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Heading
into the USATF Junior Cross Country Nationals last February, all
eyes were on high school standout Dathan Ritzenhein. Few expected
that Ritzenhein would have company in the race, yet, as he circled
the 2k loop, there was a tall, skinny red-headed kid in a Wisconsin
singlet not only hanging with Ritzenhein, but eventually outkicking
him to win the race. Journalists -- who were left scratching their
heads -- soon learned that this was Wisconsin freshman Matt Tegenkamp.
Despite Tegenkamp's impressive high school credentials, including
a 5th place finish at the Foot Locker Cross Country Nationals his
senior year, the media had all but forgotten about him after he
had a quiet fall, choosing to redshirt his entire freshman year.
Several weeks after his Junior National title, Tegenkamp again proved
that he was the real deal by finishing 5th in the junior race at
the World Cross Country Championships. In combination with Ritzenhein's
3rd-place performance, it was one of the most impressive performances
ever by U.S. junior runners on the world stage. Tegenkamp raced
sparingly throughout the spring and ended his season with a 12th
place finish at the USATF Outdoor Track & Field Championships
in an impressive PR of 13:49.64. Tegenkamp will make his official
college debut September 29 at the University of Minnesota's Roy
Griak Invitational.
MensRacing.com:
Going into the World XC trials in February, all eyes were on Dathan
Ritzenhein and then you snuck in there to win. Was your victory
a surprise to you too? What were your expectations going into the
race?
Matt
Tegenkamp: Going into World XC trials I think all eyes should
have been on Dathan. He had done some amazing things in his high
school career. He had not been defeated in two years; that deserves
a lot of respect. The only reason that I believed that I could run
with him was due to the great training I got here (in Madison) with
my teammates. I increased my mileage and learned how to run uncomfortably
for long periods of time. Still, I was surprised that I beat him,
I only thought I could hang with him and if it came down to a kick,
he might have the better chance. Expectations for the race were
[that I could finish in the] top eight [which would be considered
"winning"] and that if I felt I could finish higher, I'd
go with the lead pack.
I
imagine that win provided a big confidence boost. Did it change
your expectations for yourself or did you have high expectations
all along?
The
win did provide a big confidence boost but at Worlds Dathan beat
me, so I did not let it go to my head. This year I think I have
improved even more and I think that I can hang with the top guys
in the nation. Times don’t really matter, only place for XC.
In track, who knows how low times could get.
Could
you tell us a little about the whole Worlds experience - how was
competing internationally different, how did you deal with the [extremely
muddy] conditions and what was your race strategy?
I
had a great time at Worlds; it was the best experience of my life.
It was a little intimidating being around so many world- class athletes
but I think that will only help in years to come. Really the only
thing I can say is that it was a great learning experience. Race
conditions were bad but
everyone had to go through the same thing. The [senior] U.S. athletes
that ran the day before said that positions did not change very
much after the first loop, so our goal was to be up front in the
beginning of the race.
What
was the logic behind redshirting this year? Did you regret it at
any point?
I
do not regret redshirting one bit. The point was to become a stronger
runner, and to learn how to run while being uncomfortable for long
periods of time. I accomplished that by doing 70 miles a week consistently
for the whole year. I had many solid workouts and that has gotten
me the to the level that I am at now.
It's
neat to look at your progress since freshman year of high school
it seems that you've had pretty significant improvements each year,
including a big jump this year. What do you attribute that progress
to and how did your training change when you went to Wisconsin?
Everything
that I did in high school and the first half of freshmen year in
college is in part to my high school coach, Dave Denny. He is a
great coach and really knows what he is doing. He coached at the
collegiate level in addition to coaching world-class miler Joe Falcon.
I did whatever he told me to do, I would complain but always did
what I had to do. Now I am in the Wisconsin program and it does
not seem like that much has changed. That is one of the reasons
I picked this school. Really the only thing that has changed is
that my mileage is higher. Workouts are very similar to what I was
used to. I put just as much trust in Jerry Schumacher as I did coach
Denny.
How
did you become a runner in the first place? Lee's Summit seems to
have a traditionally strong XC program, did that help encourage
you to take up the sport?
I
really don’t know how I got started running. I always did the
half-mile for the physical fitness test in elementary school and
I was okay at it. Then when I got into junior high I just wanted
to join the cross
country team. There were points when I wanted to quit but one day
the high school kids came over and really encouraged us to go out
for the team, and I did. When I got to high school and met Coach
Denny I did not even know
who Joe Falcon was.
How
did you choose Wisconsin and what has your experience been like
thus far?
Coming
to Wisconsin is one of the best decisions I made in my life. There
is a great group of athletes here. The team is unbelievable, we
have a great time; we are like family. Many of the guys that graduate
stay around and run professionally. That is really cool, there are
always world-class athletes around. Jerry Schumacher is one of the
greatest coaches in the nation. He is young, able to relate to us
and really knows what he is
doing. Wisconsin is the place for me.
It
must be exciting heading into this cross country season and finally
being able to officially represent Wisconsin. What are your individual
goals for the upcoming season? What's the team looking like after
losing some of the top runners?
It
is going to be a really tough year both individually and team-wise
to finish high. I have extremely happy that I finally get to represent
Wisconsin. I am not going to give any predictions as to how well
the team or I could do. Even though we lost a lot with the seniors
that graduated, we fill the spots nicely. It is going to be a very
exciting year and Wisconsin will be around when it counts.
How
did your training go this summer? Did you stay in Madison or go
elsewhere?
I
was in Madison until the end of June and came back in late July,
I was home (in Lee's Summit, MO) for most of July. I would have
to say that this was the best summer I have ever had. I am doing
80 miles a week and it is very good training.
Wisconsin
doesn't have a lot of races scheduled this season - does that mean
that you'll run them all?
The
fewer races you run the more training you can get in, so that is
why we only have six meets. I am not running the first one (which
took place August 31st) but after that I will run all of them. I
am opening up at the Minnesota meets on September 29.
What
has the college experience been like outside of running - What are
you majoring in? Do you have time for any other activities?
Wisconsin
is a very good school academically, so it was a hard first year
of school, but everything turned out well. As of right now I am
looking at majoring in Personal Finance; that could change though.
And redshirting last year left plenty of time to do other things.
Living in the dorms last year I made a lot of friends. On the weekends
the rest of the freshmen on the team (Josh Spiker, Colin Steel,
Ryan Cole, and Tim Keller) and I usually got out and had some fun
times.
Finally,
there's been talk about the resurgence of distance running in the
U.S. with juniors like you, Dathan, Alan [Webb] and Franklyn Sanchez
pulling off some great performances this year. The recent World
Championships showed that we still have a long way to go before
we can compete with the Kenyans and Ethiopians, though. You've shown
that you can compete with some of the world's best juniors, do you
think you can carry that over to the senior level eventually?
That
has definitely always been the goal. It has been my dream ever since
I started running to go to the Olympics and compete with the world's
best. I still have a long way to go but I am putting in the work
now that will get me to that level some day. When we were at the
World Cross Country Championships, Bob Kennedy gave the U.S. men’s
team a little talk about the races and he said, (to paraphrase),
"This meet was a good step in the right direction to get American
distance running back on the map with the rest of the world, but
remember it is only a step and there is still a lot of work to be
done to compete with the Kenyans and Ethiopians, so keep doing what
you are doing, and keep training you butts off."
(Interview:
September 6, 2001)
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