On Saturday, January 17, five of the Georgian Bay Coyotes athletes trekked to the Toronto Track and Field centre to take part in the Flying Angels NextGen Indoor Championships. It was exciting for the athletes to get their feet onto dry ground and feel their speed on the track.
The event had 527 registrants and boasted some great competitors, including the up-and-coming sprinter Wyatt Lee. He has recently broken the national records in the U18 60m and the 100m sprints and it was inspirational to see such a high-profile athlete in action on the same track as our young runners.
The young Coyote athletes had their own achievements to boast about.
The first event of the day for Coyotes’ runners was the 1500m. Under 13 athlete Iris Herman set out to crack the six-minute mark, a goal that had narrowly slipped through her fingers previously. She started her race a bit fast and then slowed in the middle, leaving the margin very tight on the final lap. She ran her last lap with a big finishing sprint, taking first in her heat and finishing two seconds under the six-minute barrier.
Next to race the 1500m were U15 athletes, Madelyn Moores and Avery McPhatter. Madelyn had set a very high bar for herself, hoping to knock 16 seconds off her previous time. In true Madelyn style, she went out there fighting the clock and managed to shave off 12 full seconds from her previous best, taking 6th place overall. Avery McPhatter set out to do some good training, and she posted consistent lap splits and finished with some energy left in the tank.
Casey Mothersell, a very eager young runner, was hoping to lower his previous best time by fifteen seconds. He set out at a blistering pace. Despite the fast start, he managed to settle in and hold steady. He crept up on his competitors and came nose to nose with Toronto West’s Edward Scratch in the last fifty meters. The two crossed the line with spectators questioning who had won. In fact, the announcer stated that Casey had placed second, but electronic timers had Casey with a ten-millisecond lead over his competitor. To add to this excitement, Casey surpassed his time goal, taking fifteen and a half seconds off his previous best.
After a bit of a break in the action, Ian Matthews arrived to race the 400m. Ian is newer to racing, but his enthusiasm, positivity and willingness to fight through pain are quite impressive. Coaches hoped for Ian to cross the line in 1:10, which would be quite a respectable first run in this event. Ian was determined to bring home a medal, and he made good on his word. He took off like a shot at the gun, needing to slow his pace a bit to hold on, but he led his heat and finished in 1:06.59. One competitor in the second heat was able to beat Ian’s time, but this left Ian in second place overall and he was able to proudly claim the silver medal.
After the lunch break, athletes warmed up to race the 800m. Iris Herman was the first to compete in this 4-lap race in the U13 category. She paced herself very well and was just shy of her personal best. The U15 girls Avery McPhatter and Madelyn Moores were next. They were in a heat of ten girls that stayed quite tight throughout the race. Madelyn earned herself a new personal best time, taking five seconds off her previous best and placing fifth. Avery posted solid splits and kept her eyes on competitor Molly Zehr-Holst, running with the newly formed Owen Sound track team.
To finish the day, Ian Matthews toed the line in a group of seven competitors. In eyeing up his competitors’ times, coaches felt that Ian could likely keep himself in fourth place if he fought hard. Ian learned from his morning racing experience and set off at a calculated and strong pace. He settled into fourth and finished six seconds ahead of the next closest competitor.
“All in all, this season opener was a great experience for our local athletes who continue training and racing through some very tough conditions. Personal bests are not typically abundant at the beginning of a season, but these five young Coyotes brought home six of them and two medals to boot. A job well done,” said Coyotes coaches.
To find out more about the team, please check out their website at: www.georgianbaycoyotes.com
