Nayla Martin, member of the Vaudreuil-Dorion Athletics Club
The Martin family probably doesn't know much about TV show plots or the latest upholstered armchair materials used to watch said plots. Here, the evenings follow one another and are all the same: Dad or Mom gets into the car to take the kids to practice, a competition, or a race. Often, this parent dons their volunteer jersey and volunteers their time to one or another of the sports organizations the Martin children attend.
Run Nayla run!
In this quartet, Nayla, the eldest of Josh, Mikaella, and Norah, trains with the Vaudreuil-Dorion Athletics Club and takes advantage of the Multi-Sports Centre's facilities on Monday and Wednesday evenings, and sometimes on Saturday mornings and Thursdays after school. In light of her most recent national performances, Nayla Martin appears to have followed her coach Claude David's plan to the letter.
Where Encouragement Leads
We don't measure an athlete's happiness by their results, says the adage that doesn't exist, but it is permissible to think that it stimulates their motivation. Provincial civilian vice-champion in the 800 m and 1200 m, 5th in the 1200 m at the Canadian Championship and positioned in the top 5 of the best Quebec female athletes under 16 in history in the 1200 m, Nayla Martin runs with energy and intelligence and expresses herself with the voice of a veteran in full possession of her means: "I consider myself an athlete," says the teenager who turned 16 last January, "because I dedicate a lot of my life to sport. I love to move! During the day, if I haven't moved, it doesn't work." » She did her first races at the Sainte-Madeleine school triathlon and was quickly noticed and encouraged by her teacher at the time, Fred Gagnon. She ran her first cross-country race by waving to her mother, then won the race the following year by looking straight ahead: “That’s when I discovered I could go further and run faster,” recalls the girl who was in Grade 5 at the time. “That’s when my passion for running began.”
A rocket passed by
Since attending the Vaudreuil-Dorion Athletics Club, Nayla Martin has continued to nurture her passion for running. A dedicated trainer, she often runs solo through the streets of her neighborhood, visualizing the possible scenarios for her next competition: “I really push myself, and by taking my training seriously, I might be able to achieve my goals,” the young athlete believes. Starting in September, the club’s season begins with cross-country competitions that punctuate the fall until the indoor season, which runs from December to March. This is when the Center’s track becomes a mecca for runners: “It’s truly a center that offers a lot of things, the infrastructure is superb, the track is really beautiful, and there aren’t many indoor tracks in Quebec,” she says. “I feel at home, I’m here all the time!” » When spring arrives, the club's runners head out and begin the most important part of their season with regional, provincial and national competitions that take athletes and their parents on a long athletic tour. Nayla Martin's best memory dates back to last summer at the Canadian Youth Championships in Nova Scotia, where she won the silver medal in the Medley Relay (400m-200m-200m-800m). For those in the know, Nayla runs an 800m in 2:17 and is aiming for a time of 4:41 in the 1500m next summer. A rocket that makes the wind spin as she passes proud and frozen parents at the edge of the track.
Traveling with your shoes
To shave a few precious seconds off an already exceptional time, every athlete must adopt a strict, sometimes demanding, discipline and place their full trust in their coach: “Claude is cheerful and welcoming, he is always there for his athletes,” she says of Claude David, whose work for running in our region is invaluable. “He always believed in me, even when things were not going well. An athlete always has ups and downs, but he was always there to support me.” At an age when thousands of young athletes dream of going to the Olympics, Nayla Martin dreams one day at a time of running to the best of her abilities, going as far as possible, meeting other runners, hitting other tracks, traveling in her running shoes. “I always set goals for myself based on the present moment,” she says. “If I’m in good shape, my goals are higher; otherwise, I lower my goals and expectations." The wind hasn't stopped swirling as Nayla Martin passes by. As for parents, they just have to postpone watching their favorite shows, fill up the gas tank and get ready to drive for a long time: two little sisters are following in the running footsteps of their eldest...