SECCAFIEN Andrea

General
MOVE TO AUSTRALIA
In 2017 she moved from Toronto, ON, Canada, to Melbourne, VIC, Australia, when her partner got a job there. "We moved essentially for that, but I knew I wanted to join the Melbourne Track Club. It's just a phenomenal group. Pretty much everyone is an Olympic and world finalist. I felt like I just needed to be challenged a bit more to take that next step to being more of a contender on the world stage." (guelphtoday.com, 20 Feb 2020)

LATE MOTHER
She says the death of her mother in 2005 has been a major influence on her athletics career. "She died of lymphoma when I was 14 years old and in the thick of my first ever outdoor track season. Running is what got me through it. The night I found out that she was going to die, I went for a run. I can't help but feel as though there is a small hole in my heart, one that can only be filled with the celebration of achievement of a daughter with her mother. My mother played a large role in my athletic career, though she only got to experience the very beginnings of my journey in track and field. Because of this, my mother and outdoor track have been intrinsically linked in my mind since the beginning. Before a race, I think of my mum and I do it for her. I'd like to think she'd be proud of me." (guelphmercury.com, 23 Sep 2013; andreaseccafien.com, 21 Jul 2016)

OTHER STUDIES
She spent two years studying and competing at Samford University in Birmingham, AL, United States of America, before transferring to the University of Guelph in Ontario, Canada, in 2010. "I came to Guelph to fall back in love with the sport. [After transferring] I started running 5000m in 17 minutes, which was good-ish. I remembered very early on why I do this." (therecord.blogs.com, 08 Jul 2016; olympic.ca, 01 May 2016; guelphmercury.com, 23 Sep 2013)