(All photos by Mike Noonan)
By MARY ALBI
DARIEN - If it wasn’t for his fiery red hair, Darien’s Alex Ostberg would have trouble standing out in a crowd. Barely standing at 5-foot-9, Ostberg doesn’t fit the stereotypical appearance of an elite athlete.
But that’s just how Ostberg and his high school cross country and track coach Tyson Kaczmarek prefer it.
“We like flying under the radar,” Kaczmarek said with a smile. “If you walked in, you’d never know he was the best kid on the team. He doesn’t seek the spotlight. Unless you see him race, you’d never know.”
That racing ability though is what has made the spotlight slowly seek out Ostberg. He owns multiple state and school track and field records, is an All-American in cross country and track and spent a week this past summer in Oregon at the Nike Elite Camp for the best 20 high school distance runners in the country.
Now in his senior year for the Blue Wave, whether people realize it or not, he’s one of the best distance runners in the country and a favorite to win his first FCIAC Championship on Oct. 16 at Waveny Park in New Canaan.
A SLOW RISE TO THE TOP
Ostberg first started running when he was in the seventh grade. His father, Petter, was training for the Hartford Marathon at the time, and Ostberg decided to tag along on a few of the runs, just to see what the training was like.
Turned out, even at a young age he enjoyed the idea of seeing how far he could go.
“I’ve always liked to push myself,” Ostberg said matter-of-factly.
How far Ostberg has gone has been a steady progression for him since he picked up the sport.
Ostberg, who speaks with confidence and knowledge of the sport, said he started to understand the concepts of training and began to run more consistently, which resulted in him having a lot of success at the middle school level.
“He had a good mindset coming into the program,” Kaczmarek said. “He was mentally ready.”
“Freshmen year in high school I went from being a big fish in a small pond to a small fish in a big pond,” Ostberg said. “But I kept the mindset that I want to be at the top and I gradually made my way up.”
That mindset has been Ostberg’s biggest asset. As a freshman he had a Top 20 finish at the Class L cross country state meet, helping lead Darien to a state title. In his sophomore year, his cross country season was cut short as he broke his fibula within the first mile of the FCIAC Championships, but finished the race.
That was a new obstacle Ostberg has to learn to manage.
“I wasn’t used to having setbacks,” Ostberg said. “But I trust in the program and my coach and I came back stronger.”
Ostberg had a solid indoor and outdoor track season, where he placed second in the 3,200 at the State Open (9:18.44). That set the stage for a breakout junior campaign, that saw a leap in not only times, but physic.
“Well, I’ve always kind of taken the sport very seriously for my level of intensity with the training, but I’ve never really made a dramatic leap,” Ostberg said. “One thing that has helped me was I grew like nine inches, made my strides stronger, I could handle more mileage.”
Last fall Ostberg was named the Connecticut Gatorade Boys’ Runner of the Year after he led Darien to a second-place finish at FCIACs, a Class L state team title and individual crown (15:34). He finished third at the State Open that saw now University of Virginia runner Trevor Hopper and Georgetown’s Christian Alvarado beat him.
Ostberg capped off the fall with an incredible race at the Foot Locker Championships in San Diego where he finished in 11th by running a blazing time of 15:31 to earn All-American honors. That sensational fall paved the way for more success on the track. In the spring, Ostberg was part of an indoor and outdoor state team title and State Open outdoor crown. At the Loucks Games in White Plains, New York, he ran a state-record 8:52.64 in the 3,200. He followed that up with an impressive triple (1,600, 3,200, 4x800) at the Open.
He finished the season with another state record and national title in the 5,000 (14:16.61) and ran on the second place distance medley relay squad at New Balance Nationals.
“I definitely exceeded my expectations,” Ostberg said of his junior year. “I think I was an underdog the entire season because I had such great competition within Connecticut itself with Christian (Alvarado) and Trevor (Hopper). It was definitely humbling to have that kind of competition in Connecticut and absolutely fantastic for my development because I learned to race with competition. That proved invaluable.”
A BALANCED LIFESTYLE
Outside of running, Ostberg’s other main interest lie in the Darien EMS (Emergency Medical Services). Ostberg is just one of many teenagers who take part in Post 53, which is the nation’s only teen-run ambulance service.
Ostberg said himself, his twin brother, Nicolai, and two of the other captains on the team are all are actively involved in the volunteer program that is guided by adults. Ostberg has risen through the program and is now an officer.
“I’m a Connecticut certified EMT, the kids drive the ambulances, it’s really kind of an exciting and very, very unique place to be,” he said. “I knew it was an organization that not many teenagers would get to experience and I ended up just loving it.”
With the program there are two meetings a week that Ostberg attends and then there are 24-hour EMT shifts, which he typically has five a month. He explained there are also second-response shifts, where you can stay at home and those last three to four days.
It’s a big commitment, but it’s helped him understand how to manage his priorities.
“There was one night where I went on a call to Stamford from like 1 to 4 a.m. and I had practice the next day,” he said. “And although that was extremely unfortunate, I think it’s kind of preparing me for the real world, because things aren’t always going to go the way you expect them to.”
Being involved has also provided him with a unique and proven-to-be invaluable balance with running.
“Freshman year I just wanted to keep balance in my life,” he said. “I didn’t want one part of my life to overwhelm another. I think it’s actually helped me. It’s great to pursue running at the highest level and I’d love to do (running) lifelong, but there’s going to come a time where other things are more important.”
PUSHING THE LIMITS
Ostberg likes to run an honest race. He isn’t into tactics and doesn’t mind being the one to take the lead; in fact he prefers it that way.
“He’s aggressive,” Kaczmarek said. “He’s mentally tougher than anyone I’ve ever seen. He puts a game plan in place and he follows the game plan.”
So far this cross country season he’s put together quite the case for not only the state’s best runner but best in the nation. In September he set a course record in at Greenwich Point (14:46.54), breaking the 2012 mark (15:40) set by Henry Wynne, who is now a sophomore running for Virginia. Last weekend at the Woods Trail Run in Thetford, Vermont, he won the meet and set another course record (15:44) beating the 2013 record of 16:03 which was set by Alvarado.
On Saturday, Ostberg is set to compete at the Manhattan College Invite, with a good chance to crack into the All-time Top 25 time list for boys. While Ostberg said he doesn’t really have a specific time goal to achieve the rest of this season, he did say he’s gunning for his first State Open title.
“I got to be going for that,” he said with a smile. “And the rest of this season just to be really smart with training and injury prevention. Stay healthy and do the little things.”
Depending how the rest of the fall goes, Ostberg has a chance to leave as the best runner the FCIAC has ever had.
“I don’t know where there’s a limit,” Kaczmarek said. “I don’t know his limit. And that’s a scary thing.”
