Zepherinus Joseph
Encyclopedia
Zepherinus Joseph is a Saint Lucia
n athlete, specialising in middle and long distance events. Zepherinus holds the Saint Lucia National Records
for every outdoor track and road event from the 1500m to the marathon.
Better known as Knockay or Straws, Zepherinus attended Micoud Secondary School before taking up athletics scholarships at Central Arizona College
and University of North Florida
, where he studied Building Construction. He was a member of Creation Sports Club in Saint Lucia.
Before leaving for Central Arizona College in 1999, Zepherinus had already established himself as the best distance runner St Lucia had ever produced. By the time he got to Arizona on an a scholarship sourced by Saint Lucia Pole Vault record-holder Dominic Johnson
, "Knockay" was St Lucia's national champion at 1500m and 5000m, and he held the national records at both distances. In 1998, he had completed the 1500m in 3:57.33 at the Central American and Caribbean Games
in Maracaibo, Venezuela.
(NJCAA) cross-country
championships in his freshman year, his 24:21 a new school record. He won the regional college cross-country championships and came second in his conference, clocking a little over 25 minutes each time.
Zepherinus also became a father in 1999, a year in which he also achieved his greatest athletic feat up to that point in his career. In January, he placed fifth in the Central American and Caribbean Cross Country Championships, the best individual finish ever for a St. Lucian.
Zepherinus started the 2000 season with a 10,000m win in March, in Phoenix Arizona, in 31 minutes 27 seconds. Days later he won he 1,500m run at Azrizona State University in 3:55, equalling his personal, national and course record in the event. In May, he went on to win the NJCAA 10K title in 31 minutes 25 seconds in Illinois.
(OECS).
Also in 2001, representing St Lucia, Zepherinus lowered his national record for the men's 5000m run at the Fourth Francophonie Games in Ottawa-Hull, Canada. Zepherinus was ninth. Athletes from Morocco took all three medals. Zepherinus' time of 14:25.20 lowered his months-old from the Penn Relays (14:37.77), itself a five-second reduction from his then two-year-old mark. At Francophonie, Zepherinus was also seventh in the 1500m, running 3:52.36.
In 2002, Zepherinus was hit by a car whilst on a morning run, but he determined to recover fully and come back stronger than ever. He placed second in the 5,000 (14:34.25) and the 10,000 (31:12.82) at the NCAA Division II Outdoor Track Championships in San Angelo, Texas. But it was in the cross country season that he really came alive, setting course records and winning every race he competed in up to the NCAA Division II South Region Championship. The NCAA Division II Cross-Country Coaches Association named him Division II Cross Country Co-Athlete of the Year, along with Ashland University's Nick Cordis. Zepherinus was the first UNF Osprey to claim that title.
Unfortunately, the boy from the tropics found it hard going in cold, windy, mushy conditions at the 2002 NCAA Division II National Cross-Country Championships at Ashland University in Ohio. His time of 30:51.0 earned him a fairly close third, within 10 seconds of the champion, Alfred Rugema (30:43.7) of Abilene Christian University. Cordes (30:46.5) was second.
In December 2002, Zepherinus made the Sports Illustrated "Faces In The Crowd" page.
That year he had also qualified for the men's Marathon at the 2004 Athlens Olympics after running the Twin Cities Marathon in Minnesota. He completed the race in 2:44:19, finishing 80th. Zepherinus was the Saint Lucian flagbearer at the opening ceremony of the 28th Olympiad. by a quirk of the Greek alphabet, Saint Lucia was first into the stadium, and so Zepherinus had the honour of leading the opening procession. Upon his return to Saint Lucia the community of Mon Repos renamed of Coolie Town Road to Knockay Avenue in recognition of his accomplishments.
In 2005, Zepherinus took his second OECS title in Antigua-Barbuda in 1:10:15. He won again in 2006 in the Commonwealth of Dominica, in 1:08:33.7.
That earned him his first Sportsman of the Year title in Saint Lucia. Zepherinus won OECS in St Kitts-Nevis again in 2007, this time in 1:13:22. He won on home soil in 2008 in 1:7:44.14, still his best-ever time in the OECS event. In 2009, he made it five on the trot, winning in St Vincent & the Grenadines in 1.14.13.
In February 2010 Zepherinus was named Saint Lucia’s 2009 Sportsman of the Year, the second time he had taken that title.
Saint Lucia
Saint Lucia is an island country in the eastern Caribbean Sea on the boundary with the Atlantic Ocean. Part of the Lesser Antilles, it is located north/northeast of the island of Saint Vincent, northwest of Barbados and south of Martinique. It covers a land area of 620 km2 and has an...
n athlete, specialising in middle and long distance events. Zepherinus holds the Saint Lucia National Records
Saint Lucian records in athletics
The following are the national records in athletics in Saint Lucia maintained by its national athletics federation: Saint Lucia Athletics Association .-Men:-Women:-Men:...
for every outdoor track and road event from the 1500m to the marathon.
Better known as Knockay or Straws, Zepherinus attended Micoud Secondary School before taking up athletics scholarships at Central Arizona College
Central Arizona College
Central Arizona College is a public community college located in Coolidge, Arizona. "CAC," as the school is commonly known, serves the population of Pinal County.The school's sports teams are called the Vaqueros and the colors are green and gold...
and University of North Florida
University of North Florida
The University of North Florida is a public university located in Jacksonville, Florida. A member institution of the State University System of Florida, the university is accredited by the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools to award baccalaureate, master’s...
, where he studied Building Construction. He was a member of Creation Sports Club in Saint Lucia.
Before leaving for Central Arizona College in 1999, Zepherinus had already established himself as the best distance runner St Lucia had ever produced. By the time he got to Arizona on an a scholarship sourced by Saint Lucia Pole Vault record-holder Dominic Johnson
Dominic Johnson
Dominic Laurence Johnson is a retired St Lucian athlete competing in the pole vault. He is a former decathlete.His personal best result is 5.70 metres, achieved in 2000. This is the current St Lucian record. He also holds the St Lucian records in decathlon, 110 metres hurdles and 4 x 100 metres...
, "Knockay" was St Lucia's national champion at 1500m and 5000m, and he held the national records at both distances. In 1998, he had completed the 1500m in 3:57.33 at the Central American and Caribbean Games
Central American and Caribbean Games
The Central American and Caribbean Games are a multi-sport regional championships event, held quadrennial , typically in the middle year between Summer Olympics...
in Maracaibo, Venezuela.
Central Arizona
It did not take long to make a mark on CAC. Zepherinus came second at the National Junior College Athletics AssociationNational Junior College Athletic Association
The National Junior College Athletic Association , founded in 1938, is an association of community college and junior college athletic departments throughout the United States. It is held as Divisions and Regions. The current NJCAA holds 24 separate regions.-History:The idea for the NJCAA was...
(NJCAA) cross-country
Cross country running
Cross country running is a sport in which people run a race on open-air courses over natural terrain. The course, typically long, may include surfaces of grass and earth, pass through woodlands and open country, and include hills, flat ground and sometimes gravel road...
championships in his freshman year, his 24:21 a new school record. He won the regional college cross-country championships and came second in his conference, clocking a little over 25 minutes each time.
Zepherinus also became a father in 1999, a year in which he also achieved his greatest athletic feat up to that point in his career. In January, he placed fifth in the Central American and Caribbean Cross Country Championships, the best individual finish ever for a St. Lucian.
Zepherinus started the 2000 season with a 10,000m win in March, in Phoenix Arizona, in 31 minutes 27 seconds. Days later he won he 1,500m run at Azrizona State University in 3:55, equalling his personal, national and course record in the event. In May, he went on to win the NJCAA 10K title in 31 minutes 25 seconds in Illinois.
North Florida
Upon graduating CAC, Zepherinus transferred to University of North Florida. In 2001, his junior year, he ran the 10K in a new national-record time of 29:48.97 in a meet at Tallahassee, Florida. his time was also a new event record for the nine-member Organisation of Eastern Caribbean StatesOrganisation of Eastern Caribbean States
The Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States , created in 1981, is an inter-governmental organisation dedicated to economic harmonisation and integration, protection of human and legal rights, and the encouragement of good governance between countries and dependencies in the Eastern Caribbean...
(OECS).
Also in 2001, representing St Lucia, Zepherinus lowered his national record for the men's 5000m run at the Fourth Francophonie Games in Ottawa-Hull, Canada. Zepherinus was ninth. Athletes from Morocco took all three medals. Zepherinus' time of 14:25.20 lowered his months-old from the Penn Relays (14:37.77), itself a five-second reduction from his then two-year-old mark. At Francophonie, Zepherinus was also seventh in the 1500m, running 3:52.36.
In 2002, Zepherinus was hit by a car whilst on a morning run, but he determined to recover fully and come back stronger than ever. He placed second in the 5,000 (14:34.25) and the 10,000 (31:12.82) at the NCAA Division II Outdoor Track Championships in San Angelo, Texas. But it was in the cross country season that he really came alive, setting course records and winning every race he competed in up to the NCAA Division II South Region Championship. The NCAA Division II Cross-Country Coaches Association named him Division II Cross Country Co-Athlete of the Year, along with Ashland University's Nick Cordis. Zepherinus was the first UNF Osprey to claim that title.
Unfortunately, the boy from the tropics found it hard going in cold, windy, mushy conditions at the 2002 NCAA Division II National Cross-Country Championships at Ashland University in Ohio. His time of 30:51.0 earned him a fairly close third, within 10 seconds of the champion, Alfred Rugema (30:43.7) of Abilene Christian University. Cordes (30:46.5) was second.
In December 2002, Zepherinus made the Sports Illustrated "Faces In The Crowd" page.
Professional career
In November 2003, Zepherinus won his first OECS NEMWIL Half Marathon title in Basseterre, St Kitts-Nevis. Reigning champion Pamenos Ballantyne of St Vincent & the Grenadines was absent in controversial circumstances, but Zepherinus' 1:12:10.18 win came against a quality field comprising the region's best distance runners, and he beat Trinidad & Tobago's Curtis Cox by less than 14 seconds.That year he had also qualified for the men's Marathon at the 2004 Athlens Olympics after running the Twin Cities Marathon in Minnesota. He completed the race in 2:44:19, finishing 80th. Zepherinus was the Saint Lucian flagbearer at the opening ceremony of the 28th Olympiad. by a quirk of the Greek alphabet, Saint Lucia was first into the stadium, and so Zepherinus had the honour of leading the opening procession. Upon his return to Saint Lucia the community of Mon Repos renamed of Coolie Town Road to Knockay Avenue in recognition of his accomplishments.
In 2005, Zepherinus took his second OECS title in Antigua-Barbuda in 1:10:15. He won again in 2006 in the Commonwealth of Dominica, in 1:08:33.7.
That earned him his first Sportsman of the Year title in Saint Lucia. Zepherinus won OECS in St Kitts-Nevis again in 2007, this time in 1:13:22. He won on home soil in 2008 in 1:7:44.14, still his best-ever time in the OECS event. In 2009, he made it five on the trot, winning in St Vincent & the Grenadines in 1.14.13.
In February 2010 Zepherinus was named Saint Lucia’s 2009 Sportsman of the Year, the second time he had taken that title.
Outdoor Records
| Event | Record | Date | Meet | Place | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1500 m 1500 metres The 1,500-metre run is the premier middle distance track event.Aerobic endurance is the biggest factor contributing to success in the 1500 metres but the athlete also requires significant sprint speed.In modern times, the 1,500-metre run has been run at a pace faster than the average person could... |
3:48.50 | 31 March 2001 |  United States GainesvilleGainesville, Florida Gainesville is the largest city in, and the county seat of, Alachua County, Florida, United States as well as the principal city of the Gainesville, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area . The preliminary 2010 Census population count for Gainesville is 124,354. Gainesville is home to the sixth... , United States United States The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district... |
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| 3000 m 3000 metres The 3000 metres is a popular amateur middle distance track event where 7.5 laps are completed around a 400 metre track. This event is generally classified as middle distance, but it could be classed as a long distance event in many high schools, since they do not promote races such as the 5000 and... |
8:36.41 | 10 April 1999 | United States Tempe Tempe, Arizona Tempe is a city in Maricopa County, Arizona, USA, with the Census Bureau reporting a 2010 population of 161,719. The city is named after the Vale of Tempe in Greece. Tempe is located in the East Valley section of metropolitan Phoenix; it is bordered by Phoenix and Guadalupe on the west, Scottsdale... , United States United States The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district... |
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| 5000 m 5000 metres The 5000 metres is a popular running distance also known as 5 km or 5K in American English. It is one of the track events in the Olympic Games and the World Championships in Athletics. "5000 metres" refers to racing on a track and "5K" usually refers to a roadrace or cross country event... |
14:25.20 | 20 July 2001 |  Canada OttawaOttawa Ottawa is the capital of Canada, the second largest city in the Province of Ontario, and the fourth largest city in the country. The city is located on the south bank of the Ottawa River in the eastern portion of Southern Ontario... , Canada Canada Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean... |
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| 10000 m | 29:48.97 | 23 March 2001 | United States Tallahassee Tallahassee, Florida Tallahassee is the capital of the U.S. state of Florida. It is the county seat and only incorporated municipality in Leon County, and is the 128th largest city in the United States. Tallahassee became the capital of Florida, then the Florida Territory, in 1824. In 2010, the population recorded by... , United States United States The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district... |
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| Half marathon Half marathon A half marathon is a road running event of . It is half the distance of a marathon and usually run on roads. Participation in half marathons has grown steadily recently. One of the main reasons for this is that it is a challenging distance, but does not require the same level of training that a... |
1:04:52 | 28 November 2002 | United States Jacksonville Jacksonville, Florida Jacksonville is the largest city in the U.S. state of Florida in terms of both population and land area, and the largest city by area in the contiguous United States. It is the county seat of Duval County, with which the city government consolidated in 1968... , United States United States The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district... |
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| Marathon Marathon The marathon is a long-distance running event with an official distance of 42.195 kilometres , that is usually run as a road race... |
2:16:06 | 5 October 2003 | United States Saint Paul Saint Paul, Minnesota Saint Paul is the capital and second-most populous city of the U.S. state of Minnesota. The city lies mostly on the east bank of the Mississippi River in the area surrounding its point of confluence with the Minnesota River, and adjoins Minneapolis, the state's largest city... , United States United States The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district... |
Indoor Records
| Event | Record | Date | Meet | Place | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3000 m 3000 metres The 3000 metres is a popular amateur middle distance track event where 7.5 laps are completed around a 400 metre track. This event is generally classified as middle distance, but it could be classed as a long distance event in many high schools, since they do not promote races such as the 5000 and... |
8:17.20 | 9 February 2003 | United States Gainesville Gainesville, Florida Gainesville is the largest city in, and the county seat of, Alachua County, Florida, United States as well as the principal city of the Gainesville, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area . The preliminary 2010 Census population count for Gainesville is 124,354. Gainesville is home to the sixth... , United States United States The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district... |
||
| 5000 m 5000 metres The 5000 metres is a popular running distance also known as 5 km or 5K in American English. It is one of the track events in the Olympic Games and the World Championships in Athletics. "5000 metres" refers to racing on a track and "5K" usually refers to a roadrace or cross country event... |
14:26.80 | 9 February 2002 | United States Indianapolis Indianapolis Indianapolis is the capital of the U.S. state of Indiana, and the county seat of Marion County, Indiana. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city's population is 839,489. It is by far Indiana's largest city and, as of the 2010 U.S... , United States United States The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district... |
Junior Records
| Event | Record | Date | Meet | Place | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5000 m 5000 metres The 5000 metres is a popular running distance also known as 5 km or 5K in American English. It is one of the track events in the Olympic Games and the World Championships in Athletics. "5000 metres" refers to racing on a track and "5K" usually refers to a roadrace or cross country event... |
15:19.12 | 10 July 1994 |  Trinidad and Tobago Port of SpainPort of Spain Port of Spain, also written as Port-of-Spain, is the capital of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago and the country's third-largest municipality, after San Fernando and Chaguanas. The city has a municipal population of 49,031 , a metropolitan population of 128,026 and a transient daily population... , Trinidad & Tobago |