Since it’s beginnings 39 years ago, 48 Ottawa Lions members have represented Canada at the Pan American Under 20 Championships. As the 20th edition of the Championship is set to kick off Friday morning at the Estadio Nacional in San José, Costa Rica three more names will be added to the list.
Donning the red and white this weekend will be Lauren Gale, Helena Jovic and Leewinchel Jean. Gale, a member of last year’s World U20 team, is the veteran while Jovic and Jean are Team Canada rookies.
Gale will be contesting the 400 metres which gets underway with two semi-finals Friday afternoon at 1:00pm Eastern. The All-American from Colorado State University enters the competition as the fifth seed based on her time of 52.68 seconds from the Mountain West Outdoor Conference Championships. Should Gale advance, the final is scheduled for later that day at 7:25pm Eastern.
Both Jovic and Jean will wait till Saturday evening to see action as they both compete in the 400 metre hurdle semi-finals. The duo earned their place in Costa Rica based on excellent runs at last month’s OFSAA Championships where each set a new personal best en route to gold.
Jovic will run first at 8:10pm Eastern where her best time of 59.97 seconds has her seeded in eighth among the 13 member field. Coming off the second best run of her life at last weekend’s Ontario U20 Championships, Jovic will undoubtedly be gunning for a place in Sunday’s final – where anything can happen.
The men’s semi-final will directly follow the women and Jean will find himself in the most talented race of his young career. Entering with a best of 52.95 seconds from the OFSAA Championships, the future Windsor Lancer is seeded 12th in the 15 man field.
The Championships will conclude Sunday afternoon with the 4×400 metre relays where all three Lions figure to be in a position to run the baton around Estadio Nacional.
The Championship schedule and results can be found here.
