Bobcats’ Fenelus is Boys Track and Field Athlete of the Year

Published June 30th, 2008

By Mario Sarmento
SPORTS EDITOR

Antonio Fenelus is known more for his prowess on the football field, but the Boca Raton High senior was also the best in the area in track and field this year.

Fenelus, who won the county meet in the 110 and 300-meter hurdles, advanced to regionals for the third straight year.
But it was a difficult track season for him.

Fenelus learned he had to take an additional class to earn a half-credit so he could graduate, which took his focus off of track and had him missing practices.

“Grades come first, and they told me I needed to get that done so I couldn’t get mad over that,” he said.
The extra work definitely affected his performance this season. Fenelus qualified fourth in the 110-meter hurdles preliminaries at regionals, but he finished seventh in the finals and did not qualify for states. In the 300 hurdles, his favorite event, Fenelus qualified seventh and finished eighth.

Fenelus’ natural ability made him one of the leaders on the Bobcats track team, but it was his example as a teammate that Coach John Combs appreciated as much as his work in the hurdles.

“It was an honor to coach him because he’s such a genuine person,” Combs said.
Despite the various distractions – which included fulfilling requirements for the University of Wisconsin, where Fenelus earned a football scholarship – the Boca Raton senior was still fast enough to win both hurdles events in the conference meet. He also helped the Bobcats 4x400 relay team to a win in the same competition.

When asked what made Fenelus so good, Combs said, “His speed, his strength, he’s very agile. He’s not afraid of the hurdles.”
Football may be Fenelus’ first love, but track and the hurdles come a close second.
“I don’t know why, but I’ve been running hurdles since the eighth grade and I love it,” he said.
While most hurdlers take a stutter-step before launching themselves over, Fenelus times his strides so he can have maximum speed when he makes his leaps.

“Practice, get your steps down, and that’s how you don’t stutter-step,” he said.
Fenelus was a respected team leader, often running drills for his teammates. And Combs said he appreciated how Fenelus kept everyone loose with his sense of humor.

Fenelus doesn’t know if he’ll run at Wisconsin yet, but he said if he does he’d like to try the 400 meters.
As for his future, he knows the odds of making it to the NFL are long. But Fenelus has a backup plan to ensure his success.
“I want to be a paramedic, I want to do something in the medical field,” he said.