One, two, three, four. One, two, three, four. Her heart is racing, her eyes blacking out. However, she doesn’t give up. Her legs take control, body moving as one. With a final push, the rest of her energy spent, Diamond Bar High School cross country captain Amber Yu crosses the finish line.
Yu did not start out loving cross country. She started with no experience and hated the rigor of running. Despite this, Yu pushed through the pain and never looked back.
“I wasn’t a really athletic person when I first joined XC, so I joined hoping I could condition myself to be more fit,” Yu said. “I ended up loving running and decided to continue it throughout my high school career.”
Like any other athlete, Yu has struggled with challenges throughout her own athletic career. However, as varsity captain, she must balance between regulating the team and achieving her own personal records.
“My biggest challenge is my personal performance. This year, the amount of cross country invitationals for our team had been reduced significantly compared to what we had raced previously,” Yu said. “Having fewer invitationals and more new courses gave me less opportunities to break my personal record, but I’m looking forward to breaking my new League course record.”
As a four year athlete, Yu is no stranger to winning. With the support of her former teams, Yu has won many school and team awards in a variety of races, such as the Fastback Invitational at Mt. Sac, Bell Gardens Invitational, Sunny Hills Invitational and La Serna High School Summer Series. She was recognized as the Cross Country Brahma of the Year in 2022 shortly after.
“When I first started, the incredible captains of my team were what helped me to flourish as an athlete and a person. Their constant encouragement provided me confidence in my athletic ability, and motivated me to earn the position of captain to provide others with the same guidance I had,” Yu said. “Our XC team is known for its positive, supportive environment filled with some of the kindest, most dedicated people I’ve ever met.”
Though the season comes to a close, Yu has no plans to stop running. She plans to continue running beyond her high school athletic career.
“I definitely plan on continuing to run throughout my entire life,” Yu said. “My proudest accomplishment is staying dedicated to XC for all four years. It’s been a tough, yet rewarding journey. I know if I can thrive in XC I’ll be strong enough to take on any challenge in the future.”
