ATHLETE OF THE WEEK : Lead Left or Lead Right, Manship Leads the Nation With Hurdle Time

Although Sharon Manship ran the nation’s fastest high school time this season in the 300-meter low hurdles at Saturday’s Alemany/Northridge relays, she could have run faster, she said.

“I actually didn’t have my steps down,” she said Monday. “I like to lead with my left leg but I led with my right on the first hurdle Saturday.”

Many hurdlers would have been distracted by such an irregularity in their stride, but not Manship, who ran a 43.85.

“I’m lucky because I can lead with either leg,” she said. “I prefer to lead with my left leg but I can lead with my right without stutter stepping.”

Manship, a senior at Thousand Oaks, also excels in the heptathlon (personal best of 4,544 points), triple jump (37-5 3/4), long jump (17-1 1/2), 400 meters (58.81) and 800 meters (2:14.31). She’s also a member of the Lancers’ 400- and 1,600-meter relay teams, which placed fifth and third in last year’s Southern Section 4-A championships.

She placed seventh at the 1985 state championships at 800 meters and seventh in the 300 hurdles at last year’s state meet.

Because Manship competes in many events, she hasn’t concentrated on a single event in the past. However, the hurdles are her top priority now.

“I love the 300 hurdles,” she said. “They’re my goal, my dream. Everything about them appeals to me.

“It’s basically an endurance sprint. It involves a lot of speed, coordination and endurance. It’s the event which best allows me to utilize my physical abilities.”

Manship said she can use those abilities to improve her 43.50 personal best. “I want to run 41.3 this year. That number sounds good to me.”