When Blanca Fernandez stands in a crowd of her competitors before each race, she imagines herself sitting down to begin a game of chess.
As a tactic to clear her head, the León, Spain native envisions herself alone at a chessboard, away from the anxiety of the impending race.
“The warm up and last five minutes before you start a race, I’m so nervous,” Fernandez said. “When you’re nervous, all the functions in your body work differently. … I always wonder why am I’m not doing whatever else?”
This weekend, Fernandez took first place at the Paul Short Invitational, with a time of 20 minutes, 27 seconds.