Rolesville runner breaks national record

WW Submitted Photo
Brandon Leacock (left) came all the way from eighth place in the race to beat out Preston Stensland (right) in the 800-meter run for the Junior
Olympics national championship. Brandon broke a national record in his age division with a time of 2:29.55.
by Marty Simpkins
ROLESVILLE When 8-year-old Brandon Leacock was asked what its like to break the national record in the Junior Olympics, he could
only come up with one word: Good. Brandon ran a 2:29.55 in the 800-meter national championship at the University of North Florida Sunday,
Aug. 2.He raced against other kids his age and younger in other events as well, also breaking the national record for the 400-meter run with a
time of 1:03.40.I was very nervous at the national championship, Brandon said. I was more excited than nervous, though, because I was ready
to run better times and do a good job.
Brandon comes from the Rolesville Athletic Academy, a group of kids who run track during the summer and compete in national events.
For practice, we run five 450-meter and two 400-meter runs back to back, Brandon said. After that, we do some sprints and 150-meter dashes
to get ready. I like the 800-meter run because Im good at it. I liked running it all season, so thats why Im so good at it.Michael Booth is the
founder and head coach of the Rolesville Athletic Academy. He is also the head coach of the Rolesville High School track team. Coach Booth is
a good coach, Brandon said. Sometimes after practice, he would tell jokes. He is very funny.
Brandon is the third youngest out of the four Leacock boys, who all participate in the youth track program at Rolesville. The youngest is Brian,
who is 5 years old. Nathan, the oldest at 12, was unable to run in his age division this year after pulling a hamstring in June. However, not even
an injury could keep him out of the Junior Olympics. Instead, he competed in non-running events such as the shot put, discus throw and javelin
toss. Since I pulled my hamstring, I did the shot put, discus and javelin toss, which are events I have never done before, Nathan said. I didnt
want to just sit down and watch. I know that if I dont run track, Ill gain some weight. At regionals July 12, Nathan placed fourth in the shot put
with a distance of 32 feet and 9.75 inches. He finished sixth at nationals. In 2012, Nathan broke the Junior Olympics national record for the 200meter dash in the 8-and-under age division with a time of 28.65 seconds. It still holds to this day.I was very nervous when I broke the record,
Nathan said. I know there were people competing at the same speed as me. I knew it was going to be a competitive race. Now, kids are breaking
all kinds of records, which is very surprising to me. Nathan runs track with his brothers at the Rolesville Athletic Academy. As a brother, he
knows exactly how Brandon has become such a successful runner at a young age. My mom and dad used to run track, so Brandon got some of
their genes, Nathan said. Brandon trains very hard. He whines a little bit, but he pushes through it and hes a good brother. Dillon, the second
oldest at 10, finished third in the 800-meter run with a time of 2:19.45 in his age division at the regionals meet. However, when Dillon competed
at the national meet, he finished 14th with a time of 2:21.00.

WW Submitted Photo
Hillary Leacock pictured with his sons (from left to right) Nathan, Brandon, Brian and Dillon.

I didnt run my best time, Dillon said. My best run was at the state championship. It was very competitive. When asked who would win in a
race between Nathan and Brandon, Dillon gave his honest answer.
I think Brandon would beat Nathan in a race, Dillon said. Nathan was shocked at his brothers answer, staring at him with his mouth wide
open. Nathan quickly backed up his answer by talking about Brandons self-assurance before the big race at the national championship.
Although Brandon was nervous before the race, he also had some confidence, Dillon said. The night before, he said that he would break the
national record. He actually said it over and over again. He knew he was going to win the 800-meter run. Nathan was doubting him. Hillary
Leacock, the father, agreed with Dillon. He recollected his memory with Brandon the night before the championship meet. Its nice to know that
you train so hard and you get what youre expected, Hillary said. Brandons brothers joke about him, but Brandon was able to tell us what time
he was going to run before he ran it. I kind of knew that he would break the national record, because he trains with his brothers who are very
fast.
Both Hillary and his wife, Beverly, ran track at the collegiate level. Hillary was a jumper and sprinter at N.C. State, while Beverly ran the 400meter and 800-meter run at Jackson State University in Mississippi. Hillary met Beverly at a youth track club in Trinidad and Tobago, where they
were both born and raised. During her college years, Beverly won the best female athlete in the conference for three years in a row. She qualified
for the 1996 Summer Olympics, but because Trinidad and Tobago had financial problems, she was unable to run. When asked how his sons have
been so successful, Hillary said that its not just the inheritance of athletic abilities alone. We eat the same food as everyone else, Hillary said.
The real secret on how to be good is practicing every day. A lot of running track is in the mind. Coach Booth is an interesting person. He doesnt
say a lot, but me and him think a lot alike on how to train the kids to run track.
Hillarys sons have three national records to their name. As a father, Hillary said he couldnt be more proud of his boys achieving at a high level
early in their lives. It feels good knowing that these kids want to take it seriously and they actually want to do it, Hillary said. My wife and I
actually tell them they need to run track in addition to playing a sport that they like. My wife and I made it through college because of athletic
scholarships. I dont know if theyre going to end up liking track, but we want to give them all the opportunities to be successful.
Some other local athletes also competed in the Junior Olympics national championship. Stephen Elliott, another Rolesville Athletic Academy
member, finished 11th in the decathlon for the 13 and 14 years old age division with a score of 2,346 points. He just started attending Franklin
Academy High School this year and is currently trying out for the schools soccer team. Christian Bass, a Wake Forest High School graduate, ran
in the national semifinals for the 200-meter dash, but he did not qualify to compete in the national championship.