The West Coast has some pretty speedy kids.
On Friday, June 7, parents and children from Ucluelet Elementary School (UES) and Wickaninnish Community School (WCS) convened to the Bob Daily Stadium in Port Alberni for the annual SD70 District Elementary Track and Field meet.
Ucluelet’s Gino Rinaldi won gold in the 1,000-metre Grade 4 boys event.
“At the start, I thought I was going too fast,” recalls Rinaldi of his middle-distance race.
“I was done my two laps and I had a half to go and, when there was only 100 more metres, I couldn’t feel my legs. I was like, ‘Wait a second, if I can’t feel my legs, I could run faster, I wouldn’t feel anything. So, I ran faster and that’s how I beat all the kids,” he said.
Rinaldi, 10, also won the 600-metre Grade 4 boys race.
“I knew I was going to win that one. My mom was worried about it because there was this big tall kid with long legs right behind me,” he said.
His relay team, Wyatt, Angus, and Sean, placed third.
“My legs still hurt,” said Rinaldi, an Atom Rep Bulldogs hockey player, a couple days after the contest.
His mom, Kelsey Rinaldi, said this was her son’s first track and field meet.
“He has legs like his dad, elastic legs,” she said. “I think he’s conditioned from hockey. That definitely helps him keep his breath.”
Ucluelet’s Noah Grills also had a stellar performance at Bob Dailey Stadium on June 7. The UES student won first place in the 600-metre Grade 5 boys event and second in the 1,000-metre. His relay team won their division.
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