Durango’s Seamus Millett is a United States National Champion once again.
Millett won his fifth consecutive USA Modern Pentathlon National Championship in the Youth A group at last week’s USA Youth Nationals in Colorado Springs. Millett, an 18-year-old collegiate swimmer at Colorado School of Mines, racked up 1,086 combined points in fencing, laser-pistol shooting, swimming and 3,200-meter run and shoot competitions to secure the title.
“It was my last year competing in the Youth A division, so it was nice to be able to go out on top,” Millett said in a phone interview with The Durango Herald. “More important to me is the fact that I feel like I’m in good shape before the world championships.”
Millett returned from nationals with a whopping eight medals. He won three alone in the laser-pistol shooting competitions. He also took first place in the Junior-Senior Mixed Relay with partner Erica Oake and finished second in the Youth A-C Mixed Relay with partner Tessa Walker. The two finished just five points out of first place with 752 points. He also took third in the overall US National Men’s competition which includes horseback riding as the fifth event of the competition. Millett is the fourth-ranked male in the nation among all ages, and needs to get into the top two to make the 2020 Olympic team.
“I feel like I’m on the right track and I have a good plan set up with USA Pentathlon to get me there,” Millett said. “As of now, I just want to see how it’s going as next year progresses. I might need to possibly take a year off from school to train. It all really depends on where I am in the rankings, but it’s been a goal of mine for a while so we’ll see how it goes.”
If history is an indicator, Millett’s goals are usually reached. The Durango High School graduate was a key contributor to the DHS cross country team’s state title in 2015 and added another state championship in 2016 with the Demons track and field program’s 4x800-meter relay team.
He was the youngest top finisher at the 2015 Pan-American Games and was the top American at the 2015 Youth World Championships in Buenos Aires with a seventh place qualifying finish and a memorable showing in the fencing finals.
Millett received worldwide recognition for an extraordinary act of sportsmanship after he deducted a point from himself at a critical moment in the bonus round of the final match. Months later, he was awarded the Coubertin Fair Play Award at the International Penathlon Conference for his act of sportsmanship. The award is given to one pentathlete in the world regardless of age, and the 16-year-old from Durango was that year’s recipient.
Last year, he went to the Youth World Championships again and competed in Limerick, Ireland. This year, he is set to compete at the Youth World Championships in Prague, Czech Republic, July 17-24, and the Junior World Championships Aug. 7-12 in Hungary where the he will compete against competitors aged 19-21.
“I’m super excited to go and I’m really happy just to have the opportunity to travel again,” he said. “I don’t think a top-10 finish at Youth Worlds is outlandish, so that’s what I’m shooting for. The Junior Worlds will be a new experience for me, so hopefully I can do my best against what I believe will be really good competition.”
Millett, son of James Millett and Jennifer Thurston, is searching for sponsorship to help with funding for his month-long trip. Because he is a collegiate athlete, the money will have to be distributed through USA Pentathlon.
“A sponsor would be a huge help and it is something I need now,” Millett said. “Unfortunately, the sport I compete in is such a small sport that a lot of us have to pay our own way. Getting sponsors will give me an opportunity to stay in Europe to train and compete at a high level. It will allow me to gain the experience I need to continue to move forward”
Potential sponsors would help what many believe to be the next in a long line of Durango Olympians. In fact, Nathan Schrimsher, the top American in the Modern Pentathlon at the 2016 Rio Games and 2017 Men’s National Champion, has taken an interest in Millett.
“Nathan is a really nice guy and he’s gone out of his way to help me over the years,” Millett said. “He and his brother both compete and I think they’ve been impressed with my progress. I think they see me as a youth who is willing to take it to the next level and commit to this sport, so they’ve been really helpful.”
Millett’s commitment goes far beyond sport. In his freshman year at Colorado Mines, he finished with a 3.7 grade point average and made the Dean’s List. He is pursuing a major in Civil Engineering and a minor in Humanitarian Engineering.
If there’s anyone who knows what Millett can do for a community and a team, it is Durango High School coach David McMillan.
“The young man has so many great qualities, but the absolute defining trait of Seamus Millett is his humility,” McMillan said in a phone interview with The Durango Herald. “I don’t think anyone who looks at him or visits with him at length would ever realize that he is undoubtedly the best at what he does among his peers in this nation. He graduated from DHS at 16 and carries himself with a maturity and grace that is so unique for a young man his age. Seamus has all the right stuff, but he has the wisdom and the humbleness not to strut it around. That’s Seamus Millett.”
Contributions can be made by check and sent to: Shannon LiBianco, USA Pentathlon, 1 Olympic Plaza, Colorado Springs, Colo., 80909. Contributions can also be made by credit or debit card at http://www.teamusa.org/usa-modern-pentathlon/donate.
jfries@durangoherald.com
