Any athlete who has had to recover from an injury can understand the stressful process of resting and rehabbing to ensure their body is fully ready to compete again.
Kennedy Glassford of Wilkie suffered a knee injury this summer and was in jeopardy of missing some major outdoor track and field events.
"It was hard to stop everything," said Kennedy, who was extremely thankful of her physio therapist, whom she saw twice a week, and the fact that she was able to receive treatment quickly.
Kennedy recovered just in time to compete in the Saskatchewan Summer Games in Meadow Lake. There, she reached a personal best mark in high jump, which was good enough for a gold medal and a new Saskatchewan Summer Games record. Her jump was 7 cm more than the previous record.
Her recorded setting jump helped her qualify for the Youth Legion National Track and Field championship in Charlottetown, PEI.
It was a new group of competitors for Kennedy and much more competitive and official, which led to a bit more of an intimidation factor for her.
"I had my mom there and a whole bunch of family and I had really good coaching so that made it easier," said Kennedy, who competed in her first national competition at the youth level. "It is a little less nerve racking with a good support system behind you."
Kennedy handled the nerves and excitement like a professional and went on to win the silver medal in the under 18 event. She went head-to-head with the top ranked jumper in Canada and both girls lost out at the same height. Because Kennedy had one more miss at the previous level she was issued the silver medal.
Kennedy is ranked fourth in Athletics Canada in her division in high jump and still remains humble after her success.
"I wouldn't have been able to do it without everyone, it isn't just about me. It is exciting because I am the one who gets all the attention from it but most of it comes from the coaching," she said days after returning from Charlottetown. "Without a coach and my mom none of that would be possible."
The outdoor track and field season is now over, but Kennedy is now looking ahead to the indoor season starting November and once again training in Saskatoon.
Kennedy competed in the junior nationals last year, which was a higher age class with a Western Canada team and says one of her next goals would be to compete in the Canada Games next summer.
As far as how long she will continue to jump, Kennedy said, "Until it isn't fun anymore I will keep doing it."
That likely means there are more bars to jump over and medals to be won for the McLurg High School athlete in the future.
Scott Siedle of Medstead who also won gold at the Saskatchewan Summer Games in Meadow Lake competed in the Youth Legion Nationals.
