(Ottawa, Canada --- 08 June 2022) Quinn Coughlin competing at Ottawa Summer Twilight Meet #3 Photograph Copyright 2022 Miles Rowat / Mundo Sport Images Please tag @mundosportimages if posting on social media

Coughlin leads string of record performances at Ravens High School Relays

by High Schoollinkinbio

With the Carleton Ravens High School Relays running last Thursday, it officially marked the start of the outdoor season in Ottawa. The competition, one of three run by the Lions in the lead up to the highly anticipated high school season, was a huge success with over 500 entries.

With a number of Lions in action, seven in particular stood out among the field as they combined to set a total of 11 meet records between them. Opeongo student Quinn Coughlin was responsible for more than a quarter of those results as she set new marks in the junior varsity 400 and 800 metres as well as the 300 metre hurdles. Despite it being Coughlin’s first attempt at the intermediate hurdles, her time of 46.93 was 0.4 seconds faster than the previous mark. 

It was the 800 metre records which took the hardest hits Thursday as the junior varsity and varsity marks fell on both the boy’s and girl’s side. Koree Yach’s time of 2:28.58 eclipsed Grace Munro’s one year old mark in the varsity girl’s event. The Arnprior runner also set a new record in the varsity girls 400 metres. 

On the men’s side, OFSAA cross country champion Saul Taler erased more than 11 seconds from the junior varsity boy’s standard with his time of 2 minutes and 7.50 seconds. Canterbury’s Nicolas Belen put on a commanding performance in the varsity event as he broke the two minute barrier, stopping the clock at 1:58.45 for a new personal best and a more than 17 second improvement on the previous meet record. 

The pair of 800 metre boy’s record holders squared off in the open 3000 metres where it was the elder Belan who held on to top spot and took the record in the event with a time of 9:08.22. Taler also dipped under the previous mark with a time of 9:18.20.

Out in the field, defending novice boys OFSAA Champion in the high jump Kai Gibson picked up where he left off last high school season. The grade 10 Longfields Davidson student took top spot in both the junior varsity high jump and long jump with record performances. Gibson cleared 1.75 metres in the high jump and sailed out to 5.96 metres in the long jump.

Rounding out the list of record breakers from Thursday’s event was Jay Yetman. The grade 12 Glebe student was the class of the field in the varsity boys long jump as he broke the sand out at 6.47 metres to claim top spot. Yetman’s leap was nearly a foot further than the previous mark set in 2019.

Full results from Thursday’s competition can be found on our website at https://ottawalions.com/results/2023-results/2023-ravens-high-school-relays/

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Lions end March Break with personal bests in Myrtle Beach

by High Schoollinkinbio

With another March Break having drawn to a close, a number of Lions athletes have returned home from the sun and warmth of Myrtle Beach, South Carolina with more than some new tan lines. More than 30 athletes and coaches from the Club ventured south for a week of training culminating in the annual Shamrock Invitational to kick off the outdoor season. Over the two day competition Lions athletes recorded a total of 20 new personal bests.

Among those to set a new personal best was Nicolas Belan. The Canterbury High School student broke the two minute barrier for 800 metres for the first time while also beating a full field of collegiate runners to win in 1 minute and 59.85 seconds. Belan’s previous best was a 2:07 clocking last summer. Matias del Rio Reategui was seventh in 2:05.40.

For the second year in a row, Louise Stonham topped the women’s 3000 metre steeplechase field – finishing in 11 minutes and 23.09 seconds. While short of her personal best, Stonham dominated the field with a 27 second gap between her and the second place runner. 

Lauren Alexander narrowly missed the top spot in the women’s 800 metres, finishing second to James Madison’s Sinead Sargeant. Alexander did manage to record her fastest opener ever, speeding her way to a time of 2 minutes and 20.76 seconds. 

Friday’s 400 metre races were a battle against the clock as well as the wind. While gusts hovered around 20 miles per hour for most of the day, they were not enough to keep Zachary Jeggo off the podium. The grade 10 student at École secondaire Louis-Riel sprinted his way to a new personal best of 51.92 seconds as he took third spot in the open section. Club mate Zach Theodore also posted a lifetime best, running 53.32 for seventh. 

Picking up the final medal of the weekend for the Lions was Madeleine Seaby. The grade 12 student from Carleton Place posted a time of 10 minutes and 25.74 seconds for 3000 metres as she finished in the bronze medal position. 

For full results from Myrtle Beach, please visit

https://www.tfrrs.org/results/75548/Alan_Connie_Shamrock_Invitational

For updated Club rankings, please visit

https://milesrowat.shinyapps.io/ottl_rankings/

Louise Stonham Myrtle Beach

Lions start season on right foot in Myrtle Beach

by High SchoolInternationallinkinbio

After a week of putting in work under the bright South Carolina sun, the small contingent of Lions high school athletes attending training camp in Myrtle Beach had the opportunity to put a marker out and see where they were in their training. The results were promising with the Lions posting eight top ten finishes, including a victory by Louise Stonham in the 3000m steeplechase.

Stonham laid on the gas from the gun and ran right to the front of the pack. By the end of the fourth lap, the Arnprior District High School student had opened the gap on the field to two seconds. As Stonham hit the bell, her lead had grown to nearly eight seconds and she would close in her second fastest lap of the day to stop the clock in 11 minutes and 50.87 seconds.

Racing against a field of university students, Stonham appeared unfazed in her debut at the longer steeplechase distance. The 2021 Ontario U18 2000 metre steeplechase champion’s winning time now moves her to eighth in Club history for the event.

A second medal performance came from Maddie Seaby who took the silver over 3000 metres in a time of 10 minutes and 7.95 seconds. Running second the whole race, the grade 12 student found herself six seconds back of Colgate University senior Sophia Manners with two laps to go. However, the Carleton Place District High School student kicked her way home, closing in 2:38.05 to narrow the gap to just three seconds. Seaby’s time is the 12th fastest in Club history at the U18 level.

Falling just short of the podium were Olivia Baggley and Cora McQuinn who each placed fourth in their respective events. Baggley set a new lifetime best at 5,000 metres with an 18:27.74 clocking while McQuinn dropped more than half a second off her 400 metre best with her 57.91 performance.

Other individual top ten performances came from Amelia Van Brabant and Audrey Goddard. In the mile, Van Brabant placed fifth with a 5:10.43 performance while Goddard ran 15.30 for the 100 metre hurdles to place tenth.

Both women featured on relay teams which also placed well. Goddard ran lead off on the 4×200 metre relay with Tatiana Pender, Allison Dewar, and Cora McQuinn as the quartet placed seventh in 1:47.74. Van Brabant ran anchor on the 4×800 metre squad with Maddie Seaby, Ella Lalonde, and Louise Stonham as the ladies posted a time of 10:03.29 to finish sixth.

Full results from the meet are available on our website at https://ottawalions.com/results/2022-results

Graduation Clip Art

Congratulations to the high school class of 2021

by High Schoollinkinbio

Entering the summer months of 2020, we made note of and congratulated members of the Ottawa Lions who were graduating high school and taking the next step in academia. We hoped that would be a one-time scenario and we could see the graduating high school cohort of 2021 get a more traditional send off. Another year has gone by and we faced constant changes that effecting nearly every aspect of our day to day lives. Schools, workplaces, and training arrangements saw openings and closures throughout the winter and spring, once again disrupting the exciting times that usually take place in the final year of high school.

The graduating year of high school and lead up towards the next stage of academia is an exciting time where many young adults develop their own individual habits and qualities that will carry them forward in University, career goals, and personal endeavours. With the official wrap up of the 2020-21 school year a week ago the Ottawa Lions Track and Field Club would like to congratulate all our graduating high school athletes as they prepare to begin their post-secondary education or venture out to begin working.

We have seen a great number of these athletes grow up from our club’s youth, foundation, and aspire programs and even some late additions who have developed a love for track and field in a very short span of time. With the summer competitive season picking up, we look forward to seeing what these athletes have in store.

Congratulations to the class of 2021!

AthleteSchool
Bianca BorgellaUniversity of Ottawa
Vienna CourteauUniversity of Ottawa
Anna Sierra Heffernan-WilkerUniversity of Ottawa
Dillon LandonUniversity of Ottawa
Maya LawsonUniversity of Ottawa
Liam LemeryUniversity of Ottawa
Katie ManorUniversity of Ottawa
Jalena MarelicUniversity of Ottawa
Marissa McCutcheonUniversity of Ottawa
David MoulongouUniversity of Ottawa
Elana TymanUniversity of Ottawa
Caitlin McMannCarleton University
Amy ThompsonCarleton University
Phoenix BoumaUniversity of Calgary
Samantha WisebergDalhousie University
Amelia WojtykDalhousie University
Audrey GilmourMcGill University
Zoe GardinerMcGill University
Sam RobinsonSt.FX University
Owen PensomSt.FX University
Makyla CarrUniversity of British Columbia
Sebastian CinoUniversity of British Columbia
Keaton McGrathUniversity of British Columbia
Cameron PorterUniversity of British Columbia - Okanagan
Keito NewmanSoka University
Ivy BialowasUniversity of New Brunswick
Xavier CarteyUniversity of New Brunswick
Tyler SnelsonUniversity of Windsor
Andrew TaylorUniversity of Windsor

Graduation Clip Art

Congratulations Ottawa Lions High School Graduates

by High Schoollinkinbio

The past four months have altered nearly every portion of our day to day lives. Schools were closed, office space moved to the kitchen table, competitions were cancelled and training moved into homes. Our new reality still remains fluid and we are all learning how to adjust to our new environment.

The final year of high school and lead up towards the next stage of academia is period in life where many young adults establish and mold their future. As many adults can attest it can also be one of the most enjoyable periods of your teens. Wrapping up secondary school with childhood friends, putting everything on the line to make OFSAA (for some that even includes putting off Prom), making mom & dad proud walking across the stage to receive your diploma and the excitement leading up to starting at a new school and a world of new experiences.

This is not the ideal sendoff but the Ottawa Lions Track and Field Club wish all the best to our graduating high school athletes as they prepare to begin their post-secondary education. Many of these talented athletes have developed through our club’s youth, foundation and aspire programs before making their mark in the National Capital Region as a competitive athlete. Competitively the graduating class earned nearly 200 regional, Provincial and National medals since the fall of 2016, we can only imagine what was in store for this talented group this spring and summer.

While your competitive drive will be bottled up until they dawn the team kits of your respective post-secondary institution. The Ottawa Lions congratulate you and offer encouragement as you continue to navigate the extraordinary circumstances that have already transformed the way schools operate across all levels.

David Adelye – University of Toronto
Roselynn Barrett – McMaster University
Zachary Bryant – Algonquin College
Hervey Chateau – Algonquin College
Kate Collings – Dalhousie University
Carter Demars – University of Ottawa
Joe Fast – Princeton University
Colby Frost – University of Ottawa
Jeremy Fourtier – University of Ottawa
Vanessa Lu Langley – McGill University
Shea McHale – Algonquin College
Erin McInerney – University of Ottawa
Zachary Meredith – University of Ottawa
Katie Newlove – University of British Columbia
Fabrice Nonez – University of Ottawa
Nelson Odutola – Western University
Doyin Ogunremi – University of Ottawa
Coralie Ostertag – University of Ottawa
Skye Pellerin – University of Ottawa
Thomas Pollok – University of Ottawa
Paulina Procyk – University of Toronto
Jackson Roy – University of Ottawa
Mathieu Rustom – University of Ottawa
Adam Sanger – McGill University
Callum Saravabmuttoo – University of British Columbia
Yared Tareke – St. Francis Xavier University