Pacifica’s Paxton Walks Toward 2004

While most of the world is preparing for the Sydney Olympics in September, Elizabeth Paxton is methodically laying the groundwork for her appearance in the 2004 Games.

Paxton, a senior-to-be at Pacifica High, is ranked among the top five junior racewalkers in the country and finished third in the 10-kilometer event Friday at the USA Track & Field Junior Nationals meet in Denton, Texas.

Paxton, 16, who began racewalking at age 5, commutes to the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Chula Vista every weekend to train under the watchful eye of famed Ecuadorean walking coach Enrique Pena, who guided Jefferson Perez of Ecuador to the men’s gold medal at the 1996 Games in Atlanta.

“My coach is training me for the 20K for 2004,” Paxton said. “Hopefully, I’ll be there.”

Even if Paxton doesn’t represent her country in 2004, many believe she will eventually be an Olympic participant.

Most women racewalkers don’t reach their competitive peak until their mid- to late-20s, giving Paxton more than a decade to build speed and stamina and fine-tune her technique.

It was her little girl’s instinct to follow around an older sister, that introduced Paxton to the sport. Her sister, Camille, was a tall, thin girl who began running after doctors suggested the activity would increase her leg strength.

A woman was learning to racewalk at the same time at Golden West College and her clockwork motions caught the attention of Elizabeth.

“I thought it was fun because it was challenging,” Paxton said. “With racewalking, you have to keep a certain form and I thought it was more challenging than running. There’s a certain discipline to it.”

Racewalking consists of a series of steps taken so that the walker never loses contact with the ground. The advancing leg cannot be bent at the knee from the moment it first makes contact with the ground until it’s in the vertical position directly under the body.

The swing of the arms and swivel in the hips also play a vital role in maintaining forward locomotion.

There are three judges for every race and disqualifications for improper form are common. Typically, a judge will give an offending athlete a caution by displaying one side of a Ping Pong-like paddle, which pictures a bent knee on one side and a lifted foot on the other. When the violation is blatant or repeated, the offender is disqualified.

The woman who introduced Paxton to the sport was coached by veteran racewalker Bob Hickey, who took Paxton under his wing for the next nine years. During that time she set a still-standing national age-group record for 9-year-olds.

“She is an exceptional girl,” said Hickey, a Valencia resident who is also a certified racewalking judge. “Her goal, even as a young girl, was to be an Olympian.”

Hickey realized Paxton needed more thorough training than he could offer, so he contacted USATF and lobbied for the organization to accept her at the Chula Vista training center.

Paxton is a three-time junior national team member and was the youngest racewalker at the USATF Junior Nationals the last three years. She placed sixth in 1998 and fourth last year, but struggled with the muggy conditions in Texas last week.

“It was really gross,” said Paxton, who was so dehydrated after the race she needed three hours to produce a urine sample for the mandatory drug test. “My body doesn’t do well in heat.”

Paxton has also participated in the Penn Relays in Philadelphia, the National Scholastic Indoor Championships in Boston and she accompanied the U.S. senior team to competitions in Germany and Norway last spring.

She is keenly aware of the burnout many junior athletes face when they spend too much time training for their sport and not enough enjoying their youth.

Paxton benefits from living so close to the Chula Vista training center, allowing her to make the weekly trips during the school year and spend considerably more time during the summer.

It’s an adult world in Chula Vista, where the senior team also resides, but Paxton feels she can still maintain the balance she needs to remain competitive, . . . and happy.

“I think there’s pressure from the people in the racewalking community on me not to be a kid, but the ultimate decision is always up to me,” she said. “When something comes up, my mom lets me make the decision myself. I’m not missing anything I don’t want to miss.”

Paxton had to choose between attending her school’s Sadie Hawkins dance last fall or traveling to Washington for the National Invitational Racewalk. She chose to walk.

“It was a national meet I’ve gone to four years in a row now,” said Paxton, who is on her school’s honor roll. “It’s a great race, one I like to go to.”

Paxton said only a few people at Pacifica know about her athletic specialty. Most of her peers have a general understanding of the sport but need help with the fine points.

“Most people think that it’s just power walking, where you move your hands up high [while striding],” she said. “But they don’t understand there are rules and regulations . . . They think it’s an old-person sport, but it takes a lot of discipline and athleticism to achieve.”

UPCOMING RACE

The 96th Tommy’s Surf City run will take place on July 4 in Huntington Beach. The Huntington Beach residents’ 5K begins at 7 a.m. and the open 5K begins an hour later. A 5K stroller run will begin at 8:30, followed by kids’ one-mile and half-mile runs. The 5K course follows the historic parade route on Main Street.

A sports expo will be held from 6 a.m. to noon and will feature entertainment by The Breakaways, refreshments and fitness products. All participants will receive a race T-shirt and goodie bag. The parade will begin at 10 a.m. and the fireworks show at 6:30 p.m.

Last year, 3,525 runners took part in the event.

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If you have an item or idea for the running report, you can fax us at (714) 966-5663 or e-mail us at dan.arritt@latimes.com