Snow Doubt! HutchCC’s Mildred Rono Claims National Championship in Frigid Conditions 
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In 29-degree weather with two inches of snow on the ground, Kenya native, Mildred Rono, became the first Hutchinson Community College women’s cross country runner to win a NJCAA Division l National Championship.
“I’ve been training good. My aim is just to get a good time. To win a national championship is a good thing,” Rono said.
Just in her freshman year, Rono has broken several Blue Dragon cross country records. She has set the HutchCC 5K record twice in one and has been named the NJCAA Runner of the Week twice.
The race that took place in Fort Dodge, Iowa over this past weekend was Rono’s first experience with snow.
“It wasn’t as bad as it looked. It’s better than rain, it’s better than wind. It was coming down lightly, it wasn’t making it any colder,” said cross country coach Jafet Molinares.
The team was able to prepare for the weather by purchasing half inch spikes for their shoes, just 30 minutes before the race.
“That’s where I think we also probably had a little bit of an advantage over some schools. Although we weren’t prepared, we were able to get prepared in a shorter period of time just by getting those spikes,” Molinares said.
Rono has achieved many great things in her first collegiate year, but she had obstacles to overcome to get to this spot in her career.
“I got a fracture in my foot that took me six months out of training. I was motivated by my other athletes and I become strong. I was aiming to train at a college and make it my future,” Rono said.
Rono’s first-place finish helped push the Blue Dragons into third place, marking the team’s biggest Division l win in HutchCC history. The Blue Dragons won the 2001 Division 2 national championship.
“We’re extremely fortunate to have somebody like Mildred join our program. I’m not sure if she still understands how good she can be and there’s a lot of people that are now reaching out as being very interested in her,” Molinares said.
Rono has a lot of goals set for her career in running.
“When I finish college, I’d like to go to a university. I’d like to get a good management where I can sign and continue running,” Rono said.
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