Athlete of the Week: 10 questions with George Cahill, New Trier cross-country

George Cahill is a New Trier senior who finished 47th in the IHSA championships Nov. 6 with a personal best time of 15 minutes 10.54 seconds. He recently committed to run for Amherst College. 

1. Do you have any prerace rituals or superstitions? 

I tend to wear the same outfit and listen to music the night before and the day of. I like to develop a good race strategy going in, but once I am at the meet I try to lay off thinking of the race and just relax. I try to focus on each one thing at a time and do the same drills, same stretches and then race. 

2. Why is Amherst a good fit?

My priority was academics. I wanted to go to a school that was great with academics and had great majors. Amherst is a liberal arts school and I really liked that fit. The diversity of options when studying was appealing to me. The location (Amherst, Mass.) was ideal. I like the northeast and it’s rural, but not too rural. The things that blew me away were the campus and the guys on team. They where phenomenal and super welcoming when I met them. 

3. What is your favorite thing to do when you’re not running? 

I would say kind of just relaxing, hanging out with friends, watching football, basketball, plying football and basketball, hanging with family members, playing video games, watching movies.

4. What is your dream job? 

Right now, I do not have one. I would say investor maybe or a scientist, somewhere in the business or science fields. 

5. If you could compete in another sport, what would it be? 

I would probably say basketball. That was probably the first sport I started to play. I really enjoyed the team aspect and also the competitive aspect. I really just enjoy watching and playing the game of basketball. 

6. Do you favorite athlete?

I’d say Justin Fields (Quarterback — Chicago Bears). I really like his work ethic, his ability to handle adversity, how determined he is to be the best he can be. He’s a true team player. I really love that. 

7. If you’re in Walgreens with a couple bucks, what are you buying?

I would probably buy gum. I like chewing gum, mint or bubble gum flavor. 

8. What are you going to miss most about New Trier?

I’m probably going to miss my experiences with my cross country and track teammates because I think while I still will have somewhat of that experience in college, having that experience at the high school level was something special. The last four years were really awesome, getting to know such great guys and being around them every day.

9. What is something people don’t know about you? 

I don’t think many people know that I am very conscientious in my work, not only in running but in school. Whatever I am doing I like to do it well, especially the little things. 

10. How would you summarize your senior season?

In one word, I would say amazing. The best way I could have ended my cross-country career. While there is still track, I am still sad to end the season. Last year was such as different feel, and not true cross-country. Coming out of COVID, it was awesome to see everyone as a team running and normal races and enjoying awesome meets and having awesome races. The guys on the team are the ones who made it very special. That’s what Im going to remember for the rest of my life.

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