Ross world’s fastest female firefighter
Fleming grad has top time in firefit competition — and now aims to win the world co-ed title with former Peterborough Pete Gault
They call it the toughest two minutes in sport and there is no woman in the world better at it than Katherine (Katie) Ross.
The graduate of Fleming College’s pre-service firefighting program was crowned a world champion after she won the 2019 3M Scott Firefighter Combat Challenge in Montgomery, Ala. in October.
Last week the official results were released from events held across the globe, confirming Ross with the fastest time by a woman. Her time of 1:55 was 14 seconds ahead of the next competitor.
The competition, for firefighters only, incorporates tasks firefighters are often called on to perform during an emergency in full firefighter gear and air pack. Tasks include racing up stairs hoisting a hose that weighs 42.5 pounds, forcing entry into a building, pulling hose and rescuing a life-sized, weighted dummy.
Ross grew up in Oakwood and Haliburton, and lived in Peterborough for six years, before being hired by the Brampton fire department in 2016. She served as a volunteer firefighter with the Selwyn Township fire department while in Peterborough.
This was her third time competing at the event, previously held in Kentucky and California. She finished second in 2018 (missing out on first place because of a penalty) while becoming just the third woman to break the two-minute time barrier. This year she dominated.
“It was pretty awesome,” said the 28-year-old. “It means anything is achievable. If you truly focus on something and believe in yourself and work hard for it, it will come together.”
She also won the co-ed race with Brampton Fire teammate Danny Palmer. And she won the women’s relay, completing two of the five legs, with teammates Elissa Carvello of Vaughan and Keltie-May Nicoll of Grande Prairie, Alta.
She set the Canadian record of 1:51.77 at the national championships in Oshawa in September. She completed the course in 1:49.77, but was assessed a two-second penalty. Ross said no woman has ever broken the 1:50 barrier and she’s aiming to be the first. Her long range goal is to break the 1:40 mark.
She has always been physically active, playing numerous sports growing up. She started crossfit training with Mike (Spike) McCormick at Top Performance Training five years ago, while living in Peterborough. She joined a crossfit competitive team two years later. She also played lacrosse for the Peterborough Lakers women’s team.
When she was hired in Brampton she was run through the combat challenge course with other new recruits as part of her training. It was her first exposure to the combat challenge and she instantly recognized her ability.
She started training with the Brampton Fire competitive team and enjoyed the environment.
“FireFit is like a family. Your teammates are super supportive and always there for you,” she said. “We practise after every shift once the snow melts. No matter how tired you are after a shift, you show up and put your best foot forward.”
She also trains in the gym six days a week. One of her training partners in the summer from the Kitchener fire department also has a Peterborough connection.
Former Peterborough Petes forward Corey Gault is training with her, with an eye toward competing in the co-ed race together in 2020. They raced together at the Canadian championships and were one-tenth of a second off the world record with a time of 1:20.44.
“We’re going to try to set the world record in 2020,” Ross said.