Breaking records and stereotypes

12-year-old runner doesn’t let critics break her stride

Three kilometres into setting a world age-group record in a 5K road race, Sawyer Nicholson’s tired legs were screaming: “Slow down!”

That’s when her mind kicked in to help.

“I’m more than halfway done; I’m almost done; I got this,” she told herself in that Niagara Falls race two weeks ago. “I need to keep pushing because if I slow down just a bit, I might miss my PB (personal best) by just a little bit, so I just need to keep going.”

Sawyer, who turned 12 on Wednesday, plays provincial-level soccer and multiple school sports, but it’s running — where she set the world record for the fastest 5K by an 11-year-old girl and regularly beats adult recreational runners — that has thrust her into the spotlight.

She counts her 5K record time — 17 minutes and 28.1 seconds (an average per kilometre pace of three minutes and 30 seconds) — as one of her proudest achievements, along with her under-13 provincial track record in 2,000-metre and 3,000-metre time, which is just shy of a three-decade-old Ontario record.

But, as has happened before with Sawyer and other exceptional young athletes, her achievement has led to criticism and claims that running that far is dangerous for a kid her age; she’ll crumble under the pressure of her abilities being highlighted; or she’ll burn out before she’s old enough to really matter in the sport.

At a time when inactivity is the biggest threat facing Canadian children, with most not meeting national guidelines, why is it that high achieving young girls seem to attract so much grief?

“In the races Sawyer goes in there’s always kids in them, even younger kids, and no one cares,” said her dad Levi Nicholson. “But as soon as that kid wins the race then, apparently, I’m a bad parent. If she came 200th like she’s supposed to … I’m a good parent.”

If it weren’t for the COVID-19 pandemic, Sawyer might not be a runner at all, let alone one with piles of medals hanging on her

bedroom wall.

She’s played soccer since she was seven years old and when the pandemic put a stop to organized sport, her coach told her to stay active. She started running around her neighbourhood in Stouffville, north of Toronto, with her mom, Tracy, who works in finance, or her dad, a graphic designer.

Levi hadn’t done much running since his first year at the University of Guelph where he ran crosscountry but could see that Sawyer had talent. He moved to a bike to keep up and found Sawyer a youth development track program.

Last fall, she ran her first 5K, the Oasis ZooRun. Her time, 19 minutes and 25 seconds, was fast enough to win the women’s race and a month later she dipped under 19 minutes. This year, she broke 18 minutes early in October to win the PUMA Toronto’s Women’s 5K.

After Sawyer’s first 5K, her dad got into a debate with someone who called it child abuse; after her latest 5K record win, where the comments were overwhelmingly positive and encouraging, he stayed off social media for a time to avoid seeing the negative ones.

Sawyer knows a few people have been critical about what she’s doing. “I don’t really care what they say,” she said. “Because, if you think about it, they’re the crazy ones hating on a little kid for no reason.”

Leigh Gabel is a University of Calgary professor who teaches children’s exercise science and is a research specialist in child health and wellness and bone and joint health. She sees no problem with Sawyer running 5K races, noting “the distance is within recommendations for youth her age,” but she’s not surprised sideline observers are raising concerns about a young girl’s sporting activities.

“We see this more when it’s girls, we certainly also see this directed at pregnant moms,” Gabel said. “There’s a bit of a tendency to be overly critical when it comes to higher levels of activity where we’re not used to seeing it. Sport culture has been really slow to change, to embrace that girls and women can succeed throughout their lifespan.”

Sport culture has long eulogized the hardcore training regimes of boys who later make it big in sports like hockey and basketball and there’s an entire industry looking to replicate that for others.

What Gabel likes to see with any athlete who gets attention at a young age is that they avoid specializing in one sport, they get breaks from sport and they’re having fun and not being pressured to train and perform.

For girls, there’s another layer of concern: that they’re eating enough and are mentally prepared for the future.

When boys hit puberty, they gain lean mass and get stronger so they keep improving and performing better, Gabel said. It’s different for girls who gain fat mass in puberty, which is vital for reproductive function and long-term health but not immediately helpful when it comes to a sport like running.

“There needs to be a conversation around understanding that girls’ bodies change, they’re meant to, and probably there will be a performance dip when that happens but this is normal,” she said.

Levi says he and Sawyer speak frequently about how her fast-dropping times won’t continue forever, and that’s OK.

“At the rate she’s going, will she represent Canada at even a junior level? Probably. The Olympics? Maybe not. We don’t care,” he said. “I would rather have a kid that is happy and healthy when she’s 30 and still likes me.”

It rankles that people have compared Sawyer to the American runner whose 5K record she broke and suggested that Grace Ping has done “nothing” since she grew up. She’s in university and still running — “that is success,” Levi said.

For now, Sawyer isn’t deciding between sports. She just joined FC Durham Academy in the Ontario Player Development League, the highest level of soccer competition in the province. She’s playing a year above her age and intends to stick with running, most of which is done on the track and cross-country with her peers.

Sawyer has always been petite and, in soccer, has experienced being judged on sight for her fourfoot-six frame. And, as happens with many competitive team sports, things can get “a little toxic” over playing time, her dad said.

That’s part of why Sawyer loves running.

“Everyone’s just so nice, like compared to other sports. Everyone will cheer on the last place person as much as the first place.

“I like meeting new people and having friends. I like getting new times and just running fast in general. I like that I get to stay active in a fun way. I like getting medals or being on the podium. I just like everything about it.”

Zack Jones, Sawyer’s running coach at Durham Dragons Athletics, says she’s a remarkable talent with plenty of natural ability and mental toughness.

And what stands out, given what she’s already achieved, is that “her main sport isn’t even running, her main sport right now is still soccer.”

“I’ve only seen her at practice five days this entire fall,” he said. “The naysayers that are like, ‘she’s going to burn out, she’s doing too much,’ they’re all saying this without any context or having any idea what she’s actually running.”

On Saturday, Sawyer will be running her final road race of the season, the Hamilton Endorphin Elite 5K.

It’s a fast field and includes Olympian Lucia Stafford, who came within four seconds of breaking the Canadian women’s 5K record of 15:16 last year.

“I know it might be hard but I want to try and get a PB,” Sawyer said smiling. “And like, maybe, not be last.”