WESTLAKE VILLAGE, Calif. (BVM) — Ladonna Antoine-Watkins, a track and field coach for Oaks Christian School in Westlake Village, Calif., is excited about getting the kids back on the track after Labor Day.

Since the school closures in mid-March and the announcement made by the California Interscholastic Federation canceling sectional, regional, and state championship events due to COVID-19 in early April, student athletes have been left with the responsibility of training on their own.

“I really think having a goal was good for them and their psyche over this time,” Watkins said.

The Oaks Christian School fall program will have the track team training four days a week starting the second week of September.

“Our team, especially the seniors looking for track scholarships, are ready to get going,” Watkins stated.

The school has been preparing and making adaptations for a safe return for their athletes. Afternoon track will begin at 4:30 with staggered start times. Masks will be required, and the coaching staff and students — along with their equipment bags — will need to remain 10 to 12 feet apart.

“The school has done a really good job of implementing things,” Watkins said about the new protocols.

In the past however, instruction on proper form has typically been done with the coach in close proximity to the athlete.

“As a coach, it will be an adjustment,” Watkins said. “I will learn to be creative with distancing.”

While teaching form and technique are important aspects of coaching, Watkins feels that integrity is equally as important.

“My goal is to be trustworthy, honest, consistent and present with the kids I coach,” she said. “I know that their trust must be earned and it’s a big responsibility. Teaching them personal responsibility will help them achieve their goals as well.”

Watkins credits much of what she learned as an athlete and as a coach to having good coaches herself when she was growing up. Specializing in sprinting, she started out in the high school track and field program in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan.

Watkins went on to compete in college track at Utah State University (USU) and was inducted into the USU Athletics Hall of Fame in 2007. She holds three Canadian national titles, and is a two-time Olympic sprinter, representing Canada at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta, and the 2000 Olympics in Sydney, Australia.

“I am so thankful for coach Mike Zimmerman and coach Sharon in Moose Jaw, my college coach Curtis Collier, and Ron Sheffield who coached me post-college,” Watkins said. “They pushed me and wanted me to be successful in track and as a person. I’m very grateful.”

The former Olympian believes that anyone can be fast as long as they are willing to work hard. As she learned through her own athletic career, work ethic and determination are the formula to get there.

“What my coaches taught me is what I teach: regardless of what happens keep trying and don’t give up,” Watkins said. “Re-evaluate your mistakes and make corrections. As a track athlete, you are alone on the track, so it’s very easy to put all your mistakes on yourself. I would be hard on myself and get discouraged. My coaches encouraged me to be patient and trust the process while working hard and striving to excel.”

Watkins — who was also previously a club coach with the Simi Valley Running Rebels — enjoys coaching middle school and high school athletes. Sometimes she finds herself offering support and personal encouragement to kids who might be anxious about academics or current world events. Watkins notes that these insights offer her ways to make adjustments in their training.

“Some kids are a little more open and sharing,” she said. “Navigating their season of life can be difficult. I get them to take a step back and think critically.”

Watkins hopes to have an impact on each athlete she teaches and hopes kids will have many takeaways from their experience of having her as their coach.

“One of the benefits of sport is that it teaches you a lot about yourself,” Watkins said. “I want these kids to know that they won’t always have the best results, but the important thing is what they can learn from it. Things are not always going to go your way but if you can learn from the hardships, this is going to show you who you are, one day at a time. How they handle those situations is what is going to shape them.”

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