Time for Westdale sprinter to catch his breath
Finally, Myles Misener-Daley gets some time off.
But time off for one of Canada’s sprinters-with-a-bullet isn’t the same as it is for most of the rest of us.
“I’m done for the season but I’ll probably start my own training until I get back training formally with Hamilton Olympic Club (in early October),” Misener-Daley says. “It’s a bit of a break right now.”
The 16-year-old Westdale student completed his brilliant track season last weekend with a sweep of the three sprint events at the Legion National Youth (U-18) championships in Brandon, Man.
And he still has a couple of years’ eligibility remaining before he moves up to the junior (U-20) division.
It was Misener-Daley’s second major triple crown of the season. He won the junior boys 100, 200 and 400 metre dashes at OFSAA in the spring before repeating the rare trey at the U-18 nationals.
His performances have put him firmly into the talent identification pool for Athletics Canada, which oversees track and field in this country.
For good measure, Misener-Daley ran the 200 metres at the Canadian U-20 championships in July and — running against sprinters two, three and four years older — won a bronze medal.
“I never thought I’d even make the final in the 200 at the U-20 championships, let alone win a medal,” he told The Spectator. “The main idea was just to get a faster time, which you can get running against older people. I think running against older athletes has helped quite a bit. I’ve matured a lot this year.
“This has been a really good year for me. I got a new personal best just about every time out. Especially taking up the 400, which was a new challenge, it has made me stronger in the 100 and 200.”
Misener-Daley first ran the longer distance at the Mark Graham Memorial Meet in Hamilton in May. Not originally drawn to the 400, he was talked into running the featured event by meet organizers, won it, and discovered he had promise in the one-lap race. He won every 400 metre final he ran in this year.
He recognizes that he’s been seriously noted by track officials and coaches in just his second full year since leaving soccer to concentrate solely on track, but says, “It’s important to not get too distracted. You have to stay with the present.”