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Franklyn
Sanchez made a grand entrance onto the collegiate stage last November
when he finished fifth at the NCAA Cross Country Championships,
indicating that this kind and humble Georgetown University freshman
has a bright future ahead of him. As a high school standout for
Lynn Technichal High School in Lynn, MA, Sanchez ran PRs of 4:08
(mile) 8:49 (2-mile) and 14:24 (5,000m). Last year, while doing
a post-graduate year at Cushing Academy, he won the U.S. Jr. Cross
Country Championships before going on to finish 28th at the World
Jr. Cross Country Championships in Portugal. Sanchez is redshirting
this indoor track season but competed unattached in the 3,000m at
the New Balance Invitational in Boston, MA on February 4th. He finished
10th in the elite field, running a PR of 8:05.43. (02-12-01)
MensRacing.com:
Last week at the New
Balance Invitational, you ran unattached, are you redshirting
this season?
Franklyn
Sanchez: I
am redshirting for indoors. Coach and I really thought about it
after cross country season was over and he decided that since I'm
going to be be here for five years and that it's going to be a long
year... Freshman year is pretty tough -- especially getting used
to the academics and different training -- but we came up with the
plan that it was best for me to redshirt indoors and set a long-term
plan for outdoors. So far I think it's working pretty well... That
race at New Balance was a good test to see where I was in my training.
MR.com:
The 8:05 that you ran last week (in the 3,000m) was that your PR?
FS:
Yeah, yeah, it was... I was really upset because the competition
was so great. There were some top runners in the field. I was very
upset and coach kind of made me realize that the training is going
well and that's where I want to be right now.
MR.com:
And you were probably the youngest guy in the race...
FS:
Yeah, but you know sometimes I don't like to look at it like that.
I just want to go out and compete. Now that I really look at it
though, I'm on the right track.
MR.com:
What kind of training are you doing right now, are you still doing
workouts with your team?
FS:
Yes, I am. Right now I've been running 85-90 miles per week and
doing two workouts a week (tempo runs, track workouts or long intervals).
I'm working on my base a lot, doing a lot of base, strength work.
MR.com:
What event are you going to focus on outdoors?
FS:
What I really want to focus on is the 5,000 meters. Also, coach
wants me to concentrate on the mile as well. He tells me that in
order to run a great 5, you need to be able to run a good mile as
well.
MR.com:
Do you have any other indoor races planned?
FS:
No, that was the only race because, like I said, we're focusing
on outdoor track.
MR.com:
So do you know when your next race will be?
FS:
My next race will be at the Stanford Invitational, I'll be running
the 5,000m.
MR.com:
During cross country season, you only ran three races. What was
the logic behind that?
FS:
It was the same as now. It's my first year here. I've got to get
used to academics, get used to the environment... The plan was that
I was going to run Big East, Regionals, and peak for NCAAs and it
actually worked out really well. I really love my coach.
MR.com:
You have two coaches, which one are you talking about?
FS: Coach (Patrick) Henner and
Coach Gags (Frank Gagliano). Coach Henner is the one who guides
me, gives me workouts, tells me what races to run. He and I come
up with plans. Coach Gags is also involved, but he's like my mentor.
He works with me psychologically, mentally. He gives me a lot of
confidence.
MR.com:
What kind of things does (Coach Gagliano) tell you?
FS:
We meet once a week for dinner... During races I get very nervous
and someone can ask me "Are you ready for this race?"
and the first thing I would say is "No, no." At this level,
I have to realize that I need to tell myself that deep down inside,
I'm ready... He's helping me to believe in myself more and know
that I can do it. He tells me a lot of things that really keep me
highly motivated. He talks to me about the many Olympians he coached,
the experiences that they had together... so I learn a lot from
him.
MR.com:
And Coach Henner is the coach that you work more with on a day-to-day
basis?
FS:
Yes.
MR.com: Going back to NCAA Cross
Country, were you surprised by that race?
FS:
I was really surprised. It's my first year here at Georgetown. I
was not really expecting to come in in the top 10, top 5. Coach
told me that we had to stick to the plan and that I would come along
if I just listened to him. I wasn't quite confident and I didn't
quite believe in him as much as I believe in him now...
I was very
disappointed because as a team, we were ready to come in in the
top 5. And some of our runners just had a bad race. In terms of
that, I was very disappointed. But in terms of my individual race,
I was very happy. I was not satisfied, but I was happy. I knew with
three miles to go that I could be one of the top contenders. I was
really confident after three miles... I was really pumped and I
thought that I belonged in the top 5.
MR.com:
I read that as a high school sophomore, you got lapped by Jon Riley
and Andy Powell -- is that true?
FS:
Yes. It was on an indoor track. Talking about getting lapped...
I think that's one of the reasons I was really upset [after last
week's race at the New Balance Invitational]... Jonathon Riley is
a great runner and I truly admire him. He's one of my idols on the
running scene.
As a sophomore,
I remember that Jonathon Riley and Andy Powell were going at it,
that's all anyone talked about and I was so amazed, so intrigued
by them. When they lapped me, I really, truly realized that I wanted
to be one of them. Ever since then, I worked so hard to be in the
position that I am today. I thank God that everything is going the
way that it is.
Reflecting
back, I look at the New Balance meet and I see how Jonathon Riley
is at a different level now... it just reminded me of when I was
a sophomore because really, I was about to get lapped once again.
Looking at the way these elite runners run just opens my eyes and
makes me hungrier. It makes me want to become one of them -- and
that is one of my dreams, one of my goals. I want to be like Jonathon
Riley, he's a great runner and I truly admire him.
MR.com:
As a high school sophomore, getting lapped and deciding that you
wanted to move to that next level -- what did you do to get there?
FS:
I matured more as a person and as a runner. I grew two inches and
I got stronger. But one of the main things was that I really focused
on my running and my school work. Obviously, I did have a social
life, but that came third. It was school, running, and then, if
I had time, socializing with my friends. I was really, really committed
to my running.
I also had
a really great coach -- Jean Cann (formerly of the B.A.A. and now
of Brandeis University) -- I told her that I really wanted to be
like Jonathon Riley and I wanted to be one of the best. She said
that I had the talent and we committed. We decided to call each
other every night and talk about training. She gave me a lot of
motivation. Part of it was her help and all the support that I had.
MR.com:
Are the two of you still in touch?
FS:
Oh yes. We talk or e-mail at least twice a week. We're very close.
MR.com:
After you graduated from Lynn Tech (in Lynn, MA), you did a post-graduate
year at Cushing Academy?
FS:
Yes, that was a great experience there. I ran for the team but that
was not my priority. The priority was academics. They helped me
so much. I struggled a lot with school work because of my background.
I went to Cushing Academy and it was the best experience I've ever
had. I grew a lot as a person and I was more prepared to go to college.
Although I still struggle, it was a good experience and I thought
I needed that. I was not prepared academically. I had just turned
17 and one year of putting the running aside for a little bit helped.
MR.com:
And (despite "putting running aside) yet you still made the
World Junior Cross Country team...
FS:
(Laughs) I'm very lucky.
MR.com:
What aspect of college life has surprised you the most?
FS:
It's tough. It's really, really tough. There have been a lot of
times that I'm really lost and confused... There have been a lot
of times that I've just wanted to go back home. It's not easy. I
truly love my family and I'm far away. My family and I are very
close. That's one of the obstacles that I've been trying to overcome
my freshman year here at Georgetown.
It's been
tough, also, training with the team. In high school, I had a team
but it wasn't as serious. It's unbelieveable how hard [my teammates]
push me. At this level it's really tough... Sometimes I question
whether or not I belong here. I have struggled... As the year progresses,
it's getting better. So far it has been a great experience.
MR.com:
What is your daily schedule like and how do you find time for everything?
FS:
Oh man (laughs). Actually, I have a schedule right here on the wall
from my coach... It's very tight but it works. I was so lost, I
didn't have a routine when I first got here so having a schedule
really helps.
MR.com:
Do you know what you want to major in?
FS:
I still haven't decided. I speak fluent spanish and I'm thinking
about majoring in that, but I'm also thinking about sports psychology...
Even though I speak spanish, it's still hard. I speak the language
that was spoken at home, but I really don't know the true, true
spanish. It makes me look back at why I really struggle so much
with academics...
MR.com:
Could you tell me a little about your background?
FS:
I was born in the Dominican Republic and when I was eight years
old, I came to the U.S. It was a struggle coming to the "Ideal
American Dream" -- that's what I expected it to be -- but it
was really a struggle, just like coming to Georgetown at first.
As I got older, I began to find my way around, but school was not
the main focus, it was always sports -- that's what I was doing
-- playing baseball, hanging out in the streets, speaking the ghetto
english that I learned. The english that I learned was the street
language...
You struggle
at it in the beginning but you keep at it and it gets better, that's
what I've learned from life. You've got to understand that life
is about struggling and getting right back up...
I came to realize,
when I started running, the importance of an education... My mom
is very religious and one of the things that she tells me is that
everything that I have is because of God. She always tells me to
thank God. I'm not a very religious person and I don't go to church
a lot but she makes me aware of the the things I have. The things
I've had, yes, I've worked hard, but she reminds me to always thank
God. And I really, really thank God because if it weren't for for
my running, for my athletic ability, I never would have been at
Georgetown University. I'm the first one from my family to be going
to college and that means a lot to me and my family.
MR.com:
Could tell me how you started running?
FS:
I was a sophomore, I was 14, almost 15 at the time. I went to Lynn
Tech to play baseball. I was actually recruited to be one of the
pitchers... I guess I didn't have a very good year as a baseball
player my first year of high school... I was wondering how I could
get to the next level, what I needed to do to be a better player,
and a friend of mine told me that maybe I should run cross country
to stay in shape for baseball. At the time, I didn't know what cross
country was... He told me to bring running clothes for the next
day. I totally forgot, but I told him I would still run wearing
my jeans. We ran a mile time trial. I remember running with basketball
shoes and jeans and I ran about 6 minutes. I thought it was kind
of far, but I thought, wow, that's good...
In my first
race, I was running with my friends and I figured that I could go
a little faster. I told my friends, "come on, lets go, let's
see if we can catch some of these people." I ended up catching
the leader and some guy gave me the wrong directions and I did an
extra loop... but I still finished so I was happy.
MR.com:
So you would have won your first race if you hadn't gone the wrong
way?
FS:
I think so... But it was a great experience. After that, I really
got hooked. I ran indoors and that's when Jonathon Riley lapped
me. I ran 9:33 (for 2 miles) as a sophomore and after that, I was
really hooked. I played baseball [that spring] but after that I
made a decision (to stick with running).
MR.com:
Where do you see yourself going as a runner? Do you plan to keep
doing it as long as you can?
FS:
As long as God gives me the strength. I really have a passion for
the sport. I like to say that I dream a lot and I'm always going
to keep dreaming. To me, a day without running is not the same...
My intention is to keep running as long as I can with the help of
God.
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Franklyn
Sanchez runs among the leaders at the 2000 NCAA Cross Country Championships
in Ames, IA where he finished fifth. 
Sanchez runs ahead of two-time Olympian Todd Williams in the 3,000m at the New Balance Invitational in Boston, MA. Sanchez finished 10th in the race with an 8:05.43 PR. 
