Submitted
Lyndi Zimmerman loves track and field. And track and field loves Lyndi Zimmerman.
As a member of the Hays Striders summer youth track team and in-coming multi-sport freshman at Hays High School, Zimmerman is ranked number one in the nation in one of her favorite track events, the pentathlon. Going into the upcoming Junior Olympics in Des Moines, Iowa, Zimmerman will compete against the best in the country in the 14- year-old girls division on Saturday, July 29.
The pentathlon is an event where athletes compete in five events in one day, all day long: shot put, 100-meter hurdles, long jump, high jump, and the 800-meter run. Offered only during summer track meets, the multi-event is a precursor to the heptathlon which is offered during college and the Summer Olympics.
When asked about her number one ranking she said she was “shocked” she was ranked at the top. “I thought I would be ranked about 20th but it’s awesome!”
Zimmerman is ranked 225 points ahead of her next competitor, Kai Wood of Maryland.
Her favorite pentathlon event is either the 100-meter hurdles or shot put, and as the event lasts all day, there are some obstacles Lyndi says she has to overcome during competition. Mentally there is the challenge of competing with only a 30-minute break between events, and the challenge of the day “either being too hot or something hurts,” Zimmerman said.
Strider teammate Makayla Lewallen, ranked 11th in the nation and a strong athlete in her own right, will compete side by side with Zimmerman in Des Moines. “It’s really nice to have someone to talk to about the events,” Zimmerman said about having Lewallen compete with her. Zimmerman took first in the pentathlon at the regional qualifier in June at Yukon, Oklahoma, with Lewallen placing second in the same event.
Zimmerman started her summer running at age six with the Hays Striders as an 800 and 1500-meter runner, and feels that those early mid-distance, distance events contributed to her success and helped her grow as a sprinter and hurdler today.
“I always thought I was going to run distance as I did cross-country. It surprises me now that I’m doing shot put, hurdles, sprints, and not distance,” Zimmerman stated. She feels the longer running events at an early age have given her a good foundation “because of the endurance and the sprint you have to give at the end of the race,” she said.
When asked about her track heroes, without hesitation, she said, “Sydney McLaughlin. Sydney runs the 100 hurdles and has the 400 hurdles world record (50.68). She’s just awesome.”
Her pre-meet routine is simple. “I just do warm-ups, have a good snack, some water, and go to the heating tent.” Her pre-meet diet is simple as well. “A boxed, frozen Chinese dish from Walmart cooked in a little skillet,” she said. "It’s really good.” Simple, but it works for her.
One of her goals for her high school is placing at state as a freshman. “And every year too, but especially as a freshman as it will put my name out there,” she said. After high school, her aspiration is to compete in track in college. “But I’m not really thinking about that right now,” taking her meets one at a time.
Zimmerman’s family is well-known in Kansas for soccer and now track as almost all of Jesse and Bria Zimmerman’s children run for the Striders. Brothers Emery and Finley also qualified for the Junior Olympics and sister Halle holds her own at practice with athletes twice her age.
Traveling across the country for meets in their RV, Zimmerman describes the trips as “pretty chaotic but a lot of fun.” The Zimmerman family bond is very strong and the Striders team love to hear about their exploits upon return.
Of her favorite track memories, Zimmerman says going to North Carolina with the Lewallens for the Junior Olympics last year was really fun. “We stayed at the same campsite and went everywhere with each other.” Family friends Darris and Meredith Lewallen also travel to meets in their RV.
Another favorite memory for Zimmerman is the 2017 USATF Junior Olympics in Lawrence where “a bunch of family watched me compete in the 1500. I think I got 25th,” she said.
Her favorite workout she says is “An easy workout! Ins and Outs. A sprint workout!” Coach Dave Haberman was hoping she would say his Madness Runs, Tempos, or 800 Cruzers but “Lyndi has really grown into a strong sprinter and hurdler so that heavier workload doesn’t fit her training very often.”
Training for the pentathlon presents its own challenges as Zimmerman has to train for her individual events for Des Moines, 100 and hurdles, 200-meter dash, and shot put as well as three additional pentathlon events, long jump, high jump, and 800-meter run.
During Zimmerman’s last year at Hays Middle School she set four individual school records in the 100-meter dash, 200-meter dash, 100 hurdles, and 200 hurdles. “Five records if you include the relay,” Zimmerman added. If Zimmerman would have been able to compete in the shot put and long jump for the Falcons, she would have broken the records in both of those events as well. When asked if she wants to put the shot in high school Zimmerman said, “I hope so, I kind of want to.”
As Zimmerman’s season comes to a close after the Junior Olympics she may be able to take a break, relax, and recover. But don’t count on her being too lax for too long as that competitive track bug will bite again soon. And her love of track and field will be on again.