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Thorold Track Team produces national and provincial medalists (4 photos)

Thorold on the provincial and national track and field stages

Article submitted to the ThoroldNews by Steven Fife

It has been another busy summer for local track and field athletes with provincial and national championship meets held in late July and early August. Overall, the Thorold Elite Track Club earned 19 provincial medals and put three athletes on the national podium.

At the Minor Track Association Championships held July 27-28 in Brampton, Carson Gauthier won gold in both the boys' javelin and discus throws while Ava Neumann won gold in the girls' high jump.

The following weekend, the club competed in the Athletics Ontario Provincial Championships in Windsor and was crowned the provincial champion in the U14 (Under 14) age category.

Gauthier once again had an amazing performance – winning five provincial golds in javelin, discus, shot put, long jump, and as part of the club’s U14 boys' 4x100 m relay. He set a new provincial record in U14 boys' javelin with a best throw of 49.53 - shattering the previous provincial record of 42.23 m. Kaleb Kennedy won gold in U14 boys' high jump with a best jump of 1.57 m and silver in U14 boys' javelin, while Ava Neumann took gold again in high jump for the U14 girls.

Thorold resident Tyrese Gibson brought home three individual medals – silver in U14 boys' long jump, bronze in U14 boys' 300 m and bronze in U14 boys' 80 m. Cassie Orr earned a bronze medal in the U14 girls' javelin throw. The gold-medal winning 4x100 relay team consisted of Gauthier, Gibson, Kennedy, and Malachi Campbell.

In the U16 category, Nathaniel Dery secured gold with a throw of 52.08 m and Mason Petrucci won the boys' 1,500 m steeplechase in 4:50. Thorold resident Daniel Swayze took bronze in the U16 boys' high jump. In U18, Noah Dommasch jumped his way to a silver medal in the U18 boys' high jump.

The club then sent seven athletes to the National Youth Championships in Sydney, Nova Scotia, from Aug. 9-11. Daniel Swayze, Carter Teal, Cole Ciceran, Gabby Rodney-Calliste, and Chidera Onyegbule represented the club while two athletes, Noah Dommasch and Mia Friesen, were selected to represent the province as part of Team Ontario.

Last year, Thorold resident and Thorold Elite athlete DeAndre Fournier won a gold medal in U18 boys' triple jump at the National Championships. Fournier recently relocated to Indiana for post-secondary studies on a track scholarship. This year, the club earned three national medals. Teal took silver in the U18 boys' 400 m with a time of 48.59 seconds; Friesen earned bronze in the U18 girls' heptathlon, and Ciceran also came home with bronze in the U16 boys' pentathlon. 

The club athletes will now enjoy a well-deserved rest for the remainder of August but training resumes in September and is available for all events in track and field, as well as for cross country. For more information about the Thorold Elite Track Club and its programs, please visit www.thoroldelitetc.ca or contact Coach Steven Fife at [email protected] or 905-348-2214.