On the weekend of July 24 to 26, Athletics Ontario hosted its U14, U16, and U18 Provincial Track and Field Championships at the Niagara Olympic Track in St. Catharines. The event drew athletes from all over Ontario, including Ottawa, Petawawa, the GTA, and St. Thomas, while also attracting competitors from Quebec and the United States. Three clubs from Grey and Bruce counties were there to take part in the prestigious event, including the Saugeen Track and Field Club, the Owen Sound Track Team, and our hometown Georgian Bay Coyotes. There were 2,333 individual entries in this three-day competition.
The Georgian Bay Coyotes had three young runners, all in the U14 age category, competing at the meet.
Eve Tudor, who has been racing for just over six months, was eager to toe the line for the 300m race on Friday afternoon. She had previously run the distance at the Legion meet in June and was hungry to lower the time she set there. She ran beautifully, winning her heat by over two seconds while also lowering her personal best by two seconds. It was a great start to the meet.
As the day turned into evening and the temperatures began to cool, the distance races got underway. Iris Herman and Avery McPhatter both warmed up for the five-lap, 2000m race and were in good spirits as they joined the single heat of thirteen girls on the track. They both took off hard before settling into a comfortable rhythm after the opening half-lap, staying quite close to one another through the first lap. Iris then pulled ahead, keeping her rival, Charlie Sherwin, in her sights, while Avery focused on steady pacing and her target time. Iris didn’t quite catch Etobicoke’s Charlie Sherwin, but she crossed the line a full thirty-seven seconds faster than ever before. Avery had never raced this longer distance before, yet her consistent laps and strong finish saw her cross the line a full 25 seconds faster than her estimated seed time. It was a night full of success.
On Saturday, July 25, Eve Tudor and Avery McPhatter returned to the track for the 1200m. Both girls were seeded in the first of three heats and knew they needed to take command early if they hoped to better the times they had set in June. To everyone’s surprise, a young runner from Laurel Creek with no seed time went out and led the pack by a full thirty seconds. Avery chased hard, keeping pace with a London Western runner, and took third in the heat while knocking an impressive eleven seconds off her previous best. Eve Tudor also attacked the race with confidence. Her pace slowed slightly through the middle, but she kept nipping at the heels of Thorold Elite’s Leah Duarte and finished fifth in the heat while lowering her personal best by half a second.
Sunday morning was warm and humid—perfect racing conditions for a fast 800m. All three U14 Coyote girls enjoyed the camaraderie of a team warm-up while rocking matching bedazzled orange sunglasses.
Avery McPhatter and Eve Tudor raced in the first of four heats and once again found themselves among closely matched competitors. They took off hard from the line and seemed to trade the lead back and forth until the final hundred meters, when Thorold Elite’s Leah Duarte managed to out-sprint them to the finish. Avery and Eve crossed the line within one-tenth of a second of each other, with Avery taking second and Eve third in the heat. It was an exciting finish that saw Avery set another personal best, while Eve finished just one second shy of hers.
Iris Herman was the final Coyote to race. She toed the line with determination as she joined the second heat of girls. She had been told that if she could better Charlie Sherwin’s time in this event, there would be cake pops waiting as a reward, and she took the challenge very seriously. She ran a perfectly paced race, starting hard, holding strong through the middle 400m, and then kicking nicely over the final stretch. She finished fifth in her heat, just behind Saugeen’s Eden Jackson, while taking two and a half seconds off her personal best and finishing a full three seconds ahead of Charlie Sherwin’s time.
The experience at the Athletics Ontario Provincial Championships was second to none, and the young Coyote runners laughed, learned, and enjoyed competing against some of the best athletes in the province. Most of the team is now on a well-deserved break, though they will be cheering on their teammates as they compete at the Ontario Summer Games this coming weekend.
To find out more about the team, please visit www.georgianbaycoyotes.com.
