ESTING MORE THAN JUST THE ODDS - American School of Paris

NEW PERSPECTIVESARATHON MANTry standing in Han Hoegen’s shoes, and you might find yourselfchanneling your inner Jim Fixx.MBy Usha VenkatramanPicture the grace of a gazelle and theswiftness of winged Mercury, and youcutting across miles of hill and dale withnary a shortness of breath. That’s Hoegen,who like the legendary runner, hits thepavements and country roads round theworld as a competitive marathoner. He alsohas participated in triathlons and Ironmancompetition and has no intention of quitting.At 45, this US Athletic Director has a passion for fitness and anaffinity for the endorphins that runners come to crave. As such,he puts in 70-110 kilometers of wear weekly on his sneakers, oftenduring lunch hours running around the Parc de Saint Cloud.His family members have taken notice, and to his mother, theson has become a role model for fitness. At 55, she, too, tookup running. Today, at 76, she’s a member of a running club andrecently finished first in a competition of seniors her age. “It’snever too late to start running,” says Hoegen proudly.Running, he says, “frees your head and keeps you sane. Out in thefields you see deer, beautiful birds, wild boar and you have therich smell of blooming flowers.” Combine the beauty of naturewith the close bonds that ultimately form with fellow runners, andyou have the ingredients to keep enthusiasm high for a largelysolitary sport. “My teammates at my running club are among myclosest French friends,” he says.For the six-foot-two Varsity running coach, competitive sportshave been a part of his daily life since he was a youngster. Asoccer player as a child and teenager, Hoegen entered endurancesports competitions as a college student in The Hague in gruelingtwo-day events that covered 120 kilometers of cycling followedby 40 kilometers of speed skating, three kilometers of swimming,and 25 kilometers of running. “I was hooked,” he says. Duringcompulsory military service Hoegen entered his first Ironmancompetition, where over 10 hours and 50 minutes he swam 3.6kilometers, cycled another 180 kilometers and ran 42 kilometers.The following day, he moved toEngland to start his first job at thesecondary school level at the CobhamInternational School located south ofLondon and between 1984 and 1990he competed in scores of one-quarterand half-triathlons. Today, however,his focus is solely running, and theseraces have taken him throughoutFrance and to Holland, the UnitedKingdom, the United States, Germanyand Curacao.His best time? The year 1996 whenhe finished a 26 mile run in twohours and thirty-two minutes and was placed 150 th out of 30,000entrants in the London Marathon.For the Hoegen family, no weekend or holiday is without someform of physical activity woven into the schedule. With his wife,Barbara, a LS fourth-grade teacher and former semi-professionalbasketball player, son Daniel, ASP’s Athlete of the Year in 2006 andnow an external law student of UCL, and 12-year-old daughterJenneke hit the trails together whenever they can.Indeed, Jenneke’s athleticism has caught the eye of professionaltennis coacheswho haveselected themiddle-schoolerto train at theMouratoglouTennis Academyin Thiverval-Grignon on afull-time basis.Jenneke nowpractices withher coaches for five hours daily six times a week while her motherhomeschools her. Since leaving ASP last month, Jenneke hasgrown to love her new training routine, has improved in thesport and is looking forward to further honing her skills. “Wenever knew that she had any ability for tennis until she tried it,”says her father. “She only startedin September and this has allhappened so fast. ASP, especially MSDirector Jim Ferguson, is especiallysupportive of our family’s decision toallow Jenneke to pursue tennis fulltimefor now.”Will running remain a part ofHoegen’s daily routine? “My biggestthing right now is family time,” hesays. “But, if my own mother cankeep running at 76, there’s no reasonwhy I, or anyone else, can’t do thesame.”6 - The Aspect - February 2009