Strong Showing for T-Birds in XC Competitions
Thunderbirds Cross Country athletes took to the trails across the lower mainland this weekend in what has been an exciting return to competition for athletics.
Kicking things off on Saturday was the third and final instalment of the T-Birds Intra-Club series held on the historic national championship course at Jericho Beach Park. With distances from 1km to 4km and athletes from 8 to 18 competing, the event showcased incredible depth in the Thunderbird’s ranks. In total, 58 athletes toed the line in waves of 5/heat, creating an atmosphere of non-stop action on the course. On the success of the meet, Coach and meet director Graeme Fell remarked at “some amazingly close races. With tight races in the girls 2km, 3km, and 1km and also in the boy's 2km. This is the mark of a strong XC team. I just wish we had the opportunity to show the rest of the province how good a team we have.”
Especially exciting to Coach Graeme were the many performance progressions seen over the course of the 3-part Intra-Club series. In particular, Coach Graeme cited “much improved times compared to the previous runs by: Alexandra Campbell (4K), Cadelle, Ava, Taylor, Rachel and Jeevut in the 3k, Ben and Nicolas Y in the 3k, Joaquin in the 2km (90sec better!), Elsa and Laerke in the 2k, and Capri in the 1km.”
Following up the excitement on Saturday at Jericho, another contingent of ‘Birds were on hand to compete at Crescent Park in South Surrey, the second cross country instalment in the regional “Salish Sea Series”. In what was for many the first competition against regional peers, Thunderbirds athletes showed no signs of rust from the long hiatus of competition, with strong representation in 5 of the 6 heats of athletes competing on the 5km course. Leading the charge for the Thunderbirds were stand-out performances by Kai Martland and Sebastien Thompson, whose clockings of 17:36 and 18:50 were good for first place in their respective heats. Following Martland’s lead in heat 4, Yabi Davidoff came through in heat 5 with a clocking of 17:35, good enough to edge into 9th overall amongst 56 racers. In the women’s competition, Maya Baechler’s time of 18:20 proved insurmountable, as she took top spot amongst female competitors. Close on her heels was fellow T-Bird Chloe Symon, who’s 19:02 mark proved good for 3rd overall on the women’s side. Coach Cindy Crowther was pleased by the strong performances of her Thunderbirds crew. “It was an amazing day in South Surrey! Our athletes ran well reflecting all of their hard work at practice this Fall.” For full results from both meets check out the links below.