OFF TO THE WORLDS
Bishop & Co. earn spots
It was mission accomplished for Windsor’s Brandon McBride, Belle River’s Noelle Montcalm and University of Windsor Lancers grad Melissa Bishop.
All three secured spots on Canada’s world championships team with their weekend performances at the Canadian Track and Field Championships in Ottawa.
“Although defending my national title would have been great, coach (Don Garrod) and I are excited to have secured a spot on the world champs team,” Montcalm said after her silvermedal performance on Sunday in the women’s 400-metre hurdles.
Montcalm, who was running for the University of Windsor Athletic Club (UWAC), finished in 56.15 and watched Sage Watson take the gold medal in a new Canadian championship record time of 54.97. Essex’s Kelsey Balkwill, who competes for the Border City Athletic Club, was fourth in 57.65.
“I hit (qualifying) standard early and just needed a top-two finish to secure my spot,” the 29-year-old Montcalm said. “I can’t wait to represent Canada once again.”
The XVI IAAF World Track and Field Championships are Aug. 4-13 in London, and McBride, who won his third national crown in the men’s 800 metres, admits it’s been a tough first pro season after graduating from Mississippi State University.
“The transition from collegiate to pro has been tough on me,” the 23-year-old McBride said. “Not as many races with a lot of travelling.”
But McBride, who runs for the Windsor Legion, looked smooth in winning in 1:45.23, which was nearly two seconds ahead of his closest rival. Corey Bellemore, who runs for UWAC, was fourth in 1:48.08.
“The race was nice,” McBride said. “My fitness and sharpness is coming around at the right time.
“I have a lot left in the tank. Unlike previous years, where I had 30 or more races under my belt by this time, this year I have eight or nine.
“My goal is to improve on my placing from last year (14th overall) at the Olympic Games.”
A two-time Olympian, Bishop’s fourth national title in the women’s 800 metres was hardly a surprise as she cruised to victory in 2:00.26, which left her more than three seconds ahead of the field.
“The race felt pretty comfortable,” said the 28-year-old Bishop, who holds the Canadian record at 1:57.02. “I was hoping for sub-two, but it just wasn’t in the cards.”
What was more enjoyable for Bishop was seeing the wave of fans in the stands as plenty of friends and family from her hometown of Eganville, which is located west of Ottawa, were able to watch her compete.
“I had many people from home come to watch, so it was pretty cool to be running in front of them,” said Bishop, who won silver at the world championships in 2015.
“Ultimate goal is another podium finish.”
Massey Mustangs high school product Jordan Young, who now competes for the SISU Throws Club, won the men’s discus with a throw of 62.76 metres, but he failed to meet the world championships qualifying standard of 65 metres.
In just her second national senior championship, the Lancers’ Sarah Mitton won the bronze medal in the women’s shot put with a new personal-best throw of 16.16 metres.
“Receiving bronze (Sunday) was incredible,” said Mitton, who was the junior champion in 2015. “To be on the podium next to two Olympians (Brittany Crew and Taryn Suttie) in my second year as a senior is really exciting.”
With her performance, Mitton has also qualified to compete for Canada at the FISU World University Games in Taipei next month.
“FISU was the goal,” said Mitton, who has bettered her personal best four times since April. “I still think there is a lot more to come in the future.”
The Windsor Legion’s Ally Oulds won a silver medal in the junior women’s 400-metre hurdles in 1:00.97.
Two other area athletes finished just off the podium. Bellemore was also fourth in the men’s 1,500 metres in a time of 3:46.65 while former Lancer Eli Pawliw was fourth in the men’s shot put with a throw of 17.22 metres.
I had many people from home come to watch, so it was pretty cool to be running in front of them.