Photo by Isabella A.
Domenyk is a grade eleven student who can frequently be seen on the courts or on the fields playing for various St. Joe’s teams. The three main sports in which he enjoys participating are basketball, soccer, and cross country.
Domenyk has participated in cross country since grade nine. He loves the competitive atmosphere that it provides and the challenge of running against athletes who may be older or more experienced than him.
Domenyk has done a great job representing St. Joe’s throughout the other races of this year’s cross country season. He placed sixteenth at Thrill on the Hill, the grueling first race of the season that was held at Malden Park in Windsor; eleventh at WECSSAA, which also took place at Malden Park; and twelfth at SWOSSAA held at Canatara Park in Sarnia.
This year, Domenyk was also one of two students from St. Joe’s to qualify for OFSAA. On November 3, he headed to Christie Lake in Hamilton to participate in the Senior 6K race against the best runners from all over Ontario. Domenyk ran a solid race, with a time of just under twenty four minutes. Despite the cold temperatures, and the very muddy and difficult course, Domenyk considered it to be a really great experience filled with many interesting people. One thing that really stood out to him was the intensity of the competition; the athletes were there for business and not to fool around. He believes that one essential thing to remember in situations like that is to not give up and to really focus on yourself and your goals.
As any athlete knows, there is always a challenge in balancing their chosen sports and their school work. For Domenyk, he applies the same mentally that he uses during a sports event to efficiently complete his homework. He usually does his homework as soon as possible, and doesn’t stop until he has completed it. He compares it to when he is dribbling a ball down the court or field: you just have to keep pushing through. Even when he doesn’t have homework, Domenyk will still make sure to study for a couple of hours before training.
Domenyk’s plans for next year will include cross country once again. He wasn’t entirely satisfied with his performance at OFSAA this season and wants to return next year to improve his time and his results. He is very eager to start training again and “kill it next year”.
Make sure to keep an eye out for Domenyk throughout the rest of the athletic season at St. Joe’s!