(Montreal, Canada---26 July 2019) Melissa Bishop-Nriagu running in the 800m semi-finals at 2019 Canadian Track and Field Championships at the Claude Robillard Sports Centre in Montreal. 2019 Copyright Sean Burges / Mundo Sport Images.

Bishop-Nriagu hits standard; Nedow sets new discus best

by InternationallinkinbioNationalUniversity

A big weekend on the track and in the field produced a number of marks to celebrate for the Lions, highlighted by Melissa Bishop-Nriagu hitting the Olympic standard in the 800 metres and Tommy Nedow adding nearly two metres to his discus best.

After a disappointing race in Oregon two weeks prior, Melissa Bishop-Nriagu stepped onto the track in Chula Vista, California Sunday aiming to do one thing that had eluded her since stepping away three years ago to give birth to daughter Corinne – break two minutes for 800 metres. Beneath the two minute barrier was also the Olympic standard of 1:59.50 – a necessary step on the path to returning to the Olympic final and running for a medal. Bishop-Nriagu smashed both barriers, stopping the clock in a time of one minute and 59.04 seconds on her way to victory.

Pacing Sunday night’s race was 2019 World 1500 metre finalist Nikki Hiltz, who carried the pack through 600 metres in a speedy 1:27. From there, Bishop-Nriagu told CBC Sports, “it was about focusing on finishing strong and getting to that line in under 1:59.50.” Despite bettering the standard, the Eganville native’s ticket to Tokyo hasn’t been printed yet. “We still have a (potential) National Championship coming up where I will need to qualify. The depth in our women’s 800m in Canada is as strong as ever and we can only send three spots. This is not a given, this has to be worked for still,” she told followers on Instagram.
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Competing in a final tune up meet ahead of the Southland Conference Championships, scheduled for May 14-16, Tommy Nedow unleashed some big throws to move him to the top of the conference rankings. The Brockville native had a big break through in his primary event, the discus, whirling the two kilogram disc out to 53.74 metres to place second. Nedow’s throw added nearly two metres to his previous best set in 2019. Nedow also chalked up a personal best in the hammer throw, adding four metres to his previous best to finish third with 54.87 metres. He rounded out the competition of a 16.26 metre heave to place third in the shot put.

At the University of Kansas, Lauren Gale continued her winning ways in the 400 metres, crossing in 53.84 seconds. The Colorado State University junior battled some unusually strong winds, registering peaks of 8.1 metres per second in the adjacent triple jump, to stay undefeated in the one lap race this outdoor season.  She will look to continue the streak at the Mountain West Championships May 14-16, where she will also be looking to pick up her fourth conference 400 metre title in as many tries.

In other competitions, Stephen Evans placed fifth over 800 metres at the Kansas City Qualifier in 1:50.11. Down in Louisiana, Farah Jacques took ninth in the 100 metres hurdles at the LSU Alumni Invite with a 13.90 second clocking. Out west, fellow hurdler Keira Christie-Galloway finished fourth at the Desert Heat Classic in Tucson, Arizona with a time of 13.75 seconds.

 

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Smith and Makinde receive Game Plan Scholarships

by linkinbioNational

Among the nine Team Canada athletes to be awarded Game Plan Scholarships to build their business skills were two familiar names to the Lions pride. Two time Olympians Oluseyi Smith and Oluwasegun Makinde will be returning to the classroom over the coming months as they further their education at the Smith School of Business at Queen’s University.

Smith, just one of 12 athletes to represent Canada at the Winter and Summer Olympics, will enroll in the Executive MBA Americas – a 17-month program leading to Master of Business Administration degrees from both Queen’s University and Cornell University. Smith qualified for his first Olympic Games in 2012, representing Canada in the 4×100 metre relay in London. After failing to qualify for the Games in Rio, Smith took his speed and power from the rubber tracks of athletics to the icy tracks of bobsleigh. As a member of Justin Kripps four-man crew, Smith helped push Canada to a sixth place finish at the 2018 Winter Games in Pyeongchang.

A professional engineer, Smith, received his bachelor and masters degrees in electrical engineering from Loughborough University in the United Kingdowm and had been working for AltaLink in Calgary for six years before returning home to Ottawa last spring to work as a distribution engineer for Hydro Ottawa. In addition to his professional activities, Smith also served on the Canadian Olympic Committee’s Board of Directors, serving as Chair of the COC’s Athlete Commission, and is currently a Young Leader with the International Olympic Committee.

Makinde, a long standing member of Canada’s 4×100 metre relay program was part of both the 2012 and 2016 Olympic teams. The 29 year old Makinde will be pursuing his Master of Management Innovation and Entrepreneurship at the Smith School of Business – a 12 month program designed for those who will start, grow, or drive new ventures whether in a start up or inside a corporation. Makinde, who graduated with a Bachelor of Commerce degree in Marketing from the University of Ottawa’s Telfer School of Management in 2014, has become an accomplished public speaker alongside his athletic pursuits including speaking at this year’s McMaster University TEDx Talk. In addition to his public speaking duties, Makinde currently hosts two podcasts and volunteers as a member of Athletics Canada’s Athlete Council and the Diversity & Equity Advisory Committee of AthletesCAN.

The Smith School of Business scholarship program is one component of the COC’s Game Plan, Canada’s total athlete wellness program, helping athletes plan for success beyond sport. This new cohort of successful applicants will join the network of over 130 elite Canadian athletes who have been awarded academic scholarships since the program began in 2016

 

 

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Nedow hits Olympic Standard; Gale sets new bests

by InternationallinkinbioNationalUniversity

Just under two years ago, shot putter Tim Nedow heaved a 16 pound iron ball beyond the Olympic Qualifying standard of 21.10 metres at a competition in California. Unfortunately for the DePaul University graduate, the massive throw came 11 days before the start of the qualification period for the Tokyo games. Nedow rectified the situation this past Saturday afternoon at a competition in Fleetwood, Pennsylvania where he once again surpassed the Olympic Standard with his winning throw of 21.11 metres. The effort all but secures a spot for the 2019 World finalist to compete in Japan this August.

Another athlete vying for a spot in Tokyo this summer is sprinter Lauren Gale. The Colorado State University junior has been setting lifetime bests all over the track this season, picking up another two this past Saturday. Competing at the Colorado University Invitational in Boulder, Gale set new bests in both the 100 and 200 metre events en-route to victory. Gale led a Colorado State sweep of the 100 metre medals with her winning time of 11.67 seconds besting her previous best set back in 2018 by over four tenths of a second. Similarly, Gale trimmed nearly four tenths off her outdoor best over 200 metres with a winning time of 23.61 seconds. Both marks come on the heel of Gale’s school record performance of 52.24 seconds last week over 400 metres Her recent marks now put the 21 year old at #5, #4, and #2 in Club history for the 100, 200, and 400 metres respectively.

Also moving up in the Club’s all-time rankings was decathlete Ryan Thomsen who won the Hillsdale Invitational in Michigan with a score of 6486 points – moving to seventh in Club history. With top marks in both the long jump and shot put, Thomsen finished among the top three in nine of the ten events. For his efforts, Thomsen was named the Great Midwest Athletic Conference Track athlete of the week and provisionally qualified for the NCAA Division II Championships.

Rounding out the weekend’s top performances was Tommy Nedow who captured gold in the discus and silver in the shot put at the Strawberry Relays in Louisiana. The Southeastern Louisiana University student’s best throws measured 50.33 metres in the discus and 16.20 metres in the shot put.

(Guelph, Canada---07 June 2019) Melissa Bishop-Nriagu competing in the 800m at the 2019 Speed River Inferno Track and Field Festival held at Alumni Stadium at the University of Guelph. This race was Bishop-Nriagu's first 800m after a two year break to have a baby. Copyright image 2019 Sean W Burges / Mundo Sport Images

Lions kick off outdoor season with record and personal bests

by linkinbioNationalUniversity

It’s not often we have athletes lacing up their shoes for outdoor competition in the second week of March, but these times are far from normal. Melissa Bishop-Nriagu and Tommy Nedow each put their opportunity to good use, walking away with personal best performances on the day.

For Bishop-Nriagu, Saturday night’s season debut at 1500 metres was the first competitive step to finding her way on to her third Olympic team, and it was a very good step. The Eganville native crossed the line in four minutes and 9.36 seconds to finish second at the Vic City Elite event behind Lucia Stafford’s 4:06.86. The time equaled Bishop-Nriagu’s own Club record set in 2019. The former world medalist, who temporarily moved to Victoria earlier this year to train with coach Trent Stellingwerf, indicated after the reace she had been bothered by an achy Achilles.

“But I feel good now. Things are going well,”  she told the Victoria Times-Columnist.

For thrower Tommy Nedow, his fourth place finish in the shot put at Friday’s South Alabama Invite in Mobile was second straight personal best effort for the Southeastern Louisiana junior. Nedow’s best mark of 16.93 metres was a single centimetre better than the distance he threw to capture the Southland Conference indoor title two weeks prior. The Brockville native showed strong form in the discus, taking second place with a heave of 51.02 metres.

Nedow’s older brother Tim opened up his 2021 season at the Athletics Ontario High Performance Meet at York University. The 2019 world finalist had a very consistent effort in the shot put, with all his throws landing within 15 centimetres of each other. Nedow’s winning mark of 20.12 metres came on his six and final throw.

 

Natacha Dupuis

Lest we forget

by linkinbioNational

Every year on November 11, Canadians pause in a moment of silence to honour and remember the men and women who have served, and continue to serve Canada during times of war, conflict and peace. We remember the more than 2,300,000 Canadians who have served throughout our nation’s history and the more than 118,000 who made the ultimate sacrifice.

Among the numerous men and women to serve our country is retired master corporal Natacha Dupuis, a runner in our masters program. Dupuis joined the reserves and enlisted with the Armoured Corp as a tanker at the age of 18. After completing basic training in Montreal and the Crewman course in Valcartier, Dupuis headed west where she joined the the British Columbia Regiment, completing an advanced reconnaissance course. Years later, she joined the Regular Force Leopard tank and Coyote Gunner/Driver training course.

Dupuis served overseas on three occassions, once in Bosnia as well as two tours in Afghanistan. In March 2009, during her second tour in Afghanistan, Dupuis was leading an armoured patrol in the Shah Wali Kot district, in the northern part of Kandahar province, when an improvised explosive device detonated beneath one of the six vehicles in her convoy. Two of her brothers in arms were killed in the blast and three others were seriously injured.

The painful experience weighed heavily on Dupuis during the remaining two months of her tour. Upon returning home, Dupuis described herself as being “in tatters, constantly reliving the incident, and [she] had nightmares, panic attaches, flashbacks, etc.” It was then she was diagnosed with post traumatic stress disorder. Pulling herself back up, she put into practice several tools she had accumulated, but the one she found helped the most was physical exercise.

Through physical exercise, Dupuis found her way to the sport of athletics where she was won the sprinting treble at the 2017 Invictus Games, taking home gold in the 100, 200, and 400 metre events. In addition Dupuis has also represented Canada at the World Masters Athletics Championships in 2018 where she helped the red and white to a silver in the 4×100 metres.

 

 

 

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Lions mourn the passing of Windsor coach Dennis Fairall

by linkinbioNational

Our sport has lost a giant, and we have lost a friend.

The Ottawa Lions are extremely saddened by the passing of famed University of Windsor coach Dennis Fairall. The Lancer legend had been battling progressive supranuclear palsy for years. He was 67 years old.

The “Big Dawg” as he was affectionately known as was an incredible coach and leader, and accomplished what we all hope for sport – leaving it in a better position than when he entered it. While the championships and accolades are numerous, and readily searchable, Fairall will be best remembered for the personal effect he had on the thousands of athletes and coaches he interacted with over his more than four decades in the sport. Numerous members of the Lions pride spent their formative year’s under Dennis’ guidance at the University of Windsor and benefited greatly from his tutelage – chief among them being two time Olympian Melissa Bishop-Nriagu who Fairall continued to coach personally up until last year.

University of Windsor Director of Athletics Mike Harvey put it best, “His coaching tree is wide and deep; and that impact will continue to be felt for years.” We understand the truth of that statement first hand with Executive Director Richard Johnston having learnt under Fairall’s wing during his ten years with the Lancers program.

Our hearts are with Fairall’s wife and two children as well as the entire Lancer family during this difficult time.

Leslie Estwick Coaching

Estwick named 1 of 12 mentors for Inaugural Black Female Coach Mentorship Program

by linkinbioNational

HIGH ACHIEVERS: Stay-Safe Edition

Respected Ottawa Lions Track and Field Club coach Leslie Estwick has been named one of 12 mentors for the inaugural Black Female Coach Mentorship Program for 2020-21. The Black Female Coach Mentorship Program is the next step in the Coaching Association of Canada’s Women in Coaching program, which also includes the Enhanced Female Mentorship program.

Coaches mentoring coaches exists because of funding support from Sport Canada and the federal government’s priority of gender equity in sport by 2035. The Black Female Coach Mentorship Program will focus on three areas:

  1. Provide Black female mentorship;
  2. Advance coach professionalism through mentors and mentees;
  3. Provide a sustainable model of mentorship to increase accessibility, support, leadership development for Black coaches.

The 12 mentors represent 4 provinces – Ontario (7), Quebec (2), Nova Scotia (2), British Columbia (1) and 8 sports – basketball, flag football, ice hockey, field hockey, track and field, volleyball, rugby, swimming.

The Black Canadian Coaches Association contacted Estwick, looking to expand its network of coaches beyond basketball. Estwick, a Chartered Professional Coach granted by the Coaching Association of Canada, was interested and agreed to be a mentor. “The mentorship opportunity is a great idea,” Estwick said. “It would have been really useful for me 30 years ago.”

Estwick has been a volunteer coach with the Ottawa Lions Track and Field Club for more than three decades, starting when she was a high jumper. “Coaching is still a male dominated activity. There are not a lot of paid coaching jobs for women and women of colour,” she added. “We need more coaches in all sports, all levels, more female coaches, more black coaches.”

Over the next year, Estwick and the other 11 Black Female Coach Mentorship Program coaches will assist coaches (mentees) with their individual needs in a variety of sports to empower, guide and assist them move forward.

“The coach may want to learn more skills, mental training, some sport specifics, coaching specifics or networking help,” said Estwick, adding it may be easier for a coach of colour to learn from another coach of colour.

“It’s good to have a coach to talk to for experience to climb the ladder, write a resume or develop a path to follow. There’s a confidence building aspect to it. Yes, you are capable of doing this,” Estwick said.

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This story was originally posted as a series of tweets by journalist Martin Cleary

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Bishop-Nriagu and Crew highlight Twilight #3

by linkinbioNational

When Melissa Bishop-Nriagu toed the line at Wednesday night’s Twilight Meet it marked the first time the two time Olympian had competed in the summer series in more than a decade. Her last appearance was July 18, 2007 when the then 18 year old Bishop-Nriagu won the women’s 800 metres in two minutes and 10.51 seconds, completing her final preparations before heading to BC the following week to capture Canadian gold at the U20 Championships.

Competing under entirely different circumstances Wednesday, Bishop-Nriagu was still the class of the field. Winning the women’s 400 metres in 56.77 seconds, the Twilight meet environment presented the Nike professional a unique opportunity. “I had a lot of fun,” declared the Canadian record holder at 800 metres following the competition. “It was kind of back to old times. You know the atmosphere obviously isn’t the same, but I think everyone is doing their best to kind of keep it as hype as they can.“

While returning to competition has meant adjustments for everyone in terms of sanitizing and social distancing, professionals are also adjusting to competing without stands full of fans. The last time Bishop-Nriagu toed the line in Ottawa was during the 2017 Canadian Championships, where the bleachers were overflowing with cheering spectators and stadium attendance topping 3000 people.

However, with COVID protocols limiting capacity at Terry Fox to a total of just 100 athletes, coaches, and volunteers, the environment forces you to refocus your approach to the situation. “A lot of the time the crowd can create an extra boost of adrenaline and we just don’t get that here, so you really have to find it from within to compete hard,” said Bishop-Nriagu. 

Shot putter, and fellow Nike professional, Brittany Crew echoed those feelings after she won her event Wednesday night. “I try to do a lot of mental prep before,” said the Canadian record holder of her approach. Crew’s winning throw of 17.50 metres, was more than a meter off her seasonal best, but still nearly six meters ahead of Beckwith Athletic Club’s Erin Sweeney in second.

“Usually we have an atmosphere and we got fans and we got competitors, but today, obviously, I’m kind of competing against myself,” said Crew, acknowledging there was more work to do in a Twilight Meet environment. “It’s definitely hard to get amped and pysched up for a tiny little meet, but I’m just glad we can compete.”

Both women also acknowledged the opportunity a Twilight meet provides to inspire the younger generation of athletes who you are competing alongside. “I think it’s nice for the young throwers to actually see me compete because I’m usually not around,” described Crew, who largely competes in Europe.

However, both athletes confessed they thought many of the younger were hesitant to approach them. “I think a lot of them are too shy,” said Bishop-Nriagu who regonized her competition demeanor may have kept some away. Nonetheless, she admitted, with a smile, she still managed to pose for eight socially distant selfies with some young fans.

The Ottawa Summer Twilight series will continue tomorrow, Saturday, August 14th, where for the first time in history the series will take place outside of its regular Wednesday night schedule For all those present, please make sure to complete your health questionnaire before arriving at the facility.

 

Terry Fox Aerial

National team members highlight Twilight #3 start list

by linkinbioNational

For shot putter Brittany Crew, a meet on August 12th would have likely taken place somewhere in Europe, falling in the twilight of a long competitive season that began way back in February. However, with the bulk of the competitive season scrapped as a result of COVID-19, the Canadian record holder finds herself in Ottawa tonight for Twilight #3, competing in just her second meet since that early season trip to New Zealand.

Crew is a leader among a small contingent of Team Canada athletes venturing to Terry Fox for tonight’s competition. The two time world championship finalist will be joined by two members of Canada’s men’s 4×400 metre relay team – Phillip Osei and Daniel Harper. Osei was a member of Canada’s silver medal winning mixed 4×400 metre team at last year’s World Relay Championships while Harper has donned the red and white at both the Pan Am Games and NACAC senior championships.

All three Team Canada athletes are scheduled to compete in their marquee events. Crew’s shot put competition is scheduled for 7:30pm while the Osei and Harper will duel it out over the one lap race around 8pm.

The full schedule of events for tonight’s Twilight is available at ottawalions.com/schedule and live results can be found at liveresults.ottawalions.com

Please remember to complete your health questionnaire before arriving at Terry Fox.

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Alexis nearly sets world masters record

by linkinbioNational

It’s not every day you come out to the track and almost see a World Record set. Well, for the small number of athletes and coaches in attendance at Wednesday night’s Summer Twilight #2 that’s exactly what they got.

For as long as Wendy Alexis has been around a track, she’s been one of the fastest women in the race. With enough medals to fill a closet and her fair share of records, there has been one that has eluded the retired elementary school teacher – a world record. For a brief moment Wednesday night, she thought she had it.

Running the 100 metres in a heat with competitors up to 52 years her junior, Alexis showed she’s still got what it takes, winning in 13.91 seconds. As the time was announced over the loud speaker, there was a veritable eruption of euphoria just beyond the finish line as Alexis reacted to what would have equaled the current world record in the W65 100 metres held by fellow Canadian Karla Del Grande. Unfortunately, for Alexis the wind gauge had registered a positive 3.0 metres per second to nullify any possible record (the acceptable limit is 2.0 m/s).

Wednesday night’s competition was the second Twilight Meet of our COVID shortened season, and the first open to the athletes from outside the Club. Exactly 100 athletes took part across 17 events, as they ventured to Terry Fox from as far away as Guelph to the west and Montreal to the east.

Those who peaked out at the long throws were treated to some impressive performances in both the javelin and hammer throw. Club Sisu’s Jared Skeath was victorious in the men’s hammer throw. The former USports champion hurled the 16 pound ball out to an impressive 60.07 metres – easily eclipsing the longest distance at any Twilight Meet in recent years. Skeath’s club mate Ashley Pryke had a similar performance in the javelin as she took victory based on her first throw of the competition. The University of Memphis graduate’s best throw of 51.97 metres, was well short of her seasonal best 57.38 set back in February, but was the closest anyone has come to Cheryl Coker’s 1990 meet record of 54.07 metres in some time.

Twilight Meet #3 will take place next Wednesday, August 12th at 6:30pm at the Terry Fox Athletic Facility. For more information, please visit ottawalions.com/schedule.