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| Tim Finnegan (l.) and Harrison
Jorritsma |
During his lifetime, Finland native Paavo Nurmi was considered the greatest
distance runner of his time. Known simply as the "Flying Finn,"
Nurmi collected nine gold and three silver medals at three summer Olympic
Games from 1920 to 1928.
Nearly 100 years later, a new "Flying Finn" has been making
his mark on the distance running circuit, although perhaps on a lesser
scale. But this Flying Finn hails from New Mexico, runs for Calvin College
and goes by the name of Tim Finnegan.
"He's developed into quite a runner, and we like to think of him
as our own Flying Finn," said Calvin men's cross country coach Brian
Diemer, a three-time U.S. Olympian in the 3,000-meter steeplechase and
an avid running historian. "When he arrived at Calvin, we knew he
had the potential to be a great runner."
A native of Los Alamos, N.M., Finnegan was home schooled during high
school and was limited to running in local road races, a handful of club
track events and the annual Foot Locker West Regional cross country meet.
"My father (Dave) was the one who encouraged me to run," Finnegan
said. "I'd run with him a couple of days a week and as I got a little
older, I started increasing the amount of miles I put in."
Finnegan's father also encouraged his son to seek out a strong collegiate
cross country program that also fit his academic and spiritual criteria.
"I was looking for a Christian school with a strong four-year engineering
program," Finnegan said. "I was also looking for a school that
had a decent running program that could push me. Calvin was the only school
that fit all of those criteria."
It did not take long for Finnegan to develop. As a freshman, Finnegan
helped the Calvin men's cross country team capture its second national
title; he placed 16th at the NCAA III Championships with a time of 25:35
to garner All-American accolades. Finnegan was one of an NCAA III record
six Calvin All-Americans at the national race as the Knights posted a
dominating first-place score of 48 points.
"It's pretty unusual for a freshman to run well at a men's national
cross country meet, let alone be an All-American," said Al Hoekstra,
who shares the men's cross county coaching duties with Diemer. "For
Tim to run that well speaks to the type of talent that he has. We've had
many great runners here at Calvin but Tim Finnegan certainly ranks near
the top of that list."
Finnegan's performance was propelled by a fifth-place individual finish
at the regional meet the week before. During the race, Finnegan slipped
on the muddy course and was in danger of falling behind the lead pack.
There to provide support was junior teammate Jeff Engbers, who sacrificed
his own race to keep Finnegan's race alive.
"He slowed down to make sure I was OK and then ran with me the
next mile and kept me going," Finnegan said. "If he didn't stop
for me, there's no way I could have worked my way back up front. That
was where I really learned what the Calvin men's cross country program
is all about."
And what is the Calvin men's cross country program all about?
"It's about teamwork. It's about working together and supporting
your teammates," Finnegan said. "It's not about running for
yourself. It's about running for others."
Calvin's spiritual context also plays a part. "We run with the
knowledge that we're Christians and that our running and actions reflect
Jesus Christ," he said. "We know that we have been given gifts
and talents as runners, and our goal is to do our best to develop those
gifts and talents and give him all the glory."
And developing those gifts and talents is something that Finnegan has
done, collecting All-American cross country accolades again in 2004 and
2005 as the Knights won another national championship in 2004 and then
picked up a national runner-up title this past fall.
He also sparkled on the track last spring, placing sixth in the 10,000
meters and eighth in the 5,000 meters at the 2005 NCAA Outdoor Track and
Field Championships, earning All-American plaques in both events.
"I struggled with injuries my first two years of track and field
(at Calvin) so it was a blessing to run injury-free last spring,"
Finnegan said. "I still feel I have a lot to learn on the track,
and I'm eager for the upcoming season." Finnegan is also eager for
the 2006 cross country season after winning the Great Lakes Regional individual
title and taking third at the NCAA III Championships last fall.
"My biggest goal is to help our team win another national championship,"
said Finnegan, who was named the MIAA's Most Valuable Runner and the Great
Lakes Regional Athlete of the Year this past fall. "But I'd also
like to go after the individual (national) title as well. I'm one of the
top two returning runners from this year's meet so I think I'll be in
the mix. It's hard to predict because so many variables go into a race
and a season, but it's definitely something to dream about." |
