Courtesy of Carolyn Wang
Carolyn Wang sprints across the finish line at the USA Triathlon National Championships.
In high school, Class of ‘23 grad Carolyn Wang ran both cross country and track. Even though she had an interest in biking in her elementary school years and did recreational swimming until eighth grade, her main focus has continued to be running.
Wishing to keep her fitness up in college — which doubled as an occasional escape from her schoolwork — Wang joined a running club at UC Berkeley and eventually found her way to the Cal Triathlon Club, commonly referred to as Cal Tri.
Cal Tri is an official sports club, but it is not a recruited college sports team; an equivalent of Cal Tri would be intramurals. As an official, registered sports club of the university, the team is also sponsored by the school and offers races for its members.
“There was not too much convincing needed at all,” Wang said. “I wanted a community that mirrored cross country, and Cal Tri provided that, so I’ve stayed.”
For Wang, triathlon is a fun extracurricular, perhaps even more flexible than a high school sports team like cross country. In a typical week, she estimates she spends 10 hours weekly on fitness. The commitment is relatively flexible, however, and Wang may adjust how much time she allocates to exercising based on her coursework load that specific week.
Wang said: “Running, cardio and exercise are parts of my own self-care and pretty essential to my well-being and happiness, so I go to the practices I can make and train a lot on my own because health and exercise are parts of my life that I value very much.”
The variety of experience on the team is what makes the club — the largest collegiate triathlon team in the country — so unique, according to Wang. With more than 100 members, the club includes people who join for recreational reasons and those who have won national competitions.
The team mostly trains at Berkeley’s two tracks, the three pools and around the Berkeley campus for longer runs. The team also has seasonal training camps in the fall and winter. One core memory for Wang occurred when she and her group of friends cycled from Oceanside to Mexico, a distance of roughly 75 miles.
Courtesy of Carolyn Wang
Wang poses in front of the pedestrian border crossing in Tijuana.
Another major step in her triathlon journey came at the end of last semester. Instead of going to triathlon nationals, she decided she would train for a marathon. She managed to complete that goal in March.
“I really had to pop in hours of early morning training and weekend training in addition to my computer science coursework and other commitments, which has boosted my self-confidence and trust,” Wang said. “If I can train for a marathon in college and do UC Berkeley computer science alongside so many other things, what’s there to be scared of?”
Wang credits Cal Tri for helping stay healthy. As a major in computer science and a minor in politics, philosophy and law (PPL), the disciplined exercise routines have helped her achieve a better sleep schedule and encouraged her to connect with nature more often.
“It’s awesome to get to talk to people outside of my major, and it’s nice to know people who can really appreciate what an amazing feat endurance sports is,” Wang said.
