From June 6-8, Ontario held its OFSAA Track and Field Championships at Western University’s Alumni Stadium in London.
Reaching OFSAA is considered a prestigious achievement for students in Ontario, as to reach the Track and Field Championships athletes must pass through three different qualifying meets. These qualifiers narrow the field of participants down to the top 24 athletes in each event. This year’s meet hosted close to 3,000 participants from 850 schools across the province.
Meaford resident, and long time Georgian Bay Coyote, Emmett Leary had the privilege to compete among Ontario’s best youth runners on Saturday, June 8. He qualified to race the 3,000m, an event that requires athletes to complete seven and a half laps of the track.
Because the 3,000m race is a lengthy run, there are no preliminary heats and all the athletes are placed on the starting line at the same time. The Novice boys race got off to a clean start and once around the first curve, they all settled into a very tight pack.
Fourteen of the boys remained in step with each other for numerous laps, calculating when to make a move to pass. Emmett made multiple attempts to break up the pack and move forward, as he found it challenging to be in this tight position, stating that he felt he wasted some of his energy trying to move around others. William Thomas of Riverdale school took the lead and the runners spread out some over the last 600m. In the end, Emmett pushed hard to finish and crossed the line in 11th place, bringing home a new personal best time and some unparalleled racing experience.
For more information about the Georgian Bay Coyotes, check out their website: www.georgianbaycoyotes.com
