GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — The 2024 cross country season will come to a close next weekend at the state finals at Michigan international speedway. One Grand Rapids christian senior is looking to cement his name in the history books for a second time this year.
“Kinda got into it because my siblings did it and I thought it would be a fun thing to try,” said Simon.
What started as a hobby, turned into his passion for senior cross country runner Simon Triezenberg because of the competition.
“Seeing the guys next to me and like really pushing myself to that further limit. I just kinda liked and thought it was a fun idea and then realized I was pretty good at it so I decided to pursue it,” said Simon.
He’s always had his eye on breaking the 5k record, previously set in 2014, and accomplished it earlier this fall during the Otsego meet.
“I saw at the two mile that I was on pace and I just kinda went after it. It was a little bit of a surprise that day that it happened but it definitely was in the back of my mind that I want to try to break this record,” said Simon.
The new time to beat at GRC is 15.30.7 and will be tough to beat. Dan Hoekstra is the head coach at the school and is grateful to have a guy like Simon on his team.
“So just watching that leadership blossom throughout these years, watching him physically grow stronger, and through that hard work to be rewarded. To have it pay off through his races has been a lot of fun to watch,” said Hoekstra.
Simon and the Eagles won the division two regional title on Saturday in division where 10 of the top 15 teams are from Michigan. They’ll train this week for the state meet on Saturday.
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