Moore's Tianna Holmes – Character Counts Presented by Eskridge Honda

Story and Photo by Michael Kinney

When Tianna Holmes started running track at Moore, she had no clue what she was getting into or what she could do. But somehow in four short years, she has become one of the most impressive runners in the state.

After winning the 6A girls 400-meter dash state title as a junior, people started to take notice just what kind of talent Holmes was. Holmes doubled down on her accomplishments when she won a second straight title in the 400-meter dash May 12 at the Class 6A State Track and Field Championships in Moore. Her time of 55.82 was almost two seconds ahead of Union’s Tizhane Brooks.

However, while Holmes has been happy with her season, she has been chasing an elusive record the entire year. After running a 55:32 in the 400-meter dash at the Central Oklahoma Athletic Conference Championships, Holmes was visibly upset with herself. Even though it was her best time of the season and the fastest any girl in the state had run the 400 this year, she was not happy.

The state record in the girls 400-meter dash was set by Glenda Marshall from Muskogee. Her time of 54.89 has stood strong for 31 years, but if Holmes wants to make it her own, she knows she has to dominate one particular section of the race.

“That last 100, that’s just heart and grit right there,” Holmes said. “So I’m going to have to just find the strength to get through that and whatever happens happens.”

While devising a plan to break a state record may seem normal to Holmes now, it was far from her mind when she first started running.

“I did not imagine this at all. My freshman year, I came. I had a torn calf so I was out the whole season,” Holmes said. “Sophomore year I wasn’t even running that fast. So, junior year I really kicked in and I was like, ‘Oh, I can do something with this,’ and I just worked hard every single day throughout the off-season and during the season.”

It was during her junior campaign that Holmes made up her mind that she wasn’t going to be an ordinary runner.

“I guess just the will to compete and want to win kicked in,” Holmes said. “And be the greatest to come out of the state.”

It was that passion to succeed that Moore coach Stefan Seifried said he recognized immediately in Holmes.

“In my 25 years of coaching, she has been the most joy to be around,” Seifried said. “She is great natured, she has a great work ethic. She just goes and competes. She’s got the it. She is a workhorse.”

Holmes said she owes her rise up the track and field charts to her faith.

“Just believing in God and trusting in Him, and that everything is going to go the way He wants it and it’s His will and His plans,” Holmes said. “Faith, and trusting in your abilities and what you trained. You trained too hard just to settle for less. So, I always come out here every single day and give it my best.”

Because of that attitude and her talents, Holmes recently signed a National Letter of Intent to run track at Wichita State University on a full scholarship. Once again, it was something she could never have dreamed of as a freshman.

“It’s like all the hard work pays off in the end,” Holmes said. “Like, all the sacrifices you do pays off.”