Sunday, June 29, 2008
Kamal Riley (left) and Omar Aden helped Charlestown High to its first outdoor track title this season. (KATHLEEN JOHNSON/GLOBE STAFF)
By Steve Crowe, Globe Correspondent
"They never complain," said coach Kristyn Hughes, also a guidance counselor at the school.
The improvised lunchroom practice facility was the least of the team's worries, especially for the five runners who carried the Townies to their first outdoor track state championship this past season.
Riley (Barbados), Omar Aden (Somalia), Kareem Cutler (United States), Sheldon Allen (Jamaica), and Yaovi Jondoh (Togo) hail from different countries. But cultural and language differences haven't inhibited them from becoming friends as well as teammates.
"Track is fun," said Jondoh. "We hang out with each other all the time, talking and having fun."
Allen came to America when he was 10 years old and is headed to Wheaton College this fall. Not only did he help the Townies win a second consecutive Boston City championship with his dominance in the hurdles and the anchor leg of the 4x100 meter relay, he also hurdled obstacles away from the track.
He lives in a Dorchester neighborhood full of gang violence with his aunt, who has diabetes, his sister, Latoya, and his niece, Dionne, who suffers seizures. During the school year, he took a 4:40 a.m. bus to Ashmont, where he would meet Jondoh. Together, they took the Red Line to Downtown Crossing, then the Orange Line to Sullivan Square, where they would catch another bus to school. The trip took about two hours.
"I get there early in the morning to finish homework," says Allen, who graduated with a 3.2 GPA. "I can't finish it at home. I have to cook dinner every night."
All the athletes had at least a one-hour commute to and from school. "We have to do it," said Allen. "Most of my friends are in jail. Running track occupies my time. When I get home I can't go out on the streets because I have more important things to do. You got to make something of yourself."
Jondoh arrived in the United States in 2003. Riley, going into his junior year this fall, has been in America for one year. The All-Scholastic carries a 4.12 GPA on a 4.0 scale and came to this country to get a better education. "Moving up here, I have a better chance for more coaches to see me and get a scholarship," said Riley.
Cutler will attend the University of New Haven in the fall, and Aden, who will be a senior, is the best runner of the group. He won the mile at the All-State meet with a 4:13.83, the seventh-fastest time in the country, and broke a 25-year-old record at the Division 2 state championship with a 4:16.72 in the mile. Aden, also an All-Scholastic, carries a 3.1 GPA. All the students are members of the National Honor Society.
"What these kids accomplish is inspiring," said Hughes, 27.
Charlestown didn't have a track facility until this year. Hughes recalled many nights where the team drove around Boston looking for a place to practice. "We ended up eating Chinese food one night," Hughes said. "We drove so long it was dinner time."
The Townies also were short on equipment. The runners would switch shorts, shirts, and spandex during meets. They have also run with shoes that are falling apart.
Fund-raising, needless to say, has been unsuccessful. "People think we're the basketball team or the football team," Aden said. "We're the track team, man."
The obstacles have not stopped the Townies. It's made them better.
"We'll be stretching and somebody's culture comes up," said Hughes.
The cultures always come out. During meets, the Townies would form a circle and have a dance off. Allen said everyone brought a unique dance to the table.
"Kareem has always wanted to go to Jamaica," Allen said.
Riley said the different cultures and love for track brought them together. "I see these guys as my family," he says. "No matter what happens during the day, nobody stays mad at practice. We won't let that happen. They want to do good for themselves, but they want you to do the best for you, too."
The Townies' five-member team at All-States was one of the smallest teams competing. They won the mile (Aden), 200-meter dash (Riley), and 4x100 relay (Jondoh, Riley, Cutler, Allen), and placed second in the 110-meter hurdles (Allen).
A track official presented Hughes with 20 medals after the meet to commemorate the state title.
"He said they were for the team," Hughes recalled. "I told him we only needed five."