| Sunday, May 30 2010 - Gillis Fourth At Ottawa 10k |
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Speed River’s Eric Gillis continued his strong spring season with a fourth place finish Saturday evening in Ottawa, Ontario at the Ottawa 10k. The race which is part of the National Capital Marathon race weekend featured some of the biggest names in the sport including former Boston Marathon Champion Deriba Merga, who finished just ahead of Gillis in third place. Gillis time of 29 minutes 11 seconds also placed him as the top Canadian in the field, his Speed River teammate Reid Coolsaet also participated in the race. Coolsaet who is building towards a fall marathon after an injury earlier this spring ran at his marathon pace for the 10 kilometre race finishing 15th overall in 31 minutes and 44 seconds.
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| Sunday, May 30 2010 - Milne Dominates In Windsor |
Taylor Milne returned to the track where he captured the 2008 Canadian Olympic Trials and put on another show running 3 minutes 38.57 seconds to win the men’s 1500 metres at the Windsor Open by nearly 6 seconds. Milne was rabbited through 800 metres by teammate Tim Konoval but then had to go it alone continue to click off sub 60 seconds lack before breaking the tape in the top time in Canada this year by over four seconds.
Milne’s run was number of highlights for the Speed River Track Club at the meet. Genevieve Lalonde running the first steeplechase of her life clocked a time of 10 minutes 33.24 seconds a performance that is the third best ever for a Canadian junior (under 20) athlete in the event and betters the standard to qualify her to represent Canada at the World Junior Championships this summer in Lalonde’s hometown of Moncton. Other Speed River winners were Hilary Stellingwerff in the women’s 1500 metre, where she led a Speed River sweep of the top five places with her time of 4 minutes 16.11 and Rachel Cliff in the women’s 5000 metres with her time of 16:27.70. Cliff, Stellingwerff, Lalonde and Milne also all broke the meet records.
Stellingwerff and Milne will be back in action Wednesday night at the London Distance Classic, while Lalonde and Cliff will be preparing for Saturday night’s Speed River Middle Distance Inferno in Guelph. Milne will also be in action Saturday were he will aim to become the first athlete to break the four minute barrier in the mile in Wellington County.
Video of Milne's race
Full Results |
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| Saturday, May 29 2010 - Lydia Willemse Joins Speed River Group |
The Speed River Track and Field Club is thrilled to announce that Lydia Willemse has joined the club. The Florida State alum will bolster Speed River’s growing reputation as one of North America’s strongest distance training groups, particularly in the steeplechase events.
Willemse is the Canadian Record Holder in the 2000 metre steeplechase and is ranked second all-time in the 3000 metre steeplechase with a life time best of 10 minutes and 5.36 seconds. A star athlete under Canadian Karen Harvey at Florida State University, the Forest, Ontario native will be looking to capture her first medal at a Senior level Canadian Championship this summer.
Willemse will make her debut for the club this evening at the Windsor Open. It will be her first race in 364 days after recovering from surgery on a ruptured achilles tendon which she suffered May 30th, 2009 at last year’s NCAA regional meet.
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| Thursday, May 27 2010 - Welcome To Guelph |
Please enjoy the highlight video that was put together for the Guelph Running Community Town Hall Meeting.
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| Wednesday, May 26 2010 - Be Part Of The Centre Of Excellence: Town Hall Recap |
From The Guelph Mercury
Guelph is a centre of excellence for distance running. Despite limited funding and facilities, our running community is producing both a healthy active city and world-class runners. More than 150 runners gathered for the first Runner’s Town Hall Meeting, Tuesday night, at the University of Guelph.
As Canadians, we are modest about our achievements, to the point where we are not aware of local successes. One of the objectives of the town hall was to bring the community up to date on local progress.
Full Story
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| Tuesday, May 25 2010 - Guelph Running Community Town Hall Set For Tonight! |
Guelph is becoming the running capital of Canada. Join our community, to share a vision and work to the future, from Playground to Podium.
No contribution is to small. Now is the time. We have a strong running community; it is time to work together to ensure the future.
The event will be hosted tonight (Tuesday) starting at 7:30 pm in Rozanski Hall on the University of Guelph campus. |
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| Monday, May 17 2010 - Runners want to turn Guelph into a world-class training centre |
The Guelph Mercury did a feature story on running in the City of Guelph.
Local runners want to turn Guelph into “the running capital of Canada” by churning out the greatest number of world-class athletes in the country and encouraging community members at all other levels to take up the sport.
Full story available here
More information on the Guelph Running Community Town Hall is available here. |
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| Sunday, May 16 2010 - Newcomer Nixon Stars At Ontario 10000 Metre Championships |
The next generation of Speed River stars were on full display Saturday at the Ontario 10000 Metre Championships. Newcomer Andrew Nixon, who moved to Guelph only last month, captured the Ontario Championship in the junior race with a stunning 30 minute and 26.43 second performance. The performance for precious 19 year old also bettered the World Junior Championship qualifying time and puts him in a great position to represent Canada at the World Junior Track and Field Championships this July in Moncton. John Parrott made it a clean sweep for Speed River as he captured the senior men’s title with 31 minute and 14.60 seconds clocking. In the women’s Courtney Laurie captured the silver medal in only the second 10000 metre race of her life. Laurie clocked a time of 36 minutes 25.60 seconds.
Meanwhile in the accompany non-championship 1500 metre races fellow newcomer Jenni Biewald was second in the women’s race with a time of 4 minutes 36.79 seconds. In her first outdoor track race in over three years, the former junior standout looks to be returning to the form that led her to compete on numerous Canadian Junior teams. In the men’s race it was one of the “old” guard who led the club as Taylor Milne got the win in 3 minutes 40.71 seconds, Milne’s performance is the fastest time in the country this year.
Full results available here
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| Sunday, May 9 2010 - Gillis Finishes Second At Canada's Largest Road Race |
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Fans hoping for a Canadian winner at Canada’s biggest road race will have to wait another year as Kenya’s Kip Kangogo spoiled Eric Gillis’ attempt to become the first Canadian winner in the new millennium of Sunday’s Vancouver Sun Run. It has been 12 years since Chris Weber was the last Canadian to break the tape first at the world’s largest 10 kilometre road race and many had thought Gillis could bring the title back to his home in Guelph, Ontario. Gillis and Kangogo were involved in a furious finish over the last kilometre but the diminutive Kenyan proved to strong for Canada’s top marathoner capturing the win with a time of 29:02, Gillis would cross next in 29:05 with defending champion Willie Kimsop finishing third in 29:29. For Gillis it was his first defeat of his spring season after wins at the Spring Run Off in Toronto and the Mercedes Benz 10k in Oakville, he will be back in action May 29th at the Ottawa 10km, which is part of the National Capital Marathon weekend. |
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| Sunday, May 9 2010 - Buchanan Inches Toward Top 10 In Canadian History |
It only took one race for Dana Buchanan to make her mark on the Speed River record books and in her second outdoor track race for the club she continued to improve on her club record in the steeplechase. Buchanan finished third in the women’s steeplechase at the Oregon Twilight meet Saturday night in a new club record and personal best time of 10 minutes 24.23 second, a time that moves her into 11th on all-time in Canadian history. Buchanan’s lifetime best was one of three for Speed River athletes at the meet as Rachel Cliff set a personal best in the 1500 metres with her time of 4 minutes 21.58 seconds while Chris Winter set a personal best in the 5000 metres with a time of 14 minutes and 3.28 seconds. Rounding out the Speed River action at the meet was Amber McGown’s fourth place finish in the 800 metres, she finished in a time of 2 minutes 8.47 seconds.
Race Videos
Dana Buchanan- Women's 3000 Metre Steeplechase
Chris Winter- Men's 5000 Metres
Rachel Cliff's - Women's 1500 Metres
Amber McGown's - Women's 800 Metres
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| Saturday, May 8 2010 - Four Speed River Athletes Set To Compete At Oregon Twilight |
A quartert of Speed River athletes will be in action tonight at the Oregon Twilight. For Chris Winter, Amber McGown and Dana Buchanan the event will also mark a return to their alma matta, as all three are former Oregon Ducks. McGown will be up first racing the 800 metres at 8:50 PM EST. Buchanan will follow running her speciality the 3000 metre steeplechase at 10:05 PM EST. Following Buchanan will Rachel Cliff at 11:05 PM EST in the women's 1500 metres, with Chris Winter rounding out the action for Speed River athletes in the men's 5000 metres slated for 11:05 PM EST.
Live results will be available here. |
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| Tuesday, May 4 2010 - Speed River Athletes Impress At Stanford |
The Speed River Track and Field Club’s outdoor track season kicked off with a bang Saturday at the Payton Jordan Invitational. In what is normally the club’s first major competition of the year, eight Speed River athletes headed to Palo Alto, California for the meet which is widely regarded as one of the most competitive meets in North America. The group returned home with three personal bests, a new club record and four marks among the top three in Canada.
The first race of the day brought the club their only win as Matt Brunsting captured the first section of the men’s steeplechase in a lifetime best of 8 minutes 44.68 seconds. Brunsting’s mark moved him into second in the country although his stay that high would be short lived. In the next race, Brunsting’s teammates Rob Watson and Chris Winter both surpassed his performance. Winter ran a personal best of 8 minutes 39.91 seconds to break the 8:40 barrier for the first time, while Watson, in his first 3000 metre steeplechase since the 2009 World Championships, ran 8:39.30 to take the Canadian lead. Not to be outdone, Speed River’s Dana Buchanan narrowly missed her lifetime best in the women’s steeplechase with her time of 10 minutes 29.53 seconds. Buchanan’s performance did establish a new club record and ranks her third in the country.
The next race of the day for the club was the highly anticipated women’s 1500 metres. The race featured an incredibly strong and deep field. Unfortunately, high winds and a pedestrian early pace made personal bests impossible. The two Speed River athletes acquitted themselves extremely well with Hilary Stellingwerff finishing fifth in a time 4 minutes 13.90 seconds, a time that ranks her third in the country, while, teammate Amber McGown was tenth in 4:17.22 a mark that ranks her fourth in the country.
Rounding out a busy night of action was Rachel Cliff’s incredible 57 second life time best in the 5000 metres. Cliff clocked a time of 16 minutes 07.94 seconds to continue her incredible 2010 year. Fellow University of Guelph Athlete of The Year Kyle Boorsma also ran the 5000 finishing in a time of 14 minutes 09.93 seconds.
Buchanan, Winter, McGown and Cliff will all be back in action this weekend at the Oregon Twilight in Eugene, Oregon. |
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