Meet Eshe Stockton

October 27, 2021

While answering correspondence one day and I saw a race photo that stopped me in my tracks. “Who is that?!” I asked of Sika Henry, who texted me that pic. “Oh, that’s Eshe.”

Let me introduce you to Eshe Stockton, who is 10 years old. Seeing her is a brief reminder of what is too rare in triathlon, but more so a megaphone of what is occasionally right about triathlon, and more right now than it ever has been. Without further ado, here is my interview with Anne Marie Almirol, Eshe’s mother; followed by my interview with Eshe.

SLOWTWITCH: I have not met Eshe in person or seen her in action but just from still photos she looks like a whirling dervish, full of energy, lightning in a bottle, and she’s fast. What is your athletic background, or the background of whomever it was that conspired to gift us Eshe Stockton?

ANNE MARIE ALMIROL: Eshe is energy, plenty of running around and climbing, very physical and… emotional. She has always been very active. But when I think about it I would ride my bike – Eshe in the trailer – at parks or in the neighborhood; I put her in the jogging stroller many times; and she did support me at a few triathlons and running events and open water swims over the years. She is familiar with crazy athletes before, during, and after a race.

ST: How did it all start?

AMA: I can't even remember now but I think she swimming started around 4. We were eating some gluten-free cupcakes and muffins by the beach and she said she wanted to go in the water to surf. I told her she had to learn how to swim first. She agreed to swimming lessons and she started at Ripples with Coach Z. Eventually she graduated from Ripples and joined a swim team. She has been with the same group of kids for a few years now at Kingfish, Rhode Island, and she has a great time at practice and at meets.

As to running, I will have to look back to see how old she was but her first race was in the winter. I asked her if she wanted to run in a race with a penguin and Santa would be there to say hi. She was hooked, and asked when she could do another race.

I think Eshe and I have really good times together. She does take the training with more focus now these days – still with lots of laughs – but it wasn't training before. Lots of biking around the neighborhood together or at a park then enjoy some Del's. When it is cold and icy out, we hook up our bikes to trainers and I let her choose a movie to watch. We love our routines.

Yes she is fast. I don't think she gets that from me though. Her running form is so nice, I look like I'm shuffling along and the look on my face is pain, and you can hear me breathing from a mile away. I never learned how to swim until around 2005. I can't remember now the year when I did my first tri, but it was the Danskin sprint triathlon at Sandy Hook, New Jersey. One of my patients told me about it and I wanted to do one.

Her first tri was the New England Kids triathlon and she has met some athletes around the area doing many kids duathlons and triathlons over the past couple of years. She loves traveling and meeting new people. She can be shy and quiet sometimes but once she gets to know someone Eshe brings all her energy.

ST: Over the years I’ve seen pics of young racers who I’m not sure fully enjoy racing. Not Eshe. She looks like she loves every minute of it. How does she know when an event is on the schedule; how does she decide what she wants to race.

AMA: I am usually the one looking online at race schedules. I always ask her if she is interested and read or let her read the description, location, distance. I let her decide if she wants to do it. This year was the first year she did a full sprint triathlon. But leading up to this we have done lots of swims at the beach together over the years so I wasn't too worried about the swimming. And most of the races here are time trial format due to COVID so this made it even more comfortable for her. She really missed triathlons last year as everything was cancelled and this year all of the local kids triathlons were cancelled. This is what brought us to the Lake Terramuggus super sprint tris [which are] 200-yard swim, 5.5-mile bike, and 1.6- or 1.7-mile run. I thought these distances would be very manageable. She killed it! And so I then asked if she wanted to try something a little longer, which brought us to Whaling City and she did the Splash and Dash. And it just kept going.

ST: Do you ever have to tap the brakes on that?

AMA: Yes, Eshe does get tired but it was easy during the summer for recovery as she didn't have school. She could take naps if needed or relax around the house. I haven't needed to say no you are not doing this, or that it’s all too much, because she usually tells me if she feels tired. So we modify everything and either rest or keep the session easy and short. Since school has started Eshe definitely has a different schedule.

She loves racing! She is serious. She is different when she races, like she knows how to move all that physical and emotional energy into fast and focused. [But] many times when she is training she is bubbly, chatty. We laugh about this all the time.

ST: I note that Eshe is a swimmer by trade. I did a little nosing around, she swam a recent meet, short course yards, 36 seconds for the 50 free, 40 seconds for the 50 fly and back, 1:30 for the 100 IM. I know a lot of pretty good adult age group triathletes who would be envious to swim those times. I also saw that she ran 22 minutes and change for a 5k at the end of a swim-run. A lot of triathletes would take that time as well. Does she want to be a swimmer, a runner, a triathlete, or is it way too early to even ask that question?

AMA: It may be too early to really be sure. She loves all 3 disciplines of the triathlon. But yes, she really loves swimming and running the most. But Eshe keeps mentioning Olympics for triathlon.

And now, my interview with Eshe…

SLOWTWITCH: If you could do any race at all next year, swim, bike, run or triathlon, what would it be?

ESHE STOCKTON: If I could do any race at all next year I would do a triathlon race. I would do a triathlon race because I love doing triathlons and it is the most fun sport to do. Triathlons will make you stronger and brave. A triathlon is a very challenging sport, but fun. Triathlons keep me going in my life and I will never stop doing triathlons.

ST: Do you see yourself winning a big race someday, when you’re older and grown up? What race would that be?

ES: I definitely see myself winning a big race someday when I'm older. I imagine winning a race in the Olympics. I want to be an Olympian. I can't stop on that dream. Going to the Olympics would be the best thing that has ever happened in my life.

ST: Are your best friends mostly those who swim and do triathlons, like you do, or just friends from school or the neighborhood?

ES: I have a lot of friends who do swimming with me and I have a lot of friends who are at my school and in my neighborhood. I basically could say both types are best friends.

ST: When you swim and run and ride your bike, in between races, how do you think of it? Is it like training? Or is it just what you want to do?

ES: When I swim and run and ride my bike It is definitely what I want to do for the rest of my life. I cannot stop on doing what I want to do. Triathlons is what will last me forever.

ST: Is there somebody in swimming or running or triathlon you admire? And you’d like to be like that person when you grow up?

ES: Sika Henry is who I admire and who I want to be like when I grow up because she is competitive, serious, strong, brave, positive and she tries to bring more diversity and I really want to do that.

[PHOTOS: Capstone Photography]