Senior Steven Boushra joined the varsity Phoenix track team when he was a sophomore. Throughout the years, Boushra has shown his commitment and dedication to the team, with his hard work proving to be a great example for any younger athlete.

Boushra initially started doing track to be faster for football season, since that was his main sport during his sophomore year. After a while however, he ended up fully embracing his time on the track and decided to keep going. “When I decided to run indoor track, I fell in love with the sport, and loved the feeling of running and being able to compete individually,” Boushra said. He fondly looks back on how everyone on the team accepted him and encouraged him to be better every day. “Coach Burzumato welcomed me with open arms and taught me a lot which really influenced me to come back for spring track my sophomore year, and I just never looked back,” Boushra said. 

Boushra loves having the opportunity to prove himself to other people at the meets. “It feels amazing to be on varsity and having the opportunity to show what I’m made of at those high level track meets,” Boushra said. He described the feeling as “surreal,” and said he’s grateful to have coaches that think he’s capable of being great.

Boushra’s journey into track was unexpected. Mainly preoccupied with his football aspirations, he wasn’t really worried about his performance on the track. “I was mostly influenced by my decision to be faster,” Boushra said. “I wasn’t really worried about how I did, I just wanted to get faster for football. It was honestly a really short journey since I didn’t make it past districts in my indoor sophomore season, but when outdoor came along and I got first place qualifying for states in the 400 meters at regionals, I was just hungry for more.”

In addition to being a key member of both the track and football teams here at the Rock, Boushra has grown up around all things athletics, with participating in sports representing a large part of his identity.“I also enjoy soccer, as I’ve been playing it my whole life up until my freshman year,” Boushra said. Even though Boushra is passionate about many different sports, his main objective is to pursue track after high school. “[My goal is] to run at [a] school that gives me the best opportunity athletic and academic wise,” Boushra said.

Boushra loves the feeling of winning races. He feels like he’s “on top of the world,” especially when he beats his PR (personal record) in a  race. “Obviously winning feels like all the mental and physical hard work that you’ve been putting in is finally paying off,” Boushra said. “Then after your race, you realize how tired you actually are. In my case, throwing up is how I know I ran the best.”

One of Boushra’s best memories are the friends that he’s made from the team. “Running alongside my friends, Julian, Teyany, Emmanuel, Khem and Asi is awesome,” Boushra said. “They are amazing hardworking guys outside and inside the practice.” Boushra feels that his contributions to the team are important, mostly when he mentors and motivates the underclassmen just getting started. His main advice to younger athletes is to always chase their dreams. “Be yourself, embrace your uniqueness, stay true to your values, [and] surround yourself with positive influences who support you through thick and thin,” Boushra said.