The Trinity Western men’s track and field and cross country teams took another major stride forward as coach Laurier Primeau announced the signing of middle distance runner Declan White.
The 6-foot-1 athlete, who graduated from Semiahmoo Secondary in 2010, joins the Spartans already as a well-established middle distance athlete who will instantly become a contending threat in Canada West and the CIS both on the trails and the track.
Most recently, White, competing with the Coastal Track Club, posted a personal best in the 3000m at the University of Washington Indoor Preview, in which he won his heat with a time of 8:23.44. That time would have broken the TWU record of 8:24.55, which was set in the same race by second-year Spartan Blair Johnston. It also would have put White 11th in the current CIS rankings.
White also has PBs of 3:54.02 in the 1500m, which would have him 10th in the current CIS rankings, and 1:53.95 in the 800m.
On the cross country trails, White was 34th at the 2012 Canadian championships with a time of 32:10.32 over the 10-km course. That time had him just over 44 seconds behind Johnston. In 2011, White also helped Team B.C. to a gold medal at the Canadian Cross Country Championships.
“We are truly fortunate to see Declan become a Spartan,” Primeau said. “He isn’t even on our team yet and he already is one of the most well-liked athletes among us. It seems such a natural fit to bring him aboard as he knows many of our current athletes and a sense of camaraderie already exists. Equally as important is the fact Declan will arrive on campus with high performance value. He has running range from the 800m to the 3000m to cross country, and will contribute on relay teams as well. Declan is also local, which is very important to us as we want to ensure we are looking in our own backyard and nurturing the talent that surrounds us.”
White plans to study human kinetics at TWU when he arrives on campus in the fall of 2013.
“I am so excited to be joining TWU,” White said. “I know I am coming to a top notch school which, with its small class sizes, will provide an excellent learning environment. I am also very happy to be training under coaches with such impressive resumes. I know Laurier Primeau and Mark Bomba will do everything in their power to make sure I’m a successful athlete in the CIS.”
