By: Jonathan Yue
If Friday was a night for the 100-metre finals, Saturday was a night for the distance sprints featuring matchups in some very deep fields of Canadian competitors.
Last night, the men’s 100-metre final was nearly too close to call, but tonight in the women’s 100-metre hurdles, the results were even closer.
After another lengthy review, it was Phylicia George who would edge out the competition, down to the thousandths of a second. George clocked in with a time of 13.304 seconds, just in front of Mariam Abdul-Rashid and Michelle Harrison who finished with times of 13.306 seconds and 13.309 seconds, respectively.
In what could be one of the most outstanding finishes of the night, Madeleine Kelly is a Canadian Champion. After debate over if it was to be Melissa Bishop or Lindsey Butterworth winning the 800-metre leading up to the final, it would be Kelly who executed a last second move in-between the two to capture the 2019 women’s 800-metre Canadian title.
“Last night we were going for third,” said Kelly. “Melissa and I are both from Ottawa Valley so I’ve admired her for such a long time and she’s been such an inspiration for me. It’s pretty surreal to do that today and I give her a lot of credit for running that fast today.”
On the men’s side, Brandon McBride put up a statement in the 800-metre final. Marco Arop challenged McBride throughout the semifinal rounds, but it was McBride who would run away from the rest of the pack down the backstretch.
Crossing the finish line with a time of 1.44.63, it would be McBride’s second best performance this season. Marco Arop would claim the silver medal with a time of 1:46.93 while Abdullahi Hassan finished in third place, setting a new U18 Canadian 800-metre record in the process.
Next up was arguably one of Canada’s deepest fields. In the 400-metre finals, it was a fight to the finish line in both the women’s and men’s races. Not only were the athletes fighting for individual spots at the IAAF World Championships, but the results could play a big part in who would be named to the men’s and women’s 4×400-metre relay teams as well as the new Canadian team in the mixed relay.
In the end, it was Kyra Constantine (51.22 seconds) who would claim the women’s 400-metre Canadian title on Day 3, edging out Aiyanna-Brigette Stiverne (51.63 seconds) and hometown star Katherine Surin (52.43 seconds) to stand atop the podium.
In the men’s final, Philip Osei continued his consistent season in the 400-metre final, clocking in at 45.64 seconds. It’s his first season since 2015, third in his career, but it was a long time coming for the 28 year-old.
“It means a lot through the years. Injuries, disappointment, a lot of heartache, but I was able to come into this race with poise and trust my training,” said Osei. “Seeing all these young athletes running 45 seconds, it pushes me. I’m proud of my country right now, proud of these guys pushing me to be better. I’m excited to see what the future brings.”
Caroline Ehrhardt continued her Canadian dominance in the women’s triple jump, winning her eighth Canadian title. After earlier injuries this season, Ehrhardt is glad she was able to come here and perform the way she wanted to.
“Women’s triple jump in Canada is definitely on the up,” said Ehrhardt. “A few years ago, it was hard to find motivation, but now there are a couple girls who are capable to jumping over 13 metres on any given day so I know it’s never going to be a given and that I need to come out here and compete.
In the men’s high jump, Michael Mason defended his Canadian title from last year, clearing 2.26-metres, edging out Django Lovett who jumped 2.24-metres, while Stefan Duvivier finished in third with a clearance of 2.14-metres.
“I feel like I haven’t jumped this way in a while,” said Mason. “Things have been coming together in practice and it’s always nice to have it all come together in competition like that. Today just felt great, like I had more in me.
When asked about how he and Lovett have been pushing each other all season long, he admits it’s nice to have, especially on days like these. “You always want to have another guy with you, we really push each other and especially during those third attempts,” said Mason.
The women’s pole vault brought the crowd to the west side of the field as Alysha Newman completed her comeback by reclaiming her the Canadian title. Clearing 4.56 metres, Newman would be followed by Kelsie Ahbe with a jump of 4:36 metres and Robyn Webster in third with a clearance of 4.06 metres.
In the field, Camryn Rogers captured her first Canadian title in the women’s hammer throw, throwing 65.41 metres, beating out Kaila Butler (63.60 metres) who finished in second and Chanell Botsis (61.53 metres) in third.
Joshua Cassidy and Diane Roy would continue their golden streak at this week’s Canadian Championships, winning their third medal in three days. Both Cassidy and Roy won the men’s and women’s 800-metre races, giving both athletes Canadian titles in the T54 1,500-, 5,000 and 800-metres.
“It’s great to have this consistency again,” said Cassidy. “It was about five years ago where I was on a stint of inconsistently winning, so it’s good to come here and be in good shape to make it happen.”
Brogan MacDougall continued her winning streak in the women’s 1,500-metres, claiming the gold medal in 4:23.66, ahead of Maggie Smith (4:24.18) and Simone Plourde (4.25.97). Raising her arms in celebration as she crossed the finish line before waving to her team at the fence, MacDougall achieved something she’s been working towards all season.
“I’ve been racing in a few twilight meets this season, but I think last week’s Pan American U20 Championships got me back in the groove of championship racing,” said MacDougall, who also recently set the U20 3,000-metre record in London, Ont. “This week I was ready to go. Hopefully, I get another crack at the 5,000-metres tomorrow.”
On the men’s side it was Foster Malleck winning the U20 title, crossing the finish line with a time of 3:50.97, a few strides ahead of Dakota Goguen (3:52.09) and Rohan Nowbotsing (3:52.89).
Women’s U20 pole vault record holder, Alexzandra Throndson built off her third place finish from last year’s championships to claim gold in this year’s event. Clearling 3.80 metres, it ranks her ahead of University of Toronto Track Club training partner Mia Rodney (3.60 metres) and Windsor’s Ema Kralik (3.50 metres)
In the field, a U18 record fell in the women’s U20 javelin final. Alexandria Webb threw to a 50.73 metre first-place finish, a mark that would break the 14-year-old record held by Liz Gleadle. Jenna Fleming and Heath Miller would close out the podium with throws of 44.93 metres and 42.31 metres, respectively.
The morning session also featured a number of semifinals, including the 200-metres and 1,500-metres on the track. After successfully defending his 100-metre Canadian title last night, reigning 200-metre Canadian champion Aaron Brown was back on the track, cruising his way into the 200-metre final. Last year’s runner-up, Jerome Blake heads into the final tomorrow morning with the fastest qualifying time of 20.81 seconds.
On the women’s side, before running to a silver medal in the women’s 400-metre final, Aiyanna-Brigitte Stiverne ran the 200-metre semifinal, and will enter the women’s final tomorrow as the top seed with a time of 23.40 seconds.
The 400-metre hurdles semifinals were up next, where Sage Watson began the quest for her third Canadian title. She would finish with a time of 57.13 seconds, while reigning champion, Noelle Montcalm, clocked in with a time of 58.77 seconds.
On one of the hottest streaks by any athlete coming into this year’s Canadian Championships, Gabriella DeBues-Stafford took to the track at Claude-Robillard for the 1,500-metre semi-finals. DeBues-Stafford cruised into the final with a time of 4:13.95, and will be looking for her fourth consecutive Canadian title tomorrow.
“It’s great to compete in front of a Canadian crowd and I love Montreal as a city so it’s nice to be back and get the job done for tomorrow,” said DeBeus-Stafford. When asked about her plan for tomorrow, it was simply, “to win.”
The final day of the 2019 Canadian Track & Field Championships is an early one as Day 4 features Evan Dunfee and Rachel Seaman in the race walk event which gets underway at 7:30 a.m. The #ACWorldTrials will come to a close with the 1,500-metre, 400-metre hurdle and 200-metre finals on the track, while the field will feature women’s high jump and men’s shot put, to name a few.
Don’t miss any of the action by following along at AthleticsCanada.TV+PLUS. Be sure to follow our social channels Twitter, Instagram and Facebook for live updates throughout the Championships.