PHOTO - Phil Hughes Ottawa Indoor Relays - Newspapers.com

Lions Top 10 OFSAA Performers: #2 Phillip Hughes (1982-1986)

by linkinbio

On the penultimate day of our Top 10 OFSAA Performers countdown, we have chosen to recognize Phillip Hughes of Earl of March Secondary School. If you’ve flipped through the OFSAA record book you will undoubtedly recognize the name. Hughes was a two time OFSAA Champion in the 400 metre hurdles and still holds the record the OFSAA and Interscholastic Record 35 years after setting the standard.

Many may be surprised that a two time champion and national record holder does not in fact possess more hardware from the high school championships, but prior to 1990 there was no opportunity for younger high school students to hone their intermediate hurdle craft in the 300 metre event. Rather it was a situation much like today’s steeplechase where the 400 metre hurdles drew participants from grades 9 through 13.

Hughes’ first step on the OFSAA podium was a big one. Lined up against two time defending champion in the event and reigning Interscholastic Record Holder Douglas Neville of Eastwood Collegiate, Hughes would best the veteran, who would finish in third, by two and a half seconds. Hughes time of 51.68 seconds was so impressive that even silver medalist Shaun McAlmont, who equaled Neville’s previous record, was over a second back of the victor.

Heading into his final OFSAA Championships, on his hometown track, Hughes was focused on gold. Unfortunately for the Carp native, an aching hamstring left him at less than full speed and forced him to pull out of the 400 metres and focus solely on the hurdles. “My hamstrings are really tight and if I ran the 400 metres and it’s a really tough race, I probably wouldn’t be able to run the 400 metre hurdles,” he told the Ottawa Citizen at the start of the Championship. “The 400 hurdles is more important to me as an athlete.”

Despite being slowed by his hamstring, Hughes still managed to come within a few tenths of his record, crossing the line in 51.96 seconds. As evidence of his dominance in the event, the silver medalist was more than two seconds back of Hughes.

In fact, in the 34 years since Hughes graduated high school, only one other runner has even broken 52 seconds at OFSAA, 2001 World Championship team member Monte Raymond, and Hughes two gold medal performances still remain the two fastest in provincial championship history.

Outside of high school, Hughes set a Canada Games Record of 51.13 seconds in the 400 metre hurdles in 1985 and followed that up four years later with a pair of silvers in the flat 400 and the 4×4. Hughes is unique in that he is the only athlete in Club history to ever participate in two Canada Summer Games, let alone medal. Hughes’ Canada Games record remains as the second best performance in Club history.

Cheryl Coker sitting web

Lions Top 10 OFSAA Performers: #3 Cheryl Coker (1980-1984)

by linkinbio

Today would have marked the start of this year’s OFSAA Track and Field Championships at Toronto’s Varsity Stadium and signifies the start of our top three countdown of OFSAA performers. At number three on our all-time list we have Carleton Place High School’s greatest javelin thrower, Cheryl Coker.

Coker kicked off her OFSAA career with a fourth place finish in the midget girls event in 1980 and would build from there with her first medal coming in her grade 11 year when she took bronze in the junior girls event at 37.78 metres.

Coker would continue to hone her craft over the next couple years, throwing a couple hours a day in the fields at the high school and venturing in to Ottawa twice a week to work with javelin guru, Bill Heikkila.

Come grade 12, the work continued to pay off as she would move up to a silver medal in her first year in the senior competition behind Fay Roblin of Prince Edward County. Coker’s improvements continued through the summer where she won the Canadian junior title and represented Canada internationally, giving a glimpse of what was in store for her final high school season.

Coker’s final year of high school competition brought along even further distances. Before even reaching the east regional competition, Coker had already disposed of the Canadian Interscholastic record with a massive toss of 51.94 metres. The mark has been one for the ages, alluding all who have followed, including the likes of Canadian senior record holder Elizabeth Gleadle. In fact, there are only four Interscholastic marks that are older.

In a 1983 interview with the Ottawa Citizen, Coker explained that it was not the distances that she was focused on, but rather the technique. “The distance will come if the technique is right,” she said. “Strength is important, but to me, how you get ready for the throw and carry through is more important.”

Coker’s technique was certainly on point as she would qualify for OFSAA with another 50+ metre throw to break the east regional record by more than five metres. A week later at OFSAA, Coker would finally gain that elusive gold medal, and with it, she added a new senior girls record of 48.28 metres. The record would stand for two years until training partner Louise Perrault (#6 on our list) would increase it to the still standing 49.48 metres, but in the past 36 years only Perrault and Valerie Tulloch (1991) have managed to throw further at OFSAA than Coker.

Following her high school career, Coker spent a year at Florida State University throwing for the Seminoles before transferring to Louisiana State University where she would win a bronze medal at the NCAA Championships and earn All-American accolades . Coker would also represent Canada internationally at the Commonwealth Games, Pan American Games, Francophone Games and World Student Games.

Following her time in Louisiana, Coker pursued graduate work at the University of Virginia where she obtained her Ph.D. She currently teaches motor learning at Plymouth State University in New Hampshire and has also authored a book on the subject. Coker was was inducted into the Lions Hall of Fame in 2016.

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Lions Top 10 OFSAA Performers: #4 Ashley Purnell (1998-2002)

by linkinbio

At number four on our list of the all-time OFSAA performers, we have the fastest woman in Canadian high school sports, Ashley Purnell. Running for the Lions of St. Mark, Purnell had a short but successful high school track and field career that included five OFSAA medals including two golds.

Unlike just about every other athlete on this list, Purnell’s spring focus in high school started off with touch football where she was a dominant force because of her speed. After some prodding from high school and future club mate, Sara Sowieta, Purnell joined her high school team in grade 10, but a conflict with a touch football game ended up causing Purnell to miss her 100m final at the Carleton Board meet and ended her season before it really got started.

Come grade 11, Purnell had made the decision to focus on track, joining Coach Hugh Conlin’s training group with the Lions and within months quickly became a threat at OFSAA. While it didn’t result in any medals, she was led qualifying in the 100 and 200 metres and was second across the line in the 300 metre hurdle final before a lane violation left her disqualified her.

As a first year senior in 2001, Purnell had a go at the 100/200/100 hurdle treble. Unfortunately for her she finished second in the 100 and 200 metre final to 2005 World Championship team member Toyin Olupona and also took silver in the hurdles behind 2008 Olympic bronze medalist Priscilla Lopes.

In the summer season that followed, Purnell would sweep all three races at the Canadian U20 Championships and sweep the 100 and 200 metres at the Canada Summer Games to set up a record breaking campaign during her final high school season.

The first record came during the East Regional competition where the St. Mark runner blew away the competition, breaking Angela Bailey’s 21 year old Canadian Interscholastic Record of 11.60 seconds with an 11.54 second clocking. A week later at the OFSAA Championships in Belleville, Purnell would equal the time to claim her first OFSAA gold by more than four tenths of a second.

A day later in the 200 metre final, Purnell would find a golden finish to her high school career as she crossed the line in a blistering 23.47 seconds, almost seven tenths ahead of silver. While the time surpassed the Canadian Interscholastic Record of 23.58, a trailing wind of +4.7 metres per second nullified the mark. It was the second time on the day that the wind had blown away her record attempts as Purnell had bested the OFSAA record of 24.05 with a time of 23.92 in the heats when the wind was registered a positive 2.4 m/s.

Later that summer Purnell would represent Canada at the World U20 Championships in Jamaica where she would place 8th in the 200 metre final behind the likes of Sanya Richards-Ross and Alyson Felix. She had qualified for the final after setting a Club record of 23.28 seconds in the preliminaries.

That fall, Purnell would head west to Stanford University where she would compete for the Cardinal. During her time in Palo Alto she broke the school’s indoor 400m record and earned All-American honours in the 4×400 metre relay. After graduating from Stanford, Purnell returned home to complete doctoral work in neuroscience at the University of Ottawa before completing a second doctorate in exercise physiology from the University of Nantes. She recently founded her own company in Ottawa, Neurovine, which helps concussion patients recover.

Toronto, Ontario ---05/06/09--- Segun Makinde of Colonel By Secondary School wins the senior boys 110 meter hurdles at the 2009 OFSAA Track and Field Championships at the University of Toronto, June 4, 2009..GEOFF ROBINS Mundo Sport Images

Lions Top 10 OFSAA Performers: #5 Olwuasegun Makinde (2006-2009)

by linkinbio

At number five on our list of all-time OFSAA performers is sprinter and hurdler, Oluwasegun Makinde. The Colonel By graduate was a force to be recokoned with during his four years wearing the blue and white of the Cougars, cementing himself as one of the best high school 200 metre racers the country has ever known.

In total, Makinde took home eight medals from the OFSAA Track and Field Championships, led by four golds. After a bronze at 200 metres in grade nine, Makinde took home his first title in front of a home crowd at Terry Fox Athletics Facility in grade 10, winning the 200 in a new OFSAA junior boys record of 21.74 seconds. Finishing on his heels was Philip Hayle who had taken the 100 metre crown the day before, one spot ahead of Makinde. That OFSAA Championships was the beginning of a great battle between the two athletes over the next three years.

The battle at 200 metres reversed itself a year later with Hayle (21.70) taking victory over Makinde’s (21.84) silver as the pair battled through a strong headwind. Makinde’s grade 11 year was also where we saw him make his debut in the hurdles. In just his first year in the event, the Colonel By student captured bronze behind clubmate Sekou Kaba’s gold and narrowly (0.01 seconds) ahead of future Olympic high jump champion Derek Drouin.

Makinde ended his high school career with a bang, capturing three gold medals at OFSAA despite not competing in one of his best events, the 100 metres. At the East Regional Championships, Makinde made a serious run at the then 25 year old Canadian Interscholastic 100 metre record (10.41 seconds) with his victory in 10.47 seconds. Scratching the event at OFSAA, allowed him to focus on the 200 metres, hurdles and 4×100 relay.

Makinde’s first medal of his final Championship came in the 110 metre hurdles, where he became the third Lion to take hold of the Canadian Interscholastic Record in the event, although this was the first time it was over the shorter 36 inch hurdles. Makinde’s time of 13.36 seconds was less than a tenth ahead of World Youth medalist in the event, Gregory MacNeil, who would over take the record a year later.

A couple hours after his hurdles gold, Makinde helped his Cougar teammates claim gold in the 4×100 metre relay, the first for an Ottawa school in decades, as they edged out Hayle’s Sir Edmund Campion team. Also on the team were Makinde’s brother Toluwalope, Gurvir Khosa and Cameron Smithers, all Lions members.

Makinde capped off his high school career with a performance for the ages, becoming the first athlete to eclipse the 21 second barrier for 200 metres, crossing the line in 20.99 seconds, and taking more than a third of a second off of Atlee Mahorn’s 35 year old OFSAA record. The performance also fell just four hundredths short of Mahorn’s Canadian High School Record of 20.95.

Since leaving high school, Makinde has twice been a member of the Canadian Olympic 4x100m Relay Team and has also represented the nation at a variety of other international events, including taking gold in the 200 metres at the 2013 Francophone Games in France. In addition to his international success on the track, Makinde is a graduate of the Telfer School of Management at the University of Ottawa. During his time as a Gee Gee he captured six medals at the USports Championships including a record in the 4×200 metre relay.

Currently Makinde is training for his third Olympic team where he hopes to represent Canada in the 110 metre hurdles.

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Lions Top 10 OFSAA Performers: #6 Louise Perrault (1983-1987)

by linkinbio

At number six on our all-time list we stay with the throwing events and Arnprior District High School’s Louise Perrault who was a dominant force in the javelin during the mid-80’s. Perrault had a near perfect OFSAA performance record garnering four gold and one record during her five year career.

Perrault’S first OFSAA victory came in grade nine with her throw of 36.96 metres, winning by a 1.56 metre margin. What’s notable about this is that it would be the narrowest margin of victory for the Arnprior native during her OFSAA career. A year later that margin would expand to nearly three meters with Perrault improving by nearly seven metres to 43.34 metres.

The following year was the only blip on Perrault’s near perfect OFSAA record. After arriving again at the OFSAA Championships as the odds on favourite for gold, Perrault’s three preliminary throws were met with the one word that frustrates javelin throwers like no other, “flat!”. Without a valid mark in either of her three throws, Perrault would be forced to watch someone else take OFSAA gold home. “It was a tough pill to swallow at the time,” she said via email.

Come her grade 12 year, Perrault was ready to let loose at OFSAA. Of course it helped she would be performing in front of a friendly Ottawa crowd. By the end of the competition, Perrault had certainly given them something to cheer about out on the west field as she launched the javelin out to 49.48 metres to take the OFSAA senior girls record away from long time training partner Cheryl Coker and win by a massive 4.24 metres. The record still stands today, 34 years later.

Later that summer in 1986, Louise competed at the inaugural IAAF World U20 Championships in Athens, placing 10th globally.

While Perrault did not extend the record during her final year of high school, she did cap off her OFSAA career with a fourth gold, winning with a toss of 46.86m.

What stands out most about Perrault’s OFSAA career is the level of dominance she exerted in the event. In her four titles, her average margin of victory was 2.80 metres which translates to throwing 6.6% better than her competition. To put that in perspective, over 1500 metres, if the silver medalist ran 4 minutes even, the victor would need to run 3:45.07 to equal Perrault’s margin.

Following high school, Perrault accepted a scholarship to the University of Arizona where she set the school record at 59.30 metres and had a best placing of 5th at the NCAA Championships. Today she lives in Ithaca, NY where she serves as the Director of Hockey Operations for the Cornell women’s hockey team.

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Lions Top 10 OFSAA Performers: #7 Greg Jack (1990-1994)

by High Schoollinkinbio

At number seven on our list of the top 10 all-time OFSAA performers, we make our first foray into the field events with thrower extraordinaire Greg Jack. The Eganville native collected an impressive 11 OFSAA medals during his five year career split between Opeongo High School and St. Pius X. Among the 11 medals Jack amassed were six golds, which is made even more impressive when you consider he was battling the likes of three time Olympians and future Canadian and Interscholastic record holders Jason Tunks and Brad Snyder.

Right from his start in grade nine, Jack proved he would be a force to be reckoned with throughout his high school days as he was the class of the midget boys shot put field, heaving the four kilogram ball out to 16.12 metres, more than a meter further beyond his competitors, including Mr. Tunks. However, in Tunks’ specialty, the discus, he got the upper hand, and Greg took home a bronze for his efforts with a very respectable 46.73 metres.

Owing to a late birthday, Jack returned to the midget category in grade 10 and made quick work of the competition, adding two more gold medals as well as his first silver. Making his first foray in to the javelin, Jack was dominant against the provincial field, dropping the 600 gram spear nearly four metres further than the silver medalist. In the other two throws, Jack defended his shot put gold and upgraded to silver in the discus.

After a solitary shot put silver grade 11, Jack swept all three throws events in grade 12, narrowly defeating Brad Snyder in both the shot put and discus. It was also the first season Jack was competing for the X-Men of St. Pius. In the javelin, Jack was again the class of the field with a best throw of 52.90 metres – five and a half metres clear of his nearest competitor.

Jack completed his high school career with a pair of bronze medals in the discus and javelin before embarking on a collegiate career at Florida State University. After his time in Tallahassee, Jack headed north to Pittsburgh to pursue a graduate degree and begin coaching. Following Pitt, Jack spent 16 years as throws and eventually Associate Head Coach at Virgina Tech University where he coached former Lion thrower Brian MacPhee, and guided his athletes to 67 All-American recognitions and 13 NCAA titles.

Most recently, Jack has formed his own company, Track and Field Strategies, where he works to bridge the information gap between aspiring student athletes and opportunities in the the United States post secondary system.

Murray Link Header

Lions Top 10 OFSAA Performers: #8 Murray Link (1992-1996)

by High Schoollinkinbio

On day three of our countdown of the Club’s best OFSAA track and field competitors of all-time, we turn to the distance events and North Dundas’ Murray Link at number 8. The Winchester product was a dominating force during his high school career, capturing an impressive 10 OFSAA medals including 4 gold over his five yer high school career.

The medal haul was on from the word “go” for Link who burst on the scene with a trio of medals in his grade nine year, including pulling off the 1500/3000 metre double. In addition to his longer distance prowess, Link also showed his range his he collected a bronze in the 800m in a swift 2:01.

This would mark the only year where Link would attempt the distance triple. Those familiar with the OFSAA schedule understand the difficulty that presents with 1500 metre races on Thursday and Friday followed by heats and finals for the 800 metres and a 3000 metre final on the Saturday.

Grade 10 added two more medals to Link’s collection and was also the first example of the tri-battle that would play out over the coming years between himself and other future national team members Jay Cantin and Matt Kerr. The trio all broke the four minutue barrier for 1500 metres with Link taking bronze. A day later, Link was able to move up a spot over 800 metres, taking silver behind Cantin in 1:58.68.

A year later, Link would get back on top of the podium with a return to the 3000 metres, winning a tight fought battle over Rob Krar and Kevin Peirobon in 8:44.20. However, at 1500 metres Cantin had the upper hand, winning 3:55.07 to 3:57.16 over Link to complete the 8/15 double.

After another bronze at 800 in grade 12, Link returned for his OAC year to capture his third gold at 3000 metres, winning by over three seconds in 8:22.32. At 1500 metres, it was another battle between Cantin and Link, with the St. Claire Secondary School student coming out on top again with Link winning silver in 3:49.79, two seconds behind the victor.

After a standout high school career, Link accepted an athletic scholarship to the University of Arkansas where he would help the Razorbacks capture nine NCAA team titles. In addition to his team success in Fayetteville, Link was also seven-time All-American in Cross Country, Indoor, and Outdoor Track, capturing three NCAA medals along the way.

Despite retiring from competitive running following his collegiate career in 2001, Link’s performances still rank among the Club’s top ten all-time at 1000, 3000, 5000, and 10,000 metres. While he’s not running, you can still find Murray around the track as his son Jack runs with the Aspire Program.

We’ll be back again tomorrow with number seven on our list. Stay tuned.

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Lions Top 10 OFSAA Performers: #9 Keira Christie-Galloway (2014-2017)

by High Schoollinkinbio

At number nine on our all-time list, we stay within the sprint hurdle family and go with Canadian under-20 record holder Keira-Christie Galloway. The hurdling superstar represented both the Tigers of St. Matthews and the Gryphons from the Glebe during a high school career that included a six medal haul at the provincial high school championships.

While she is best known for her prowess in the hurdles, Christie-Galloway actually captured her first OFSAA medal in the long jump. As a grade nine student at St. Matthews, the 15 year old had found her way to the top of the standings after her fifth round jump, leading on a count back. Unfortunately, the athlete she had just leap frogged would immediately respond with a leap that stretched the measuring tape out two centimetres further to leave Christie-Galloway with silver.

While she looked poised to add another medal to the haul later that same day in the 80 metre hurdles, a trip over one of the final sticks left Keira out of the medals in seventh. However, that occasion would mark the last time she would lose a high school hurdles competition.

Returning to OFSAA in grade ten, Christie-Galloway came back with a vengeance, repeating her silver in the long jump, and taking out Jessica Zelinka’s 17 year old OFSAA record in the junior girls 80 metre hurdles with an impressive time of 11.24 seconds. Christie-Galloway’s gold medal run was so dominating that she crossed the line more than a half second clear of her nearest competitor.

The record breaking would continue again in grade 11 as Keira erased another Canadian track icon’s name from the record books. This time it was former World Champion Perdita Felicien’s OFSAA senior girls record of 13.41 seconds set in 1998 that would fall. Kristie-Galloway made quick of the record, taking it down in the heats by crossing the line in 13.33 seconds. In the final, a headwind helped keep the record from falling again, but Keira was still golden on the day, winning in 13.57 seconds of Brittany Stennekes of Dundas Valley. Stennekes would get revenge the next day by taking the long jump title and relegating Christie-Galloway to her third straight silver in the event.

For her grade 12 year, Christie-Galloway had switched schools to Glebe Collegiate where she focused her efforts solely on the hurdles at OFSAA despite qualifying in both the 100 and 200 metre events as well. Despite a tight battle with future national team teammate Kendra Leger, Christie-Galloway finished her high school career with a third straight sprint hurdles title, winning in a time of 13.53 seconds.

Since graduating from Glebe, Keira has continued to improve and flourish in the hurdles, including breaking a 30 year old Canadian U20 record, earning All-American honours, and donning the red and white at two global championships and the Pan Am Games. Prior to the global shut down stemming from COVID-19, Christie-Galloway was studying at Arizona State University in Tempe and preparing for a run at the Olympic Games.

Check back in again tomorrow as we announce number eight on our list of the Top 10 OFSAA Performers in Club history.

(Kitchener, Canada---07 June 1996) Left to right, Jeff Keays (2nd) and J Hollingsworth (1st) racing in the junior boys 110m hurdles at the 1996 OFSAA Ontario High School Track and Field Championships. Photo 1996 Copyright Sean Burges / Mundo Sport Images.

Lions Top 10 OFSAA Peformers: #10 Jeff Keays (1993-97)

by High Schoollinkinbio

Today would have marked the start of the OFSAA East Regional competition where athletes from across Eastern Ontario battle for a top four spot and a berth in the OFSAA Track and Field Championships. In light of the cancelled high school season, we thought it would be fun to construct our own Top 10 list of OFSAA competitors from Club History. Since current coach, Leslie Estwick, captured the Club’s first OFSAA medal with junior high jump bronze in 1978, Lions’ athletes have gone on to capture more than 500 medals and numerous records at the high school championship.

Kicking off our list at number ten is Jeff Keays who competed in high school for both Thousand Islands Secondary School in Brockville and Smiths Falls District Collegiate Institute between 1993 and 1997. After not medaling in either grades nine or ten, Keays began ratcheting up the performances in grade 11 as he took silver in the junior boys 110 metre hurdles while at TISS. A year later, and running for SFDCI, Keays again found himself in the junior boys 110m hurdle final. Looking to avenge the previous year’s result, Keays crossed the line in 14.13 seconds to break the previous OFSAA record. Unfortunately for Keays, he was lined up beside Parkside Collegiate’s Jamie Hollingsworth, who also beat the previous mark in 14.10 seconds, and left Keays with a second silver.

In Keays’ final year of competition, he got his revenge on Hollingsworth and broke some records in the process. At the East Regional competition in Ottawa, Keays became the first Canadian high schooler to crack the 14 second barrier in the 110 metre hurdles, clinching his spot at OFSAA with a time of 13.95 seconds. The Interscholastic Record had previously belonged to former Lion Steve Yorsten. It is worthwhile to note that at that time, the senior aged athletes were competing over the 39 inch hurdles.

A week later at the OFSAA Championships in Kitchener, Keays appeared primed to lower his new Canadian record even further, but unfortunately Mother Nature was less than agreeable. In the heats, Keays dominated the field, running a new OFSAA record of 13.99 seconds into a nasty 4.1 m/s headwind. The conditions didn’t improve much in the final either as Keays battled a massive 7.1 m/s headwind to win in 14.15 seconds. To give perspective to the condition Keays was in, he came back at the Twilight meet the next Wednesday and ran a legal 13.77 seconds.

Following high school, Keays attended Washington State University on a scholarship and briefly gave bobsled a go in Calgary. He currently reisdes in Victoria where he volunteers as a coach with one of the local track clubs.

Our countdown of the Lions all-time OFSAA competitors continues tomorrow with number nine. We will reveal number one on the list on June 6 to coincide with what would have been the final day of this year’s OFSAA competition.

If you are in search of more OFSAA Track and Field memories, check out @mundosportimages on Instagram where they have been highlighting some of the all-time best performers.