And on the seventh day, he may run

Canton senior’s religious faith keeps him out of Saturday track meets, but his performances have been stellar

Jimmie Smith, a senior track athlete at Canton High School and member of the Seventh-Day Adventist Church, will now be allowed to compete on Saturdays which in the past kept him from sectional and state championship competition.

By JANE MILLER
OF THE JOURNAL STAR
Posted May 03, 2010 @ 08:29 PM
Last update May 04, 2010 @ 06:09 AM

About the only thing that can beat Jimmie Smith is a Saturday track meet.

The Canton senior’s family is a member of the Seventh-day Adventist faith, which prohibits secular activities on Saturdays. That includes competing in or watching sporting events.

Most of the track and field season, that isn’t a problem. But it is when the state meet comes around, because the finals are on a Saturday.

In the Class 1A state finals last year, Smith was the No. 2 seed in the 200-meter dash and No. 4 seed in the 100. Canton’s 4x200 relay, which Smith anchored, was seeded second. But Smith wasn’t allowed to compete.

This year, however, should be different. Smith said his parents have told him he will be allowed to run at state.

“As long as I don’t get in trouble,” Smith said.

Certainly, Smith hasn’t had much trouble on the track this season. He has run a 10.8-second 100, a school-record :23.1 200 and a :49.3 400. He just started back on relays two weeks ago, although all three teammates from that standout 4x2 team of 2009 graduated.

“I just want to go undefeated this year. I’ll do whatever it takes,” Smith said.

He’s already faced down a big challenge to that when he raced against Morton junior D.J. Zahn at the Galesburg A-B-C Invitational on April 16. He bested Zahn — who has put up some stellar times this season — in the 100, 200 and 400 that day, although the two probably will meet at least two more times this season.

“Every challenge that comes his way, he just keeps stepping up to meet the challenge,” Canton coach Mike Vollmar said. “There are meets where he knows there’s going to be nobody there to challenge him and he runs races like that. But then when he knows there’s somebody there to challenge him, like at Galesburg, he steps up every time.”

Smith was a running back on Canton’s football team but hopes to run track in college.

“I’d love to go to Illinois,” he said. “If not there, a good school somewhere close.”

He didn’t start running competitively until seventh grade — in fact, he didn’t participate in sports at all until then.

“Saturdays,” he said.

But even though he used to beat older children while running on the playground at recess, he struggled in the early days of his track career.

“I didn’t do too good,” he said. “I had to learn starts and form.”

But by the time he got to high school, he was ready to shine.

“He was pretty developed as a freshman,” Vollmar said, “but he really got in the weight room between his sophomore and junior year and he really got strong around then. He made huge jumps from his sophomore to junior year.”

Vollmar said not having his top sprinter on Saturdays hasn’t been that much of a hardship.

“He can do everything on Fridays, it’s just Saturday,” Vollmar said. “I understand. I just know Saturdays are off-limits.”

And with Smith’s ability and quiet leadership, he’ll take him whenever he can get him.

“He’s a great leader in that he’ll do everything I ask and not complain about it,” Vollmar said. “And the kids look up to him. They get very excited about watching him run.”

Smith has some goals for the season — breaking the school record in the 100 (:10.6) and repeating as Mid-Illini Conference champion in the 100, 200 and 400. But the big thing is going to state — and maybe bringing home some hardware.

“I’d like to place, if not get first,” he said.

Jane Miller can be reached at 686-3207 or jmiller@pjstar.com

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Source: http://www.pjstar.com/preps/x1406502566/Miller-Seventh-day-doesn-t-make-him-weak

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