By John Beisser, Sports Writer
It’s one thing to be an asthma sufferer. It’s quite another when you have asthma and are a varsity high school cross country runner.
Lungs are important enough as it is, but having good lung capacity while running distance races is obviously paramount. Rather than stepping to the sideline, Viking senior Jonathan Bellizio has taken on his condition head on. And he’s not looking back.
”I started to show some symptoms of asthma the last couple of years but this year it became worse then ever,” said Bellizio who has firmly entrenched himself as South Brunswick’s number two runner behind fellow senior co-captain Matt Boley.
”When I struggle with my breathing during the race, the more desire I have,” he said.
He uses an inhaler before and after each race and he says it makes a noticeable improvement in his breathing. Unlike many of those afflicted with asthma, Bellizio suffers from the athletic-induced version of the disorder. In his every day life, he shows no symptoms.
Undaunted by his condition, Bellizio wants to follow in the footsteps of his older sister Jessica and plans to continue running in college. Jessica is a sophomore and a member of the Susquehanna University cross country team and Jonathan is considering a small, liberal arts colleges in Pennsylvania as well. His list includes Moravian, Elizabethtown, Getttysburg, De Sales, Bucknell as well as Salisbury University in Maryland.
A serious-minded student, Bellizio plans on pursuing a major related the biology field. His coach, Wilfredo Rivera, admires the way Bellizio consistently goes about his business during each practice and meet and hails him for his leadership qualities,
”He’s a hard-worker. He’s maybe not as vocal as Matt, but he’ll make his feelings known to his teammates if the situation warrants,” Rivera said. “He’s one of those guys who is a team player first and foremost and is always working hard. He’s had to battle asthma and some other injuries and he’s overcome that.”
The 5-10, 160-pound Bellizio ran a fine 17:20 in the Old Bridge Invitational recently to place 31st out of a field of more than 100 competitors. He’s been a mainstay all season on a team that took a 3-2 record into Tuesday’s final dual meet vs. Old Bridge. Both the boys and the girls team, which boasted a perfect 5-0 record heading into its meet vs. Old Bridge, are girding for the Nov. 1 GMC Championships.
When Bellizio looks back on his high school cross country career, he regards his very first varsity meet, the Stewart Invitational at Warinanco Park in Elizabeth, as a landmark.
”That race told me where I stood, where I had to improve,” he says. “It sparked my desire to achieve and get better.”

