On Oct. 25th at the Mid-Season Mania Invitational, junior Arrin Sagiraju broke the 3200m school record with a time of 9:10.21. He took first in the meet by two hundredths of a second.
Running into the last hundred meters, Sagiraju was behind the lead runner by a sizable margin. But after turning on the afterburners, Sagiraju closed the gap until he barely pulled ahead by inches at the finish line.
“My mind was not really focused at all at the time. But right after the race, my teammates came up to me and they were yelling, ‘9:10, 9:10,’” Sagiraju said. “I was like, ‘oh, shucks, that’s the school record.’ I was really emotional.”
Going into the race, Sagiraju knew what he was capable of and how close the record was, but didn’t know if he could beat it.
“Over the summer, I saw the school record. I thought that seemed achievable if I had a perfect race. So, ever since summer, I had that thought in the back of my mind that when this race comes around, maybe this will be a chance for me to really prove myself.”
Sagiraju broke the previous 3200m record, set by Daniel Municio in the Dublin Distance Fiesta last March, to cement his legacy as the fastest 3200m runner that Dougherty has ever seen. By earning first place in the meet, Arrin has put himself on the map as one of the best junior runners in the state.
But he wasn’t always this fast. Sagiraju began his high school running career in the summer after freshman year with the encouragement of his friends, juniors Robi Tozul Ahmad and Noor Tozul Ahmad.
“I got him into running because I thought he was good. We had PE together and we also used to race each other. Even though I was a runner and he wasn’t, he kept up with me without training, so I thought if he had training, [he’d] be really fast,” Robi Tozul Ahmad said.
Since joining the track team, Sagiraju has really enjoyed the community he has found there and the friends he has made.
“My favorite part about the team is the people and the family that we’ve created. We have these pasta feeds and all these other events outside of just running that we all attend together,” he said. “It’s really like a family, and the brotherhood that we’ve created is something I haven’t been able to find in other sports. Cross country is a community that I really love being a part of.”
After Sagiraju joined the team and started running competitively, he discovered other things to love about the sport.
“Running is a sport where I can constantly see significant improvement. In team sports, it’s hard to see improvement within yourself because the outcome relies on the team as a whole,” Sagiraju explained. “In sports like running, you know you’re getting faster when you see the times drop. That can be really motivating and encouraging.”
His constant improvement is the fruit of his hard work and dedication to the sport. His effort is noticeable and his peers know he deserves what he has achieved.
“He’s very hardworking and when he has something in his mind, he’s gonna do it and doesn’t give up. He always wants to do better in his career and improve,” Robi Ahmad said.
For Sagiraju, breaking one record will not be enough as his ambition drives him to work harder and to reach even higher heights.
“I do plan to break a few more school records come track season. After high school, I definitely plan to run in college,” he said. “ I’d love to see where it takes me.”
