Speed
Chelsea Francis is fast. That much is obvious. She caught everyone’s attention at State her freshman year. She was under the radar back then. She calls that her “new kid on the block” phase.
Now, as a junior, she runs the 100-meter dash, the 200m and the 4×1 and 4×4 relays. And she usually wins. Bob Hayes Invitational, Chandra Cheeseborough Invitational, Gateway Conference Championship: she’s VIP now. Her best times are 11.55 seconds in the 100m and 24.16 in the 200m.
She keeps a rigorous training routine and strives to maintain balance between speed and strength. She hits the weights to improve her arms and core along with her calves and hamstrings. Endurance and injury prevention are as important as power and explosiveness to her.
She’s dedicated to a new regimen this season, designed to help her peak as the postseason intensifies. Her gains are noticeable though not as apparent as before. She remains optimistic nonetheless.
“Last year, I was just running,” she admits. “Now, I’m right where I need to be.”
Leadership
Francis was named team captain as a sophomore. She keeps her grades up, posting a 3.4 cumulative high school GPA to this point and sounds ashamed that it isn’t higher. She doesn’t want to be seen as just a runner, especially during the recruitment process.
“I don’t want [scouts] to say, ‘She’s fast, but can she write? What else can she do?’”
The process has been “exciting and stressful” for her. She has a duffel bag full of letters from colleges and isn’t eligible to speak to any of them until June. She’s taken unofficial visits to Texas A&M University (“Powerhouse,” as she called them), Florida State University and the University of Central Florida. She is conscientious of her actions and image as an aspiring Division 1 athlete.
“I always have to be on my Ps and Qs,” she says.
Experience
Francis is enjoying this season. She’s not nervous or intimidated as she was as a freshman surrounded by seniors on either side. She’s confident, but stays humble.
She’s won before. First place is no longer paramount. She competes against herself instead, striving to top her personal best. Using her mechanics, technique, and the fundamentals she drills in practice every day are more interesting to her at this point.
So she doesn’t notice the pressure. She wants to be normal sometimes, to go out with her friends without having to worry about curfew or tomorrow’s agenda. But she takes her priorities seriously. She knows if she has to leave class early for a meet, she needs to get the lecture notes from a friend. She’s experienced one too many sore, restless nights to let up now.
Motivation
Francis caught the attention of her track coach at Southside Middle School because she was racing a boy who said she couldn’t catch him. She lost, and immediately wanted another chance. She was in seventh grade and looking for something fun to do to keep an active lifestyle, something to fend off the boredom the living room couch promised. The sport just found her that way.
And she is ready for the attention her success brings. She is the youngest in a blended family of ten siblings. She’s watched her brothers and sisters excel, and she expects to do the same.
“Put the spotlight on me,” she says.
Favorite Athlete: Marion Jones
Favorite Subject: Sports medicine/anatomy
Least Favorite Subject: Math
Ideal Place to Vacation: Iowa
Gatorade or Powerade: Powerade
Favorite Movie: Freedom Writers
Last Song Played: Hard Out Here by Lily Allen
Superpower: Invisibility
Player Spotlight/ Jacksonville/ April 2014
Chelsea Francis
Atlantic Coast High School
Jacksonville, FL
Brandon Ibarra
Atlantic Coast Standout Has All the Tools for Success
