Track stars descended on Haley Park Saturday in an effort to run and jump their way to the B.C. Summer Games.
The Canadian Royal Legion Track Meet doubled as the qualifier for this years BC Summer Games in Surrey in July. Only the 14-15 year olds were eligible, but it didn’t stop athletes of other ages from excelling.
“We had 96 athletes,” said organizer and Zone 1 track coach Dan Horan. “That’s the most we’ve had in a number of years.”
A contingent of over 30 athletes from Revelstoke lined up with Zone 1 competitors in the day-long meet that saw over 40 records fall.
“It was decent weather, not to hot, perfect really,” said Horan. “I mean tons of records were broken especially from the Revelstoke kids.”
However, local athletes also stood out and on top of the podium.
J. L. Crowe’s Nolan Derosa from Rossland broke three records in the 14 to 15-year-old male category on his way to three gold medals in the 1,200 and 3,000 metre run as well as the Steeplechase.
It was Derosa’s first go at the Steeplechase, a 1,500-metre run over high hurdles and other obstacles, setting a blazing pace that secured his spot in the Summer Games.
The Steeplechase was included in the meet for the first time because it is a Games event, however, Horan was not too surprised by Derosa’s impressive run, “He’s just a really good athlete.”
In the 11-year-old female category, Elizabeth Mayer from the Trail Track and Field club added to the four records she set last year, as she flew over the 60-metre hurdles for gold and a new meet record in 12 seconds flat. Mayer also set a record for tossing the 2-kg. shot put a distance of 7.33 metres, and took gold in the long jump and 100-metre sprint and missed another gold by a mere three centimetres in the high jump.
Megan Stanley of Rossland broke the 600-metre run record, and Allison Plamondon from Maclean Elementary also set a record in the 10-year-old high jump.
Rounding out the local athletes who qualified for the Games are Allie Stanley of Rossland who took gold in the long jump with a leap of 4.05 metres and came second in the high jump. Mackenzie Flood also nailed down a spot with two silver medals, in javelin and shot put.
Tyler Hartleb of Castlegar qualified for the discus and will join the Zone 1 team.
