Queen of the Track

EIGHTEEN year old Mersadies Cadalbert has been battling postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome and chronic fatigue syndrome which has forced her to repeat Year 11, but on Friday she became ‘Queen of the Track’ at the St Joseph’s High School athletics carnival.

Mersadies Cadalbert crossing the finish line to claim Queen of the Track at the St Joseph’s athletics carnival, with Tyler Brown close behind.

“There are definitely good and bad days and it just happened to be a very good one on Friday,” laughed Mersadies Cadalbert.

The results on Friday for Mersadies included:

• First in triple jump
• Set the record of a 10.39 m jump – breaking the school record for the 17 plus years girls;
• Broke girls 100 metre record
• Placed equal first in shot put
• Equal third in high jump
• First in long jump and 3cm off the record
• Won 200m final
• Won 100m final
• Won the 2017 queen of the track – top eight fastest in the school for the overall fastest.

“It was just an incredible feeling, quite stoked and quite emotional to think of everything I have been through to be able to come out and do something like that; I had a goal to compete at the carnival, but nowhere near getting results like I did,” she said.

“It is has definitely taught me that I can be very strong when I want to be and I can push through more than I think I can,” she said.

As part of her treatment for the diseases she needed to do anaerobic exercise, so turned to her old athletics coach Russell Sakey for support.

“I gave him and call and asked if he could coach me and ease me back into a program where I could start to build my muscle back up, my stamina, muscle endurance and all that sort of thing and he said he’d love to help and it went from there,” she said.

Mersadies began training for half an hour once a week and has done so for three months in the lead up to the athletics carnival.

“It was having great friends and family and also my horses, I’m really into horse riding, having that outlet there to release any stress because what I have is quite incredible and a lot of kids commit suicide and have suicidal thoughts with this disease it is as high as a quarter to half of people with this disease have suicidal thoughts, so having the release of sport is really important,” she said.

“It has made me appreciate life and how important your body is in every aspect of your life, if you don’t have your health you have nothing; it is a crippling disorder and it stops you from doing so much, even getting up and having a shower can be a daily battle, one day you may feel great and the next you are on the lounge and not able to do much at all,” she said.

“I’d like to thank Russell so much for all of his support, I really couldn’t have done it without him, mentally, physically, everything he has been such a great support and definitely a mentor that’s for sure,” Mersadies Cadalbert.