Nadia Mejia, a PEACE sophomore, has accomplished some astonishing things in only her first two years as a Ram. Mejia is the top runner on the Millikan Girls Cross Country and Long Distance Track Teams, running anything 400 meters or longer.
As a freshman, Mejia broke the school’s 3,200 meter record, running this approximately two mile race, in only 11 minutes and 5 seconds. This year, Mejia broke not only our school’s record but also the three mile course record at El Dorado Park, with a time of 17 minutes and 26 seconds. Mejia feels very accomplished being “up there” as an underclassman.
Her biggest supporters are her parents, Ms. Ibarra (the coach here at Millikan), and all of her teammates. They all do their best to motivate her and push her past her limits.
“The team was very supportive,” said Mejia.
Mejia has been running for about five years, starting around when she turned 12-years-old and has loved it ever since.
“I just started to see the medals and trophies come in and it got me all excited,” said Mejia. She now envisions herself continuing and improving even when she gets to college.
Although Mejia does not know what she wants to study yet, this talented young lady plans on going to a good college and hopefully earning scholarships. In the future she would like to have a stable job and a united family full of love and support similar to the one she grew up with.
Mejia finds music to be a huge motivator and feels it helps her get in the zone. She enjoys various genres of music like metal, rock, indie, and soft core. Some of her favorite artists include “System of a Down,” “The Weeknd,” “Mac Demarco,” “No Doubt,” and “Lana Del Ray.”
She also tends to go for walks before any competition. When training she enjoys having easier days which for her happens to be a nine or ten minute pace, but also enjoys pushing herself until she drops to the ground.
When Mejia is not running, her favorite hobbies are being out in nature and listening to music.Mejia has shown great strength and drive and she is likely to accomplish many more outstanding things both in our Ram family, and after her journey here at Millikan.
Madison • Jan 24, 2024 at 9:25 am
Nadia is so amazing! I love how they haven’t added a plaque to the record board because they know she will break it again.
Caden Bui • Nov 30, 2023 at 1:07 pm
Nov 30, 2023
Dear Corydon Editor,
On November 3, 2023, Arianna Garcia wrote an article titled “Nadia Mejia Breaks Records Left and Right”. The article focuses on PEACE sophomore, Nadia Mejia and how she has risen to become a top runner in Millikan girls cross country. As a freshman she broke the school record for the 3,200 meter race with a time of 11 minutes and 5 second and then as a sophomore she broke a second record, the three mile record at el dorado park with a time of 17 minutes and 26 seconds. These are impressive stats that were included by Garcia and emphasize the point that Mejia is a top runner. Garcia also includes motivators that push Mejia such as her parents, Ms. Ibarra the coach, and all of her teammates. Another motivator that she includes that explains how Mejia runs faster by getting her in the zone is her music which include metal, rock, indie, and soft core. Garcia does a good job of showing what helps Mejia compete to the best of her abilities. Mejia began running when she was twelve and wants to continue running in college, and hopefully be offered a scholarship for her talents. Garcia also includes her training program as she will have easier days before a race and harder practice days until she is at her limit which proves how hard she works. Garcia does a great job of showcasing Mejia’s talents, motivators, and interests for an outstanding article
Sincerely,
Caden Bui
Morgan Zimmerman • Nov 30, 2023 at 9:13 am
In this article, Nadia Mejia, a PEACE sophomore, was discussed and questioned about her success as a cross-country runner here at Millikan. This article is very well written and I enjoyed the fact that the writer asked Nadia about things she does outside of her sport. Learning about her favorite music and hobbies helped me to relate to this great athlete on a deeper level. One thing I would like to suggest is to maybe ask some more questions about the runner’s process and how she gets into the right headspace for her meets. As an athlete, it can be helpful to learn how someone else prepares for an event because it allows us to try new things and find out what works for us.
It was also nice to learn what Nadia wants to do after high school, and her goals as an adult to become a better runner. A suggestion to enhance this article would be to describe the cross-country courses Nadia and her teammates compete in to give us a better understanding of how difficult it is to compete in this sport.
Emma Buth • Nov 29, 2023 at 1:10 pm
November 29, 2023
Dear Corydon Editor,
On November 3, 2023, Arianna Garcia wrote an article titled “Nadia Mejia Breaks Records Left and Right”. In this article it was discussed how sophomore Nadia Mejia has made many outstanding accomplishments in her cross country and track career. For only having been at this school for 2 years, she’s already broken two records. Her freshman year she broke the 3200 record, which is approximately 2 miles, with a time of 11:05. This year at the first Moore League meet of the season, she broke the 3 mile course record at El Dorado Park with a time of 17:26. Throughout the whole article, there were many important facts that were touched upon so that it is easier for someone to have a better understanding of Mejia. It explained how she feels before a race and what her typical routine would be the day before. Also touching on things such as the environment she is surrounded by, especially her supportive teammates and coaches which all help her strive to do her best.
Sincerely,
Emma Buth
Erica Torres • Nov 29, 2023 at 1:01 pm
On November 3, 2023, Arianna Garcia wrote an article titled “Nadia Mejia Breaks Records Left and Right”. This article was focused on a sophomore girl in PEACE here at Millikan, who is breaking records for the school’s track team. It takes a lot of practice and motivation along with a good support team to become a strong athlete like Nadia Mejia. She has broken two school records in just two years of being in high school and looks to keep pushing herself as she continues her career through college. Arianna Garcia did a great job getting Mejia’s point of view on what is important to her and what drives her to keep up the good work.
The use of quotes and other statistics helped explore all the accomplishments Mejia has made as an underclassman. They gave her new race times that were new records one for the schools and the other not only the school but the three-mile course record itself. However, I feel this piece would be much greater enhanced with the addition of the past record times that she surpassed to give the audience an idea of the time and energy it would take to do so. Along with how long this record has been in place.
It was very interesting to hear more about her own life and how she was able to get to where she is. Her love for music and those around her allowed Mejia to accomplish great things and coils empower others to do the same or congratulate Mejia for her job well done. The article was mainly well written and is a great way to promote support around Millikan High School.