Mimi Bain loves to run. In preschool- she spent every recess running laps on the playground – her teacher said that when the bell rang – she looked like a little pony running outside to recess. Mimi and her little sister moved from Haiti to the United States when Mimi was 4 and for or a long time she could not speak English – but she delighted in being the fastest kid on the playground!! It is hard to believe Mimi couldn’t speak English at all just a few short years ago and today she speaks with such elegance a grace way beyond her years. When you meet Mimi her brilliant smile and polite grace leave you wondering how she gets all that so young?
Mimi just turned 12 years old and is in the sixth grade at Lakeside School in Seattle. She is a straight-A student and busy with all the things sixth graders do. Mimi loves soccer, basketball, trumpet, jazz band and traveling to Montana in the summers. She also likes to sing and act and a year ago was in a play called THE BREACH at the Seattle Repertory Theatre. The play was about survivors of Hurricane Katrina and she spent the whole play balancing on top of a roof surrounded by a swimming pool. (Her mom spent each performance hoping Mimi would not fall asleep and fall OFF the roof into the pool….)
Mimi ran her first track season in 2008 for her the St. John School track team where she set a new Seattle King County CYO record for the 200 meters and fell in love with competing. She continued through the summer running as an unattached runner and competed in the USATF Association, Regional’s and finally National’s in Omaha. In Omaha she finished 8th in the country in the 100M (and set a personal best in the prelims with a 14.02.) (see picture below of MIMI in action in Omaha) placed 4th in the long jump with a leap of 13′-1.5′ and finished 14th in the 200M. A very nice beginning for an ambitious young athlete.
Last season Mimi went to AAU Nationals in Des Moines finishing 4th in the 100 meter, 6th in the long jump and ran a personal best of 27.53 in the 200M.. She also set another Seattle King County CYO record in 2009 in the 100M. Mimi has more dreams to come. One track dream is to once again travel to AAU National meet this year in Virgina Beach, Va for the AAU Junior Olympic Games and do her very best, which always makes her mom proud. Her coach, Mike Cunliffe of Seattle Speed has high hopes for her continued success as she continues to develop over the next few years. Every season she is improving by leaps and bounds. Her goals are very high as well and she is always harder on herself than anyone could be on her.
Mimi is running for the Seattle Speed and absolutely loving every minute of it – truly, EVERY MINUTE! She loves the friends she has made and is so happy to be coached by the Speed’s great coaches. Mimi is very happy that her little sister Violet is running with her.
Last season Violet faithfully trained all summer with Mimi and attended the AAU National Junior Olympic Games and got to compete with Mimi. Watch for her name MIMI BAIN it will be one to remember.
Thanks to Christy Bains contributing to this article
Nice article on a very nice girl that we had the opportunity of meeting at the Phoenix Invitational.