By Justin Gaymon // Photo by Karthik Adimula

1. She has a new mentality

Anna Flynn began her running career at a young age, competing at USATF Youth meets throughout much of her middle school years. She showed promise as a youth and went on to become a national caliber athlete by her freshman and sophomore years at Ursuline School in New Rochelle, NY. By the mıddle of her junior year, Anna had won the Westchester County Cross Country Championships, Bishop Loughlin Games two mile and Marine Corps Holiday Classic mile in impressive fashion.

But as Anna’s legs began to run faster, so did her mind.

“When I started to get into championship races I began overthinkıng and overmanaging myself,” said Anna. “By the end of my sophomore year I was psyching myself out by worrying too much about sticking to my race plan and getting intimidated by girls who were faster than me.”

She explained how that thinking led to her underperforming in a number of elite races throughout her sophomore and junior years, most notably during last year’s Foot Locker Nationals, where she placed 31^st in 18:45.00 after having run 17:55.70 for sixth at Foot Locker Northeast Regionals. 

Anna decided it was time for a change after her last race at June’s USATF Junior National Championships, where she finished the 3,000m in 13^th out of 15 with 10:43.70, but had won the Section 1 State Qualifier with 9:44.59.

“I was tired of letting my mind get the best of me because it was ruining a lot of my races, so the thing I’ve been working on most since nationals is my mentality.”

As a senior, Anna says she is now taking a more laid back approach to her runs and workouts, reducing the amount of pressure she puts on herself to hit specific times and goals. She’s getting back to simply enjoying being an athlete and hopes to carry that frame of mind throughout her senior year.    

2. She has some new, yet old training partners

A big help in that endeavor have been her twin sisters, Lily and Sarah, who recently joined Ursuline’s cross country and track and field teams as freshman.   

Like Anna, Lily and Sarah grew up running on the USATF Youth circuit and have plenty of talent. The three have been running together for years and started preparing for the 2015-16 seasons during mid-summer.

Though Anna is now placing less focus on goals, she did say that she would like to earn her first All-American certificate individually, as well as on a relay team with her sisters.

3. She’s one of New York and the country’s top returners

Despite struggling with championship level competitions, Anna was able to run some of the fastest times in New York and the country last year. With her new mentality, it’s hard to picture her not reaching her All-American goals.

Anna has favored longer distances in the past, but reported that she plans on shifting her focus more toward the mile and 1,500m while on the track.

The information below is from Anna's previous cross country and indoor and outdoor track and field seasons.

Cross Country

2.5 Mile 14:53.90

NY: 1^st

US: 7^th – 2^nd returner

5,000m 17:55.70

NY: 8^th – 5^th returner

US: 186^th

Indoor Track and Field

1,000m 2:51.81

NY: 4^th – 4^th returner

US: 13^th – 10^th returner

1,500m 4:37.23

NY: 4^th – 3^rd returner

US: 14^th – 8^th returner

1 Mile 4:58.03

NY: 3^rd – 2^nd returner

US: 29^th – 15^th returner

2 Mile 10:39.38

3^rd – 2^nd returner

12^th – 9^th returner

Outdoor Track and Field

1,500m 4:27.39

NY: 3^rd – 3^rd returner

US: 10^th – 10^th returner

3,000m 9:44.59

NY: 2^nd – 1^st returner

US: 8^th – 5^th returner

2 Mile 10:57.43

NY: 4^th – 3^rd returner

US: 34^th – 21^st returner