2025-2026 indoor track state championship about Alicia Holmes'27

Sprinting, jumping and throwing in this year’s indoor track state championship, Alicia Holmes ’27 showed her strength and determination by competing in four events: the 4x200 relay, high jump, long jump and shot put. Switching between such different events can be difficult, especially mentally. Alicia said that she sometimes feels anxious about her performance. To be focused, she gives herself a few minutes between events to calm down.
“To mentally switch between different events, I usually take a couple minutes to calm down and refocus,” Alicia said. “I struggle with being anxious about my performance, so I take a second to pray and remind myself that one bad competition isn’t going to ruin everything.”
In the meet, high jump was the most challenging event for her.She had only started competing in high jump three weeks before the championship, so she didn’t have much time to practice. 
“High jump challenged me the most,” Alicia said.
To handle the pressure, she focused on her technique and remembered what the coach had to tell her. She also takes deep breaths to be calm and confident.
Alicia believes that training in different events makes her be a better athlete overall. “Training your body to do different things gives you an advantage,” she said. “Being able to run and jump makes me a better thrower.” Competing in multiple events also allows her to help her team in many ways.
Her journey back to competition has not been easy. Last year, Alicia got an ACL and had the operation. The injury forced her to spend months in rehabilitation. She stayed committed to physical therapy and workouts, even when progress was slow.“Recovery taught me discipline and patience,” she said. “I had to trust the process.”
When asked to describe her experience in the indoor track state championship in one word, she said, “Exhilarating. It was so fun to experience this with my friends,” she said. “Hopefully I can do it again.”


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