a school, with a birthday coming near the beginning of the school year. Walker said she was sure nobody would know it was her birthday and expected to feel lonely. But Walker said her new Stanford teammates knew it was her birthday all along and presented her with a card and candy.
"I thought no one knew it was my birthday, but my teammates were there and made me feel really welcome," Walker said. "They made a difference for me."
Keelan asked how many kids play sports and, of those, how many sometimes don't feel like going to practice. Nearly everyone raised their hands. Keelan described that Stanford sometimes has early-morning practices and that the motivation to get out of bed would be diminished it not for the support of his teammates.
"It's really easy to run and go to practice and work hard when you're feeling good," Keelan said. "But it's really difficult sometimes when you don't feel like it at all. It helps when you have your teammates and your friends to support you.
"It's important not only to push yourself, but to push your classmates to do their best. That's what it means to be the difference, to push yourself and push others to do well in their own lives."
At the Jog-A-Thon itself, Cranny and teammates encouraged the students to keep going and to have fun. She said watching them run was a lesson for her.
"They're not taking it too seriously or overthinking it," she said. "You can just see on their faces how much they enjoy running, because that's what running is all about. It's fun."
The team has been involved in other community events and service, including Children's Champions – a family-friendly event benefiting at-risk children in the Bay Area, at Menlo College. Last year, then-senior Justin Brinkley organized Stanford's involvement in the event and, this year, the Cardinal track and field team took it a step further by having 40 athletes involved.
They served as coaches, mentors, and offered encouragement in a variety of activities, and also were involved in a panel that answered questions and talked of their own experiences.
On campus, many Stanford track and field athletes are involved in Cardinal RHED, a student-organization that seeks to alleviate mental stress on varsity student-athletes by steering them toward resources that may better help them cope with whatever pressures they may be dealing with. The group was founded by now-graduated Molly McNamara, an All-America middle-distance runner.
While Stanford athletes continue to excel in track and field, performance is only part of the program's mission. It also includes striving for excellence in the classroom and serving in the community.
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Kwiatkowski sets Philippines record
As Stanford prepares for the NCAA Outdoor Championships, beginning Wednesday in Eugene, Oregon, here are some items of note involving Stanford-affiliated athletes:
Stanford junior Marisa Kwiatkowski broke the national outdoor women's triple jump record for the Philippines with her performance at the NCAA West Prelims. Her effort of 12.68 meters (41-7 ¼) broke the 2004 mark held by Marestella Torres (12.67, 41-7), a three-time Olympian in the long jump.
Kwiatkowski, a dual citizen who grew up in Sunnyvale, also holds the national junior (12.63, 41-5 ¼) and national indoor (12.45, 40-10 ¼) records.
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Allman in top form
Stanford senior Valarie Allman, who is redshirting this season, placed second in a loaded women's discus field at the Iron Wood Throws Classic in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, on Friday.
Allman threw 64.26 meters (210-9) on her first attempt, coming within a meter of her lifetime and season best of 64.69 (212-3), which came at the Stanford Invitational and made her the No. 12 thrower in U.S. history. Allman trailed only American-record holder Gia Lewis-Smallwood (65.81m, 215-10) in a field that included the top six throwers in the country to that point.
Allman, a two-time Pac-12 champion, ranks No. 7 in the world and No. 2 in the U.S. this year.
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Road news
Sara Hall '05 won the Freihofer's Run for Women on Saturday in Albany, New York. Hall captured the 5-kilometer race in 15:49 and earned a winner's check of $10,000.
Chris Mocko '09 won the Cork City Marathon in Ireland on Sunday, doing the limbo under the tape as he crossed the finish line. In his first race outside the U.S., Mocko ran 2:26.42 to win by more than three minutes. He can add this to victories at the San Francisco, Oakland, and Napa marathons.
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Big finish
Incoming freshman Callum Bolger of San Luis Obispo closed with a lap of 55.52 seconds to win the boys' 3,200 meters at the California Interscholastic Federation high school championships in 8:53.91 on Saturday in Clovis. The title adds to his CIF Division IV cross country title from the fall.
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Golden League success
On May 5, reigning Olympic gold medalist Katerina Stefanidi '12 won the women's pole vault IAAF Golden League meet in Doha, Qatar. In a repeat of their Rio Games finish, Stefanidi of Greece edged Sandi Morris of the U.S. for first. Stefanidi cleared 4.80 meters (15-9) to Morris' 4.75 (15-7).
Stefanidi next competes Thursday at Rome's Golden Gala meet against 2016 Olympic bronze medalist Eliza McCartney of New Zealand.