Track and Field
Coaches: Derek Riedel and Rosemary Dupree
How long have you been competing in your sport?
8 years
Are you competitive with each other?
George: We compete in just about everything we do including grades, awards, track, weightlifting, etc. Even when we go to buffets, we compete in who can eat more.
Christian: But we are very proud of one another’s accomplishments. I can give him a pat on the back and say “Good job, bro!”
What’s your best athletic skill? What do you think is your twin’s best skill?
George: My best skill is running fast. The same goes for my twin.
Why did you choose the same school?
Christian: My high school track coach told me and my brother that we were good enough to run track at the college level. Our high school track coach was nice enough to call Coach Riedel, UIW head track coach, and tell him we were interested to run on the team. We toured the school and liked it.
Why do you and your twin play the same sport?
Christian: Even though we are fraternal twins, George and I are pretty identical: same size, same speed, same intelligence. We just so happen to be good at the same sport, too.
What’s the hardest thing about being a twin on the same team?
George: He is my greatest competition.
Christian: We can never get a break from each other. Sometimes being around somebody for that long, we argue over petty things.
What’s your favorite thing about playing on the same team?
George: We push each other to get better. If he can do it, I can do it, and vice versa.
Christian: My favorite thing about being on the same team is you always have someone to talk to. If I need advice, I can always turn to my brother.
Can your friends tell you apart?
George: Most of our friends can tell us apart. According to our close friends, we look nothing alike. Funny story: Sophomore year of high school, and classes were changing. My brother was walking by the class I was supposed to be in, and the teacher thought he was me. She said “George, get in class now.” He replied, “I’m not George.” She forced him to come into the classroom. When I got to class, he was waiting there, and she finally let him leave. Apparently she didn’t know I had a twin.
Christian: Friends can tell us apart, girlfriends can most definitely tell us apart, but extended family has trouble telling us apart.
What’s the best part of having a twin?
George: It makes life easier. His friends become my friends, and my friends become his friends. Being a twin is fun. I am never bored because I always have somebody to talk to and do something with.
The worst part?
George: People are always making twin jokes. If we are dressed the same, they laugh. If we are different, they ask why. And people always come up to us saying “I think I’m seeing double.” Like I haven’t heard that a million times.
Christian: We always retell the same stories, comments, questions, everything. I will tell a story to my sister. Ten minutes later, without knowing I told my sister a story, my brother will retell her the same story. It happens all the time.
