Keegan Smith adds another national title, gym banners to achievements

Keegan Smith’s success keeps on coming. The Sacred Heart Cathedral School eighth-grader won his 22nd national championship in December and was honored Jan. 21 by having new banners placed in the SHCS gym rafters recognizing his achievements.

“Eighth-grader Keegan Smith has attended Sacred Heart Cathedral School since he was 6 weeks old,” the announcement Jan. 21 read.

“In his time here, he has won four individual state championships in cross country and 22 individual national championships in track and field and cross country. He hopes to secure three more national championships in the next two months. Keegan holds numerous age-specific Tennessee state records, numerous national records, and two world records. Keegan’s dream has always been to run in the Olympics, and he continues to train six days a week, even while playing basketball for SHCS.”

Keegan’s 22nd national title came Dec. 5 in the 2020 AAU Cross Country National Championships held in Tallahassee, Fla. Keegan won the 4K race for age 13-14 boys in a time of 11 minutes, 49.39 seconds, shattering the course record for his age group and beating the runner-up by nearly a 13-second margin.

That race followed Keegan’s fourth career state title Oct. 17 at the two-mile Knoxville Livestock Center course near Mascot and his 21st national title at the 2020 Cross Country Coaches National Youth Championships held Nov. 22 at Bourbon County Park in Paris, Ky., where he also broke the 4K age-group course record.

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