The University of Alabama’s men’s cross country team kicked off their season this past weekend while competing at the Georgia Invitational. Austin Duckworth finished third on the team, but with all the training he has done over the years, he is well-suited to run all over the country, and that is what he hopes to do, figuratively speaking.
Duckworth is a senior majoring in history with a minor in German. After he graduates, Duckworth hopes to see himself outside the United States.
“I’m hoping to get an internship with the state,” Duckworth said, “Then after, I hope to go overseas to Germany or England.”
When asked how he got interested in competing in cross country, Duckworth laughed.
“My dad signed me up for a local 5k because he thought I needed to be more active,” Duckworth said.
After the race, a teammate’s parent said he should do cross country, and from then on Duckworth’s dad signed him up every year.
Duckworth had considered attending Furman, Clemson, Birmingham-Southern and Virginia before finally deciding on Alabama.
“The decision was easy,” Duckworth said. “I felt it was a good opportunity to advance both athletically and academically.”
Being from Birmingham, he said the close proximity also played a part in his decision to attend Alabama.
“It allows my mom to come and watch me compete,” he said.
Since his joining the Tide, Duckworth has had a successful career. He said his biggest highlight was getting All-SEC Freshmen in the Steeplechase. Duckworth joked about how it was a last-second thing that ended up working out for him in the end.
It takes a lot of training to become a good athlete. Duckworth said when he is not running or doing weights, he is busy with recovering and making sure he maintains good nutrition.
He was recently rewarded by his workout plan when he set a new personal record at the Georgia Invitational this past Saturday. He came in at a 26:14:10 and placed 21st, beating his old eight kilometer time of 26:16. The team placed third overall in the competition. Compared to past meet performances, Duckworth said he thought it went well.
“It was better,” Duckworth said. “We hadn’t done a workout before the race, so coming in third was good.”
When he’s not running, Duckworth likes to relax, take a mental break and hang with his friends or teammates. He said if he were to play another sport other than cross country, it would be soccer.
“I have no previous experience, but it’s my spectator sport,” Duckworth said.
While he continues to be a soccer spectator, he will begin to set his sights on building off his already productive season. Duckworth looks to improve in his next meet as Alabama competes in the Commodore Classic in Nashville, Tenn. on Sept. 17. Whether or not it is in Tennessee, Germany or England, one thing is for sure: Duckworth will be racking up the miles.
