By Holly Little, Contributing Writer
Cierra White, now married and known as Cierra Munroe – or Coach Munroe to Saint Leo University’s cross country and track and field teams – is no stranger to an interview. The former track star may have been interviewed by ESPN, but has she been interviewed by The Lions’ Pride Media Group?
The story begins in Philadelphia, where Munroe was born and raised, and where her love for athletics began. As a child, she was “always running around the house” and needed something to use up all her energy. She decided to join a track club in the 3rd grade, which she describes as “just an afterschool thing and there was only one track meet a year,” where she would run the 50 meters.
This wasn’t enough for Munroe. Through middle school and high school, she was able to show her talent as she competed against the best in the state over shorter distances. These performances inspired her to keep going as she looked into what college she wanted to attend, somewhere she could complete her human development and family studies degree. After she visited Texas Tech University, she knew this was the place for her. Dion Miller, the track and field coach, was one of the things that drew her in, along with the location, the interesting buildings, and the nice team.
A great start to her time in college, it was news article after news article, “watch out for Cierra White.” She was smashing it!
Munroe said she had a “big shock” when she ran the 200-meter indoor state championships.
She stormed down the home straight, after all that hard work, all those days at the track and in the gym. She won, with the fastest time in the nation (23.95s). Munroe was crowned the state champion!
Not only did she go on to qualify for Nationals, but she won. This was a huge achievement for Munroe and, looking back now, she reflects on how she is “very thankful for her time at Texas Tech.” She feels if she went anywhere else, they wouldn’t have given her the same recognition.
“Once you get to college, you see the difference between fun and competing. You can almost treat your sport like a job,” she said. “Be disciplined and use your teammates as motivation.”
Every athlete has a weakness. For Munroe, she said for her it was being “timid and shy,” and Texas relays is where this got the better of her.
“I remember my first 4x400m at a big level,” said Munroe. “I was so scared. I cried for hours before the finals, and I just couldn’t do it.”
Being the motivated athlete she was, she wanted to work on those weaknesses. Speaking to a sports psychiatrist was something that helped her. That was a place where she could vent which allowed her to “feel the love for the sport again.”
“If you stay focused and believe in yourself, are committed and willing to work for it, then you will reach your goals,” said Munroe. “This applies to life in general.”
Munroe was a volunteer coach at Texas Tech where she was able to work and train at the same time. She wanted to continue to share her knowledge and skills with the running community, so she reached out to schools in Florida where she had some family, and it was a little closer to her home in Philadelphia.
Saint Leo is grateful to have her coach and inspire the cross country and track team. She is hopeful of many more years of this.
Lastly, Munroe’s favourite quote and something she would like you to take away from her story is that “hard work will beat talent the day talent stops working hard,” a quote by Tim Notke, a famous high school basketball coach.
