By Jon Hale

Some races are longer than the track distance.

For UK cross country runner Colin Heenan, his race started last fall when he was diagnosed with severe anemia and ended Saturday when he was the first UK runner to cross the finish line at the Memphis Twilight Classic.

Heenan was a four-year letter winner in cross country and track and field at Liverpool High School in Liverpool, N.Y. He was a three-time state qualifier in cross country and a two-time state qualifier in track and field during his high school career. As a junior, Heenan finished third at the New York State Federation meet.

Heenan’s senior season was supposed to be the culmination of a decorated high school career, but his times dropped by as much as 30 seconds in the mile and two mile runs. As Heenan left for college in the fall of 2007 his running future was up in the air.

“I just figured it was something mentally,” said Heenan. “My junior year I started to come into my own running. My senior year was the first time I was the number one guy on the team, and I just figured maybe the pressure was getting to me.”

Despite the poor showing during his senior season, Heenan never questioned his decision to run in college.

“I figured I’d just always give it a shot anyway,” said Heenan. “Maybe a new coach and a new place would help.”

When Heenan arrived on campus nothing changed. His times were still down, and he was close to giving up.

“I decided last year if nothing got better I was just going to call it quits, but that was before the diagnosis,” said Heenan. “I really just had no idea what was going on.”

After the suggestion of UK Track and Field Coach John Mortimer, Heenan decided to have blood work done to investigate the problem. The test results showed Heenan’s iron levels were low; he had been running with an undiagnosed case of severe anemia since high school.

According to the National Anemia Action Council, iron deficiency anemia is the most common type of anemia in the United States. A low-iron diet is one of the leading causes of anemia, a problem Heenan developed after contracting a sinus infection in high school.

“(The diagnosis) was a huge weight lifted off my chest,” said Heenan. “It just made things a whole lot easier for me.”

Heenan began to take an iron supplement and spent his first year of college scaling back the intensity of his workouts to ensure he would be ready to run starting this season. He reduced the number of repetitions in some of the more stringent workouts, but mainly focused on slowing down his pace.

Before the season, Heenan was realistic when planning goals for the year. His first cross country race of the season would be his first as a collegiate runner.

“I was just hoping to be in the top three or four on the team,” said Heenan. “I wasn’t expecting to win the first race or possibly be in the top three for most of the races.”

Heenan was the seventh runner to finish Saturday’s race, the second freshman and first UK runner to cross the finish line. The Cats finished third among 29 squads at the Memphis meet. Heenan’s 25:25 8K time currently leads the Southeastern Conference, and he was named the SEC Cross Country Male Athlete of the Week and Male Freshman of the Week after his performance.

“I wasn’t even thinking about getting those awards,” said Heenan. “It was kind of nice to get some kind of recognition for everything I had to deal with over the last year to get to this point.”

Heenan’s performance in his first collegiate cross country race was surprising, but Mortimer knows the race wasn’t just beginner’s luck.

“His success as a top level runner is a testament to his determination and dedication,” said Mortimer. “He’s a tougher athlete mentally for having overcome such a difficult time in his career.”

Heenan’s pre-season goal to finish among the top four runners on the team seems well in reach after the first race. With his early success, Heenan has his eye on one more award this season.

“I’m hoping to be All-Freshmen SEC in cross country,” said Heenan.