Oct. 29, 2020 GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – Josh Kipkoech and Kiah Becker are among the best cross country runners in the nation. But they say their success as teammates is more important than individual accomplishments.
The two members of Grand Rapids Community College’s nationally ranked cross country teams talked about their motivation and the support they receive from coaches, family and teammates on the “My GRCC Story” podcast.
The teams are competing Saturday in the Michigan Community College Athletic Association Region XII Championship at Grand Woods Park in Lansing, starting at noon. A strong showing could propel them to the National Junior College Athletic Association National Championships in Iowa on Nov. 14.
The GRCC women’s team was ranked fourth in the nation in the latest coaches’ poll, while the men’s team is ranked eighth. Both have been ranked in the national top 10 all season.
Kipkoech and Becker took different paths to GRCC, but both said they have found success in the classroom as well as the race course.
Becker was attending a four-year school, but it wasn’t working out as she had hoped.
“I came home and started working for a bit when I realized I actually still wanted to run,” she said. “The community college was a really good way for me to do that while also taking classes that I enjoyed. I ended up fitting in a lot better with the team, and things worked out well with classes.”
Kipkoech is a native of Kenya and moved to Grand Rapids when he was 17. He started running when he was young.
“We grew up where so many professional athletes live,” he said. “Usually, they would run past where we would live. I would follow them until I got tired and went back home. One day my mother told me, ‘Why don’t you just run like these guys and buy me this piece of land?’ And I was like, ‘OK.’”
He enrolled in Automotive Technology classes at GRCC’s Tassell M-TEC this year, gaining in-demand skills. But he also decided to start running again when he learned about the cross country team.
“GRCC is where I can start my career and maybe transfer,” he said.
The student-athletes praised coaches Matt Sicilia, Sharon Becker and Garrett Lacey for their leadership and direction, and setting in place protocols that keep the team safe during the pandemic. Students wear face coverings when not competing or training. They also follow social distancing guidelines and take a health screening, including a temperature check, every day.
“It does take up a little more time, but it’s not really difficult, especially in the perspective of what’s going on,” Becker said. “It’s what we can do to keep each other safe.”
Becker and Kipkoech have each won three races this year, and noted that other team members are having strong seasons. Both GRCC teams won three meets, and posted the highest scores among community colleges in a meet featuring runners from both two- and four-year programs.
"Success as a group actually makes the accomplishments more enjoyable," Becker said. “Running is such a difficult sport that it’s almost harder to do by yourself. You need the motivation from everyone else on the team. It really helps, and it’s how we get there.”
Added Kipkoech: "If you want to go fast, run by yourself. But if you want to go far, go as a team. Being with this young team, we have something in common. We have different people from different backgrounds and different ideas, so we can come together and have one common thing. That’s not just running. We have something else in common – dedication.”
The "My GRCC Story" podcast is available on iTunes, Spotify and other podcast-sharing platforms.