On Saturday, April 6 and Sunday, April 7, the United Tamil Sports Club and Flying Angels Track & Field Academy hosted the Minor Track Association Provincial Championships at York University. Sixteen of the local Coyote runners attended the meet and had some very impressive results.
On Saturday, the day began with the 1200m races. Tyke boy Caleb Cleland got the Coyotes off to an amazing start as he pushed himself to achieve a three-second personal best and take the silver medal.
The 1500m races were next. Atom boy Richard Saunders had a very noteworthy performance in this event as he went out very hard and maintained his speed, posting a 15-second personal best while taking the bronze medal. Senior boys Bryson Cleland and Nathan Leary also put forth their best efforts in their 1500m race, both achieving new personal bests by over five seconds. Intermediate racers Isabel Spence and Emmett Leary both ran excellent times in their 1500m races, and they added two silver medals to the Coyote medal count.
On Saturday afternoon, a number of Coyotes took part in the 400m races. Mite girl Ella Cleland fought hard to stay with the lead group of racers and finished strong, taking the bronze medal. Three Coyotes, Caleb Cleland, Eli McPhatter, and Ludo Menard, raced in the Tyke boy category. Ludo knocked six seconds off his previous best time. Caleb raced in the fastest heat and found he had to dig deep to stay close to the leaders. He fought hard and took five seconds off his personal best and finished in third place. Senior Bryson Cleland wrapped up the day of racing with another strong race, knocking a full five seconds off his previous best.
On Sunday morning, Senior girls Kate Earle and Chloe Burgess lined up to race their first 2000m race. Both girls chose a smart pace and held steady throughout. Teammate Nathan Leary followed suit and posted steady lap splits over the course of his 2000m race while knocking off a whopping 29 seconds from his previous best time.
Next, Intermediate runners Isabel Spence and Emmett Leary lined up together to race the 3000m. Both of these seasoned racers cruised through their 15 laps of the 200m track and took first place in their respective categories. Isabel crushed her personal best, improving her time by 30 seconds.
After a long gap in the action, Coyotes geared up for the last race of the weekend, the 800m. Mite girl Adelaide Kulakowski was first to run this distance. She dug deep, taking two seconds off her personal best and taking the bronze medal.
Atom girls Avery McPhatter and Madelyn Moores were next to line up for the 800m race. Avery was determined to go after a new personal best and her last lap saw her pushing hard. She crossed the line with a two-second improvement and a big smile to go with it. McKenna Marshall raced in the second fastest heat of Atom girls and found herself needing to jockey for position. She was elbowed several times but made some strategic passes and finished well.
Senior girls Kate Earle, Chloe Burgess, and Lydia Menard laid down some strong races and earned themselves some personal bests and some lessons about racing strategy as well.
The boys’ divisions ran after the girls and Tyke boys Eli McPhatter and Ludo Menard were placed in the same large heat of boys to race. This proved to be a strong motivator for both boys. Ludo ran a relatively relaxed pace for the first three laps and then decided he wanted to catch his teammate. His finishing sprint was shockingly fast, though he came shy of matching Eli in the end.
Atom boy Richard Saunders was next to toe the line. He faced the fastest heat of boys and fared extremely well. He worked hard to stay close to the lead pack and he crossed the line with a fifth-place finish and another personal best time.
Intermediate runner Emmett Leary was the last Coyote to compete for the day. He started out a bit behind the lead pack and worked his way forward. He posted solid split times and came home with a third-place medal.
Overall the Coyotes were an inspiring group of kids chasing down their goals and dreams. These young runners posted 17 new personal best times and brought home 10 medals and 12 top five performances. Their willingness to face challenges and fight through hard moments and physical pain had parents and coaches on their feet cheering all weekend.
The Coyotes are now on a well-deserved two-week break and will resume training on Tuesday, April 23. For more information about the team, check out the website at: www.georgianbaycoyotes.com.
