It was meant to be a practice run. But Ronia Warszawska thought she better film her first attempt to break the 10-year-old two-kilometre world age record earlier this month. It's a good thing she did.
The Engadine resident set a new international mark with her time of 6 minutes 49 seconds beating the previous best by three seconds.
What makes her achievement even more impressive was the 10-year-old had no one pacing her around the Sylvania Waters Athletics Track. She was just racing the clock for five laps - and she won.
With all of her state and national level championship races being cancelled, Ronia decided to set herself a new goal to achieve. Three weeks of hard training later and she now has her name in the record books.
"So amazing," she said when asked how it felt to break the record. "While I was running I was thinking about all the people I was doing it for and how happy they would be if I did get it."
When told she broke the record immediately after the race, Ronia said she felt "tired". Who could blame her. Ronia, trained by Jacinta Doyle at Outfit Coaching and Sutherland District Athletics Club, is no stranger to hard work and success.
Earlier this year she was crowned the 400m and 800m state champion while representing the Port Hacking Little Athletics Centre.
When she is not on the track - which she said she enjoys because she likes to meet new people and set new goals - she can be found in the pool where she hade made state for butterfly, backstroke and freestyle while representing Sutherland Leisure Centre.
She has also competed at state level in cycling while riding for Southern Cross Cycling Club and won three Junior State Cup touch football titles with the Cronulla Sharks. Her next goal is to compete at nationals.
