While most athletes are looking toward possibly putting themselves in contention for statewide honors in their respective sports, a local runner’s recent performance has been hailed as the standard so far this year in the entire United States for his age group.
Zach Truitt, a seventh-grader at Landmark Christian School, recorded a time of 10:24.67 in the 3,200-meter run at a home meet March 5. School officials reported that it is the fastest two-mile time time in the country for a seventh-grader this spring.
That same day Truitt finished the 1,600-meter run in 4:53.64, nearly 30 seconds ahead of the second-place runner. His 3,200-meter finish was more than a minute and a half ahead of the field.
This past weekend he followed up those performances with almost carbon copies, running the 1,600 meters in 4:56.44 and the 3,200 meters in 10:26.67.
Benjamin Cawood, one of his coaches at Landmark, confirmed Friday that Truitt has the fastest times in both distances nationwide for grades 7-8 so far this season based on a search he conducted on the Mile Split high school track website.
“That’s pretty impressive for a seventh-grader,” he said.
The track program at Landmark Christian School is no stranger to success. In a quarter-century since the school opened, its boys and girls teams have amassed 16 state championships and four state runner-up finishes, according to the school’s website.
A glance at the Georgia High School Association record book shows the War Eagles with seven consecutive Class A state championships from 1996 to 2002, and it most recent boys title came in 2008. So it almost takes a national-level performance to stand out as far as the track program’s overall history is concerned.
“In terms of national performances it’s pretty neat,” said Cawood, himself a 2003 Landmark graduate who was around during the seven-title run.
While Truitt has not yet surpassed all Landmark middle school records at these distances, as Cawood noted, “It’s still early in the season.”
The youngster’s advanced development can also be seen in practice, where he has moved ahead of many of the varsity runners with regard to training.
“He was the first to advance to interval training,” said Cawood. “He was a little bit ahead of the curve and really motivated – a great kid, respectful and observant.”
