When Cochrane High School Cobras track coach Esther Sieben asks her to jump, Rachel Berscht replies: “How high?”
How about high enough to win a high-jump gold medal at the Alberta Schools Athletic Association’s (ASAA) provincial track championships?
Berscht did just that, flinging herself 1.60 metres (5.25 feet) over the bar to beat all other intermediate girls June 7 at Foothills Athletic Park in Calgary. Her personal-best jump is 1.61 metres.
“I was so psyched,” the Grade 11 Cochrane High student athlete said following her gold-medal performance. She also won gold at the May 28 ASAA South Central Zone meet with a 1.55-metre leap.
“I try not to look at the bar, actually,” she admitted about her jump preparation. She prefers to visualize how she’s going to do. “I’m going to clear this. I’m going to do it. That’s my mentality for that. And I did it.”
And she succeeded in not letting the competition get to her.
“I’ve competed with some of the girls. I was on Team Alberta last summer and there was a girl I competed against last year. She was here. I know she trains year-round, I thought she was going to be super-good this year.”
Turns out is was Berscht who was super good – golden, even.
