Jack Yates High School track and field is sending one dynamic athlete to the state meet this year. Her name is Madison Sweezer. Sweezer qualified in both the 100-meter dash and 300-meter hurdles.
“Her work ethic is like none other; she works hard, said Yates track coach Jamal Myers. “She’s a perfectionist. She wants to be the best every time she practices.”
Last season, Sweezer focused primarily on the 400-meter and long jump. Going into regionals she was the No. 2 seed, but due to a ligament injury, she was unable to compete.
“I was pretty sad and disappointed,” Sweezer said. “My family came to watch me run, but I was unable to run. So, this year was really about redemption; getting to regionals and making it to the final round.”
This season at regionals Sweezer shifted her focus and found herself qualifying in two different events. She placed first in the 100-meter dash with a new personal record time of 12.02 and second in the 300-meter hurdles with a time of 46.29.
It’s hard to believe that this talented runner who started as a basketball player and cheerleader, wanted nothing to do with track and field. However, it would be her mom who got the ball rolling.
“I was doing a lot. My little sister ran track and all of my cousins ran,” Sweezer said. “I would go to practice and sit and watch them. One day, we were at a track meet and they needed an extra leg to run the 4×100-meter relay. They told my mom to put me in a uniform, she did, and I ran. They said, ‘That girl’s going to run track,’ and I was like, ‘No, I’m not.’ I was against it. My first three years I didn’t want to be there. I wanted to quit. I was being forced to run. But my mom never let me quit. I had to keep going.”
Eventually, Sweezer came to terms with her participation in a new sport.
“Either run and win or be out there and feel sorry for yourself. I decided to win,” she said.
And win she did, both on the track and in the classroom. Sweezer is currently ranked number one in her graduating class.
After graduating high school, she plans to major in biology and then apply to medical school to become a neurologist.
“I’ve always been interested in the medical field. I would like to help people who have problems with their brains. My grandfather had dementia and I would like to be able to help people who go through that,” Sweezer said.
Now that Sweezer is off to state, the next goal is bringing home a medal.
About Madison Sweezer
Class: 2025
IG: @madiisonbrooke
Races: 100-meters, 400-meter, 300-meter hurdles, long jump, triple jump
Runners she studies: Masai Russell (University of Kentucky), Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone (USA)
Status: Uncommitted
Favorite artist: Kendrick Lamar
Favorite subject: Chemistry
Shout-outs: Coach Graylin, Coach Ashley, Coach Myers, Coach Ronnie Morgan, Coach Debra
