Crossing the finish line one last line time as a Junior, Tyynismaa ended his junior season with a new PR in the 800 in St. Louis and a second place finish at the Belmont Mile. PHOTO BY JONATHAN MEYER

A historic junior track season it was for rising STC senior Tommy Tyynismaa. Starting in mid-March and stretching into early June, Tyynismaa found successes in distances ranging from 400 meters all the way up to 3200 meters. He now holds school records in the 800, 1600, 3200, Distance Medley, and the 5000 meters in cross country.

Hoka Festival of Miles

After running under the 3A state meet record alongside season rival Chase Laughman of Pella, Tyynismaa knew he had more to give in his premier distance, the 800 meters.

The Hoka Festival of Miles is an annual track meet held in St. Louis aimed at showcasing some of the nations brightest up and coming middle distance stars alongside professional athletes in mile races and a few special 800 meter races. Entry into this meet, held June 1, is anything but easy, and Tyynismaa’s state time of 1:52.8 put him near the bottom of the starting list.

With a single shot of the starting gun, this nationwide field was off and running. Being led through 300 with a pacer, Tyynismaa sat near the back of the pack looking relaxed and confident. Coming through the halfway mark, he sat in eighth place behind Drake Relays 800 meter champion and 4A 800 meter champion Gabe Nash of Sioux City North.

Shortly before the race, STC junior Tommy Tyynismaa performs strides, defined as “short bouts of faster running with recovery in between” many runners perform strides to adjust to a faster pace and to get an increase in blood flow to the legs. PHOTO BY JONATHAN MEYER

With a move similar to the 3A 800 at state, Tyynismaa injected a burst of pace at the 500 mark and passed Nash, moving up further into the field. Coming off the final turn into the home stretch, he tilted his head up and drove his arms and barreled towards the finish line.

Perfectly executed race tactics in combination with an immense level of fitness left Tyynismaa with a new PR of 1:51.32 and a fourth place finish. Out of the four Iowa runners in the race, Tyynismaa was the highest placing.

The Belmont Mile

Tyynismaa returned to Iowa on Friday and rested. After a very quick turnaround it was time to head to the next race, The Belmont Mile held in Rock Island, Ill. at Augustana College.

This race is organized by a run club based at Pleasant Valley High School in Bettendorf. Although across the Iowa/Illinois border, the majority of competitors were from Iowa.

Moments after the start of the high school boys race at the Belmont Mile, Tommy Tyynismaa leads a huge field off the line. PHOTO BY JONATHAN MEYER

Taking to the line in the high school boys championship mile, Tyynismaa joined alongside several familiar faces, most notably Nash, who raced head to head with Tommy only two nights ago. These competitors have become very familiar with each other on some of the biggest stages in Iowa running.

Following the starting gun, Tyynismaa was out hot, leading the race and stringing out the field. Nash quickly turned his efforts to gain the lead and put distance on his competitors. Coming into the bell lap, Nash had a near 20 meter lead on the field with Tyynismaa slotted in the number two position. In a quick closing lap Nash held off a quickly closing Tyynismaa who simply ran out of time to pick off the University of Nebraska commit.

Tyynismaa’s second place yielded him a time of 4:20.04. This race concludes his junior track season. After the race, Tyynismaa said he plans to take a good 10-14 days off of running before beginning preparations for cross country in the fall.