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With teams from as far away as Calgary and Saskatoon in town, the Ottawa Lions played host to their third meet of this indoor season, the uOttawa WinterNational Invitational, on Saturday where seven club members etched their names into the Dome record books.
 
The first record to fall by the way side was the midget 300m mark as Sarah Jackson crossed the finish line in 41.24 seconds. The new standard removed more than a second from the old mark of 42.33, set just two months by Erinn Stenman-Fahey. Jackson, a grade nine student at St. Mark’s High School in Manotick, has been having a breakout season under the tutelage of coaches Sasha Cesaratto and Richard Deneault, where she has already dropped more than a second and a half from her best time. Jackson also placed fifth in the youth 60m final with a near best time of 8.23 seconds.
 
In the field, pole vaulter Zachary Kerr continued his assault on the Dome records books as he raised the youth boys standard for the third time this season with a 4.15m clearance. Kerr’s previous record was a 4.06m vault from January’s Super Saturday Series meet. Despite the record, the two time OFSAA champion was short of his life time best of 4.40m set last weekend in Montreal. Kerr also holds the midget boys record.
 
The final record to fall on the day came at the hands of a determined quartet of junior women who entered the competition intent on eclipsing the 4x200m record of 1:42.91 set by the University of Ottawa in 2009. The team of Charifa Labarang, Victoria McIntyre, Clara Phillips and Shelani Fernando certainly had the pedigree with each possessing bests of 25.10 seconds or less, and didn’t disappoint with Shelani Fernando stopping the clock at 1:40.28. The foursome, coached by Andrew Pagé, were rarely challenged as Labarang quickly made up the stagger on the University of Saskatchewan on the first leg and never looked back.
 
Two other notable performances on the day came from the 1000m as both Emma Galbraith and Mohammed Souleiman put forth personal best efforts. Galbraith, who won the women’s race in 2:46.71, also set a new University of Ottawa record. Meanwhile, Souleiman also etched his name in the Gee-Gee record book with his 2:27.03 clocking to finish fifth in the men’s section.
 
The Lions return to action next on Saturday in Montreal as a small team will compete in the McGill Last Chance Open.
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xYGkoStPtiQ&w=560&h=315]

Last night at the Spire Institute in Ohio, Yves Sikubwabo ran 1000m faster than any other Ottawa Lion had done before, crossing the line in 2:22.68 to take the victory over his Guelph Gryphon teammate, Anthony Romaniw by just 0.04 seconds. The record had previously been held by Michael Woods who set the previous standard of 2:23.64 at an Ottawa Twilight Meet in 2006.
For Sikubwabo, who held a previous best of 2:27.90, last night was his first attempt at 1000m this year after focussing his efforts primarily on the 1500m and 3000m.  Yves’ time currently puts him number one in Canadian Interuniversity Sport.
Yves is scheduled to be back on the track today, competing over 3000m at 12:20pm.

OTTAWA – Athletics Canada, in conjunction with the Ottawa Lions Track and Field Club, will play host for a second consecutive year to the 2013 Panamerican Combined Events Cup.  The2013 Pan Am Combined Events Cup will be held at Terry Fox Athletic Facility in Ottawa, Ont., on June 1 and 2.
“We are happy to play a role in the development of combined events in the western hemisphere”, says Andy McInnes, Director of Programs and Head Coach with the Ottawa Lions.  “We see the event as a unique opportunity to stimulate performances domestically.”
Victor Lopez, the Association of Panamerican Athletics (APA) President adds “On behalf of the Panamerican Athletics Family we are very grateful to the Ottawa Lions and to Athletics Canada for eagerly hosting the Panamerican Combined Events Cup for the second year in a row.”  Lopez adds, “The APA’s goal is to organize events where the whole hemisphere is able to come together with the objective of developing track and field to the maximum, and to make sure that we maintain the supremacy as the number one continental area in the sport of athletics in the world.”
At last year’s Pan Am Combined Events Cup Canada played host to ten nations and 27 athletes.  The event has served as a proving ground for a number of future Olympians and World Championship team members including Canadian decathletes Jamie Adjetey-Nelson, Massimo Bertocchi and Damian Warner.   
Canadian Best Finishers
Decathlon                                                                       Heptathlon
Year       Place     Name                                                 Place     Name
2012      4             Mark Chenery                                  2             Jennifer Cotten
2011      2             Damian Warner                             6             Jennifer Cotten
2009      12           Tyler Koskenoja                               9             Jennifer Cotten
2008      5             Jamie Adjetey-Nelson                    10           Jennifer Cotten
2007      7             Craig Slaunwhite                             
2006      4             Massimo Bertocchi                          5             Susan Coltman
2005      DNF                                                                   DNF
-AC-
Emily Hooper
Coordinator, Public Relations and Corporate Services
Athletics Canada
(613) 260-5580 x.3332

With her 4th place finish at the New Balance Collegiate Invitational 1000m, Emma Galbraith has done more than just break the University of Ottawa record with her time of 2:46.89 as reported earlier. Upon further review, Emma has dipped under Elise Braithwaite’s Canadian Junior indoor record of 2:47.16, a mark which had  stood for nearly 28 years.
Emma’s time, which is pending ratification by Athletics Canada, the governing body for track and field in Canada, would be the only Canadian Junior Indoor Record held by an Ottawa Lion. However, she would join four members who currently hold Canadian Outdoor Junior Records – Oluseyi Smith and Todd Pyper (4x100m), Danelle Woods (2000m Steeplechase) and Mike Woods (1500m and Mile).
 

It was another successful day on the track at the Armory in New York City highlighted by University of Ottawa records by distance runners Emma Galbraith and Mohammed Souleiman.
Galbraith, coming off a new Gee Gee record in the 1000m the night before appeared thirsty for another record as the gun went off in the Championship Mile. Running even paced laps of 35 seconds for the first 800m, Galbraith started to slow over the next 600m before closing in 35 for a final 4:49.94. Emma’s time took a whopping 15 seconds off Julia Malleck’s old standard of 5:05.44, set in 2010. The time also qualifies Galbraith to run the 1500m at March’s CIS championships in Edmonton.
The other record came from Soulieman, who, in his first year running for the Gee-Gee’s, completed four laps of the Armory in 1:55.12 to finish 12th in the college section of the 800m. The previous record was held by teammate Remy Binns who’s standard of 1:55.54 was set last year. This was Soulieman’s third Gee Gee record of the season after already taking down the 1000m and mile marks.
Following in the distance runner footsteps, the women’s 4x200m and men’s 4x400m each stepped it up a notch putting in the second best performances in school history.
The quartet of Oluwasegun Makinde, Toluwalope Makinde, Devin Biocchi and Michael Robertson demonstrated the same form that won them a CIS championship last year as they captured the college section crown in 3:15.36, just 0.04 seconds off the group’s school record. The team trailed the Tar Heels of North Carolina heading into the final lap, but Michael Robertson’s 48.4 second anchor leg pulled the team to a two second victory.
Not to be outdone by the men, the women’s 4x200m relay team finished fifth in the championship section withe a time of 1:42.46 – a mere tenth of a second off the school record. The women’s time was just a second off the CIS auto qualification standard and now places them sixth in the national rankings.
The team will return to action next Saturday at the uOttawa WinterNational Invitational at the Dome @ Louis-Riel.

When Isabelle Kanz, Julia Britton and Liz O’Reilly kicked off the first day of the New Balance Collegiate Invitational in New York City with three personal bests in the 3000m you had a feeling there may be something special in the air. Kanz and O’Reilly each dropped five seconds from their previous bests, running 10:21.89 and 10:51.81 respectively while Julie Britton clipped a little over a second from her previous best with a 10:45.10 clocking.
However, the highlights of the day were performances by Emma Galbraith and Michael Robertson. Galbraith set a new University of Ottawa record in the 1000m with a time of 2:46.89 en route to finishing fourth in the Championship section. The time eclipsed Jen Perrault’s old record of 2:48.11 set last year and moves the Franco-Ouest grad to number four on the club’s all-time performance list.
Michael Robertson’s record setting performance came in the 500m as he improved upon both his club and University of Ottawa record by a tenth of a second with a 63.18 second clocking. Mike’s time placed him second in his heat and fourth overall in the Championship section.
More PB’s came in the hurdles, as Gabriel Tesfaye kicked things off with an 8.30 clocking in the college section prelims that also secured him a spot at this year’s CIS championships in Edmonton. Unfortunately, Tesfaye incurred a slight injury and was unable to run in the finals. However, teammate Hubert Chevrette-Belisle picked up the slack in the final, breaking the tape in a new PB 8.33 seconds.
In the women’s hurdle final, Devyani Biswal recorded her third PB of the season crossing the line in 8.67 seconds. With her run, Biswal has now taken six tenths of a seconds off her time this year and has secured her first CIS berth.
One of the other top performances on the day came from soccer player turned sprinter, Sarah De Carufel who sped to a seasonal best 7.72 seconds in the 60m. De Carufel was part of a four way tie for the 8th and final qualifying place for the college final, but ended up on the outside looking in when she lost the tie breaker by 0.001 seconds. She would continue her fast ways by running to a personal best 25.95 seconds over 200m later in the day.
The meet will recommence Saturday morning as Remy Binns takes to the track in the College Mile at 10:36am.

As Ottawa’s amateur sport community gathered last night on the campus of Algonquin College to celebrate the best of 2012 there was one group’s name that kept popping up – Ottawa Lions.  The Lions were recognized on eight separate occasions whether it be for individual or team success as well as their contribution to sport in the city.
Three Lions members claimed individual awards on the evening, led by multiple Paralympic medalist Jason Dunkerley, who with guide Josh Karanja, took home the award for top parasport athlete in Ottawa. Dunkerley and Karanja had a spectacular 2012 season culminating in two medals at September’s Paralympic Games in London. The duo first captured bronze in the 1500m before coming back days later to claim silver and a Canadian record in the 5000m. Upon receiving their award, they were honoured with the longest round of applause of the evening, in recognition of not only their athletic accomplishments but also Jason’s recent commitment to donate one of his kidneys to his wife Colleen who has had progressive kidney disease since 2008, which has compromised both of her kidneys.
Taking home the award for top track and field athlete was the pride of Eganville, Melissa Bishop, who had a breakout season in 2012 that not only included breaking the club’s 800m record four times, but also becoming only the third Canadian woman ever to break the two minute barrier for 800m and securing herself a sport on her first Olympic team. The other individual award went to Yves Sikubwabo, who was recognized for his efforts in cross country running. Yves, who is currently attending the University of Guelph, had a great rookie campaign last fall as he helped his team capture the Ontario University Athletics (OUA) championship by finishing second overall. For his efforts, Sikubwabo was also named the OUA XC Rookie of the Year. Two weeks later at the Canadian Interuniversity Championships (CIS), Yves crossed the line in seventh to earn his first First Team All-Canadian distinction as well as helping  Guelph capture its seventh straight team title.
The final individual accolade went to coach Glenroy Gilbert who was recognized as the top Ottawa sportsman of the 1990’s. Prior to his success as a coach, Gilbert was a mainstay on the famous Canadian men’s relay teams of the 90’s that won back to back world championships and Olympic gold in 1996. The Laurentian High School graduate also competed in the 1992 Olympic Games in the 10m and the 1994 Winter Olympic Games in bobsleigh. Gilbert had previously been awarded the Ottawa Athlete of the Year in 1996.
In addition to the individual awards, the Ottawa Sport Awards also recognizes those teams that have won provincial or national championships. Among the Lions athletes honoured were the quartet of Oluwasegun Makinde, Toluwalope Makinde, Devin Biocchi and Michael Robertson who captured CIS gold last season while representing the University of Ottawa. The four speedsters not only set a school record en route to winning the 4x400m relay title, but also set a new national standard in the 4x200m event, winning in a time of 1:25.65. The junior men’s cross country team of Mickey Day, Alex Behre, Alex Wilkie, and Nicholas Favero were also honoured for capturing the provincial championship last November. It was the second straight provincial title for the junior men’s team.
Lastly, the Ottawa Lions were awarded a special recognition award for the four provincial and and one national championships the club captured in 2012. They included the Canadian junior team title, as well as overall Athletics Ontario crown. In addition, the two national relay champion teams, youth girls and midget boys 4x100m, and seven provincial were also recognized.

As a high-performance and highly accomplished paralympic athlete, Jason Dunkerley is obsessed with all the elements that allow him to run fast times and produce tape-breaking wins.
But almost six months before the International Paralympic Committee world athletics championships in Lyon, France, Ottawa’s most successful distance runner with a visual disability is about to take a courageous step outside of the box.
He wants to make the most important person in his life experience her own thrill of victory.
To continue reading the full story by Martin Cleary, click here.

It may have been cold outside, but the performances this weekend, inside the Tomlinson Fieldhouse on the campus of McGill University, were on fire. The McGill Team Challenge, which kicked off Friday night, has come to be known as the top indoor competition in Canada as it attracts university participants from across Ontario, Quebec and the Maritimes as well as a number of high level club competitors. In total, Ottawa athletes brought home a total of fifteen medals, six gold, six silver and 3 bronze. In addition to their gold medals, both Melissa Bishop and the University of Ottawa men’s 4x400m relay team set meet records.
For Bishop, Saturday’s 600m contest was her first race since August and she looked in control from the get go despite being followed closely to the finish by club mate Emma Galbraith. Melissa’s winning time of 1:30.71 was her fastest debut performance ever and bettered fellow Lion Jen Perreault’s standard of 1:30.99 set last year. Galbraith would cross the line in 1:31.78, recording a new PB to move up to eighth in the all-time club rankings and take over the top ranking in Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS).  Emma was also victorious in the Friday night’s 1000m event with another personal best run and CIS leading time of 2:50.22. The rookie from Franco-Ouest is also currently ranked third in the 1500m.
In the 4x400m relay, the quartet of Toluwalope Makinde, Gabriel Tesfaye, Devin Biocchi and Michael Robertson, representing the University of Ottawa, would only relinquish the lead for 60m on the second leg as they were virtually unchallenged on their way to claiming  gold in a CIS leading 3:17.08. The time was also a slight improvement on the meet record of 3:17.77 set by nearly same the quartet last year. The night before, Makinde, Biocchi and Robertson teamed up with Gordon Cave to capture gold in the 4x200m relay, crossing the line in 1:27.28. The team, which broke the CIS record last March, continues to top this year’s rankings.
In the men’s 60m hurdles, national silver medallist Sekou Kaba was just hoping to get through the race in one piece after battling a patella injury for the past six weeks. However, Kaba, ever one to rise to the occasion, did a little more than that in sprinting across the line of the prelims in 7.94 seconds – his third fastest performance ever. While slowing slightly in the final, Kaba’s run of 7.95 seconds easily outclassed his competitors on his way to victory. Kaba’s teammate Oluwasegun Makinde was disqualified in the hurdles final for deliberately knocking down a hurdle; however, his prelims performance of 8.14 seconds marked his fourth PB in the event this season and currently has him ranked third in the CIS behind Canadian champion Matthew Brisson of Western University.
In one of the more anticipated races of the weekend, the men’s 300m did not fail to disappoint. The trio of Michael Robertson, Oluwasegun Makinde and Gordon Frenke were head and shoulders above their competition in the first heat. The three sprinters would come off the final corner bunched together, but as the they closed in on the finish Robertson and Frenke would pull ahead slightly, battling step for step to the line. When the times flashed on the board, Robertson was declared the winner by the tiniest of margins as he out leaned Frenke 33.61 to 33.62 seconds. However, following the race Frenke would be declared the victor as Robertson would be disqualified for stepping on the inside of his lane. Makinde crossed the line in 34.21 seconds to secure himself an automatic berth to the CIS championships in Edmonton.
The busiest individuals on Saturday were the pentathletes,  who were the first ones at the track and last ones to leave as they battled through five events on the day. Two time Canadian bronze medallist in the decathlon, Patrick Arbour put together a lifetime best performance over the five events to produce a score of 3710 points, 108 higher than his previous personal best. Highlighting Arbour’s day was the 60m hurdles, where he removed a tenth of a second from his previous best, running 8.38 seconds. He also tied his PB in the high jump with a 1.90m clearance and produced his second best long jump performance ever with a leap of 6.74m. Meanwhile, Arbour’s training partner, Hubert Chevrette-Belisle produced a CIS automatic qualifying performance in his combined events debut. The former 400m hurdler produced personal best efforts of 6.46m in the long jump, 1.81m in the high jump and 2:39.95 in the 1000m which pushed him to a score of 3572 points, which currently ranks him third in the CIS.
In the women’s pentathlon, Michele Krech needed to produce a lifetime best to claim third place with 3678 points. The nearly 100 point improvement on her previous best was fuelled by her second best high jump performance ever, 1.65m, and a personal best 800m, 2:16.32, to close out the day. Teammate Karla Shepard finished in 6th with 3528 points, including a 1.71m clearance in the high jump – good enough for sixth all-time.
A select group of University of Ottawa athletes will return to action at The Armory in New York City on Feb 2nd, while a contingent of Ottawa Lions will return to Montreal for the Corsaire Chaperal meet at Centre Claude Robillard.

Down the back stretch they come! If you’ve ever been to the McGill Team Challenge, Canada’s largest university meet, you’ve certainly heard the phrase. As the Ottawa Lions and University of Ottawa Gee-Gees head to Montreal to take on some of the best athletes in the country, that phrase will not be the only piece of familiarity this weekend. Among those competing this weekend will be a number of current Lions representing their respective universities or currently training outside of Ottawa. Chief among them is 2012 Olympian, Melissa Bishop who will make her season’s debut tomorrow afternoon, toeing the line in the 600m against fellow Lion, Emma Galbraith and Olympic teammate Sarah Wells of Toronto. Bishop, who had a breakout season in 2012, becoming just the third women in Canadian history to break the 2:00 barrier for 800m, will undoubtedly be using this meet as barometer for how training has been progressing as she prepares for this summer’s world championships in Moscow.
 
Another athlete to keep an eye out for will be the energetic Yves Sikubwabo as he lines up for the University of Guelph in a deep 3000m field tonight. The 2012 OUA XC rookie of the year opened up his season two weeks ago at the Can-Am Classic in Windsor with a 8:35.83 clocking, good enough for third. With a lifetime best of 8:18.46, Yves will certainly looking to improve on his 15th place ranking in Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS).  Joining him in tonight’s race will be fellow Lion, Scott Donald, who will be representing St. Francis Xavier University. Sikubwabo will also compete in the 1500m on Saturday.
 
In what may be one of the most hotly contested events of the weekend, with seven runners ranked at 8.20 seconds or faster, the men’s 60m hurdles will feature 2012 CIS Champion, Sekou Kaba and Olympian, Oluwasegun Makinde. Kaba, who holds a personal best of 7.92 seconds, is making his season debut after recovering from a recent knee injury. Makinde on the other hand has already four hurdle races under his belt this year and despite a two year layoff from the event has lowered his personal best on three of those occasions. More known for his prowess over 200m, the former Colonel By standout is currently ranked 2nd in the CIS with a best of 8.15 seconds.
 
Makinde will look to show off some more of his speed as he takes to line in the 300m tomorrow afternoon. He will be in tough against teammates Michael Robertson and Gord Frenke as the three fight to cross the finish line first. Robertson, known for his prowess over 400m holds a lifetime best in the event of 33.20, while Frenke, a finalist over 400m at last year’s Olympic Trials, set a new personal standard of 33.78 seconds just two weeks ago in Ottawa.
 
If you can’t make it to Montreal this weekend, you can follow along online with live streaming coverage at  http://mcgilltrack.com/live and live results available here. 
 
As always, please stay tuned to @OttawaLionsTFC for more information as it happens this weekend.