“This is our 11th summer. We’ve graduated ten classes.”
With over a decade of Hill Country Comets Track Club behind her, coach Jane Blomqvist is no stranger to pouring hard work and determination into young athletes in Boerne. But that’s also because she has dedicated her life to athletics, particularly in track. “Track and field was my primary sport, although I did basketball and softball also,” says Blomqvist. Also a nurse and the Patient Care Manager with Embrace Hospice & Home Care, it's Blomqvist’s care for others and passion for seeing young people thrive that keeps her going.
Blomqvist attended Angelo State University on a track and field scholarship. After marrying and moving to the Hill Country, Blomqvist’s husband (whom she met on the track) still competed internationally for his native Sweden. “When we were having our children, they were at track meets with us,” remembers Blomqvist. “We started putting them in track meets from a very early age, probably three or four.” By the time her children were six years old, they wanted to be on a team too. However, there wasn’t a team for them in Boerne, and they were not interested in making the drive to San Antonio to find one. “So,” Blomqvist explains, “we decided just to start our own club.”
When they started, the team consisted of about 20 athletes. Today, that number has multiplied exponentially. “Last summer, we were at about 350 athletes,” said Blomqvist. "Our mission was always to make it a primary sport for kids.”
When competing in the 80s and 90s, Blomqvist remembers that women with athletic builds were not celebrated. “I grew up feeling kind of weird amongst my peers because I was super athletic, very muscular,” she recalls. “I didn’t fit the mold of a ‘cute 1980s girl.’ I was always very self-conscious about how I looked because I was so athletic.” Blomqvist said that when she went to college, this wholly changed—suddenly, young women with muscular, athletic builds like hers were all around her. “I remember finally feeling comfortable in my body and being able to celebrate what a strong girl is,” noted Blomqvist.
That’s a lesson that moves her work today. “Over the past 11 years, I’ve been able to see girls along the way in the same struggle,” Blomqvist says. She remembers the high school coaches who served as essential mentors to her; now, she works to provide that same mentorship to the young women she coaches. “We’re able to open up so many avenues for girls and show that there is a huge need at any level for track and field in college. [I want to] show them that there’s a whole path for them if they want to do track and field.”
Today, The Comets send 30 to 60 athletes to state and national competitions each summer. After over a decade of competitive track and field in Boerne, Blomqvist continues pushing and inspiring young athletes to reach their utmost potential. “If we can have a hand in being able to get someone to school paid or partially paid, that’s huge for us.” Scholarships from the schools are welcome, and The Comets have also been awarding scholarships for the past four years. “We want to give back to our community,” Blomqvist says. “Our community has given so much to us.”
Commitment and accountability are two traits Blomqvist says are necessary to be a champion, so she teaches them to every athlete she coaches. “I’m huge on commitment,” she says. You can’t expect to reach the next level in anything if you don’t put the work in—and that goes for your whole life.”
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“I remember finally feeling comfortable in my body and being able to celebrate what a strong girl is.”