Kinga Czajkowska is one of Paly High School’s best runners. She started running track when she was young, and over time, her dedication led her to a Division 1 commitment to Cornell. She first started her “professional” career in her freshman year. While being the only freshman on varsity, she won the San Francisco Girls Frosh-Soph One Race Invitational. This was the start of her journey, and her continued motivation has led to significant growth as a runner.
“To stay motivated and continue improving, it’s important to set reasonable goals,” Czajkowska said. “I usually set smaller goals through the season for my events, and work with my coaches to achieve them as the season progresses.”
This was the kickstart of her career, but she still had a long way to go if she wanted to race in college. In her sophomore and junior years, she competed in the CIF State Track and Field Championship and the CCS Top 8 Invitationals. During the CIF race, she placed 10th out of 27 athletes in the 3200-meter final. The CCS invitational, however, was a defining moment for her and her career as a runner because of the adversity she had to overcome. “In my track career, my biggest 
challenge has been the frequent injuries I’ve faced,” Czajkowska said. “Specifically, I suffered a stress fracture in my junior year, which was hard to come back from.”
She closed out her comeback story by winning the mile event during the heart of her junior year, which for most athletes is the most important year for recruiting. Finally, in her senior year, she participated in the New Balance Nationals Indoor and the Stanford Invitational, where she ran a 4:52 mile and anchored her team to win the 1600-meter relay.
In the fall of her senior year, she committed to Cornell University. Many people think that committed athletes can relax in their final high school years, but in reality, they need to train and work even harder because they are nowhere near the end of her running career. Czajokowska’s signing means she will commit to at least another four years of running track at an even higher level than before. Track as a sport is extremely competitive. Roughly 1.1 million high schoolers in the United States do track, and about 5,000 women compete in Division 1 track. This means that Czajkowska is in the top, top one percentile of track runners. This success doesn’t come from talent or luck, it comes from hours of training, consistent mental discipline, and much more. With every race that Czajokowska participated in, especially as she had become more and more accomplished, she had to live up to higher expectations. With the eyes of college coaches,
peers, and most importantly, herself, the pressure to perform was growing exponentially. However, sometimes having all that pressure can lead to unhealthy stress, but Czajokowska navigates it by choosing a specific state of mind that helps her adapt and keep looking on the bright side.
“There’s a huge amount of variability in distance running, and you have to be able to adjust and do the best you can given the circumstances,” Czajokowska said.
No matter what problems come her way, Czajokowska will always be able to stay on her feet and keep running the race. Like most student-athletes, balancing sports and school can be challenging, but for Czajokowska, that challenge feels even more intense. She set her academic bar high, determined to achieve no less than her goals. Track opened up many opportunities for her future, and if she wanted to cease them, she would have to work really hard to not only keep up but improve her performance.
“There are some weeks where I’m basically drowning from tests/homework,” Czajokowska said. “But I’ve learned to prioritize and get good at finding time [to study and do homework.”
Kinga was able to not only keep up her grades without sacrificing her track career, but her ability to balance ultimately landed her spot at Cornell University. Kinga is excited about Cornell since they offers competitive D1 athletics and dedicated programs without having to sacrifice academics, which is very important to her. Additionally, she also really connected with their coaching staff and team, more so than other programs she visited. Overall, her impressive dedication and hard work have earned her recognition from this publication.
Megan Lemoine is one of the few Paly students who is a biathlon racer. A biathlon is a winter sport that combines
cross-country skiing and rifle shooting. Her dedication and persistence to the sport have earned her spots in many honorable competitions, including the 2025 IBU Junior Open European Championships in Germany and the 2024 US Biathlon National Championships.
Throughout Lemoine’s childhood, her family made frequent visits to Tahoe for skiing. However, when schools were closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, her family decided to temporarily relocate to Tahoe. Because of this, Megan spent much more time skiing.
“I didn’t grow up racing or even know how to ski properly, but I picked it up during the pandemic, and it just stuck,” Lemoine said. “It’s weird and complicated—skiing and then stopping to shoot—but I love it. It challenges every part of you—mentally and physically.”
One day, Megan noticed that her dad was watching Biathlon competitions, and was intrigued because it was a sport she hadn’t really seen before. Later, she found out that there was a biathlon track that was accepting racers, and decided to join.
With the lockdown opening the door to ample free time, Lemoine was able to train hard and eventually lead her down a path of accomplishments and international competitions in places like Germany, Sweden, Poland, and Europe.
Megan Lemoine Interview
file:///Users/natalyakaposhilin/Downloads/936%20N%20California%20Ave%2047.m4a (please copy and paste)
