With competition to her left and competition to her right, Our Lady of Malibu School sixth-grader Maggie Flores knew she was in for a battle in the girls’ junior varsity 100 meter dash. As a matter of fact, more than 50 fifth- and sixth-grade girls wanted the title of fastest girl.
At the sound of the gun, Flores bolted out of her lane and never looked back. In the blink of an eye, Flores ran the 100 meters in a time of 14.58 seconds to take the gold medal at the Eagle Invitational track and field meet on March 28 at Chaminade High School.
Her only true competition may have been from her younger sister, Charlie, 10, who sprinted to the finish line in mere seconds to congratulate her older sister.
Flores’ first-place finish was the second of three gold medals she won on a day that seared in 97-degree heat in West Hills.
“I wanted to win but I didn’t know I would. Coach (John Meyers) told me to run as fast as I could,” Flores said. “I knew I had a chance of winning. I knew all those girls were very fast and some of them even had spikes on their shoes. I really was happy and in disbelief that I won.”
Charlie and Maggie’s mother, Bonnie, ran over and hugged Flores to celebrate an achievement that propelled the OLM Bulldogs to a fourth place finish overall among eight schools.
“My mom was screaming and hugging me so tight and she said, ‘I am so proud of you,’” said Flores. “It was really awesome.”
“I didn’t have a voice left. I was screaming so loud,” Bonnie said. “I was so excited to watch her run. She did so well.”
Flores, 12, was the only triple gold medalist on the 27-member OLM contingent. In addition to her gold medal-winning feat in the 100 meters, Flores won the javelin with a mighty throw of 76 feet 7 inches and in the shot put, throwing a staggering 28 feet and a half-inch. Both were Eagle Invitational meet records at the JV level.
“When coach told me I broke the records, I was freaking out,” she said. “That was fun because I like throwing stuff.”
Flores’ amazing day caught the attention of Meyers who competed in the shot put while in high school.
“Maggie’s 100 meters event was great. As a coach, I was proudest of her feat in the shot put because that was my event that I competed in high school,” said Meyers, who coaches the shot put at Malibu High School as well. “For her to not only get a gold medal, but break the meet record was just fantastic. To break the javelin record goes beyond words.”
Flores’ future is bright in track and field as is Charlie’s athletic endeavors too. Charlie, a fourth grader at OLM, competed in the novice division in the 4 x 100 meter relay and 100 meters, following in the footsteps of her older sister.
Born in Malibu, Flores began to develop her athletic abilities at a young age at Mammoth Mountain, Calif., as well as in Utah and Colorado. An avid skier since the tender age of 18 months, Flores is an expert skier on the slopes and an excellent student in the classroom where she recently achieved straight As and recognition on the school’s honor roll.
Flores participates in volleyball, basketball and track at Our Lady of Malibu and during the summer, she spends her time at the beach, either surfing or working as a junior lifeguard.
“I really enjoy sports,” Flores said. “I love competing and winning.”
Meyers is excited to see the growth and potential in Flores over the next two years before she moves on to high school.
“She is dedicated and very enthusiastic. Her enthusiasm is overflowing,” Meyers said. “She comes out to practices every day and does things 100%. I am very proud of her as I am with all of the OLM kids who competed that day.”