It was a blazing hot Day 1 at the BC High School Championships, perfect for crowning BC's first 17 Provincial Track and Field Champions.
Meanwhile, the stage was set for finals coming up on Days 2 and 3. Here are just some of the highlights from an already action-packed day.
The day on the track got started with the Junior Girls and Boys 1500m steeplechase finals. Feron Wallace of South Kamloops Secondary took the girls win by over 7 seconds with a time of 5:07.32, while Nelle Liefsoens and Cleo Von Lieven were second and third, respectively. On the boys side, Samuel May from WJ Mouat ran a new Junior Boys Provincial Record en route to the win with a time of 4:22.37. Reuben Isak and Arata Nakanishi completed the podium.
BC also crowned its Grade 8 1500m champions today. Indie Cudmore of Mark R. Isfeld and Sullivan Friesen of Langley Christian are your girls and boys champions, respectively.
The Grade 8 4x100m Relay Finals also brought the heat to the track today. In a thrillingly tight battle, Vernon Secondary became the BC Grade 8 Girls Champions with a time of 52.58, with Langley Christian finishing right behind in 52.87. Crofton House claimed the final podium spot. On the boy's side, Saint George's won commandingly, with a time of 47.51. Sullivan Heights finished second with a time of 48.26, and Rutland Middle School finished third.
The qualification rounds for the 400m and 1500m were also held today.
Just 2 seconds separate the top 8 qualifiers for the Grade 8 Boys 400m. Tyse Wagenaar of Langley Christian was the fastest qualifier with a time of 55.38 heading into what will be a tight race. 2 athletes in the Grade 8 Girls 400 went sub-60 to become the top qualifiers heading into the finals on Day 2: Kaylie Dyste of Pacific Academy and Tanaz Aulakh-Kahlon. With just half a second between them, the final promises an exciting race.
The Junior Girls 400m final looks like it will be one of the most electrifying finals on Day 2. Chloe Symon of Lord Byng was the top qualifier in 57.52, and has gone sub-57 already this season. With all of the qualifiers under the 60-second barrier, the Junior Girls Record of 56.22 may be under threat. The Junior Boys will also bring the heat on Day 2, as top qualifier Spencer Blomerus of West Point Grey Academy ran 49.77 with a 1.5-second gap to the next fastest qualifier.
The Senior 400m finals will be tightly contested. The top 6 Senior Boys qualifiers all ran times within just one second of each other, setting the stage for a final you won't want to miss. Hudson Irvine of Earl Marriott was the top qualifier in 49.59, with Adam Sieben the second-fastest qualifier at 50.04, and Logan Peterson the third-fastest at 50.15. Maiya Brunoro of Langley Christian was the top qualifier on the Girls side with a time of 57.22. Elly McDowell-Mitchell was the second fastest qualifier with a time of 58.24, and Michaela Beuthin took the third spot with a time of 58.87.
The Senior Girls 1500m finals are stacked with familiar names. Ella Ballard, who was 4th at last year's championships, ran the fastest qualifying time with a 4:50.81. Maya Baechler of
Kitsilano, last year's BC Champion, was tied with Jaina Kang for the second-fastest qualifier with a time of 4:50.84.
The Senior Boys 1500m promises a thrilling race. Mark Molina of Mennonite Educational Institute was the top qualifier for the final with a tie of 4:02.84. Kai Martland and Yemane Mulugeta round out the top 3, with times of 4:03.02 and 4:03.22 respectively. With many qualifiers close to the 4-minute mark, keep your eyes peeled for a potential sub-4 run.
The Junior Girls 1500m heats saw Alexa Dow of Frances Kelsey take the top qualifying spot, nearly 3 seconds ahead of the second-fastest qualifier. Just 2 hours after being crowned the Junior Girls Steeplechase Champion, Feron Wallace also qualified for tomorrow's final. The Junior Mens 1500m will be a thrilling race as the top 10 qualifiers are all within just 3 seconds of each other. Noah Louwerse of Credo Christian heads into the final as the fastest qualifier with a time of 4:12.49.
Often one of the most anticipated events, the heats for the 4x100m Relay also took place on Day 1.
The top Junior Girls qualifier was Okanagan Mission. The top Junior Boys qualifier was West Point Grey Academy. Dr Charles Best Secondary was the fastest Senior Girls 4x100 qualifier, running nearly 2 seconds faster than the next fastest qualifier. Robert Alexander McMath Secondary was the fastest Senior Boys qualifier.
There was lots of action in the field on Day 1 as well.
Marty Bajarunas of Port Moody became BC's Senior Mens Javelin champion with a throw of 58.72m. Kayden U-Ming was just under 3m back to take the silver.
More throws champions were crowned in the discus and the shot put. In the Junior Girls Shot Put, Talia Phangura of North Surrey threw an impressive 14.23m to take the win. Gurleen Mander of Frank Hurt threw 12.50m for silver, and Natalie Franke of Crofton House threw 12.02m for bronze.
BC also found its AWD-II Shot Put Champion in Lina Liang, with Tayla Harnik in second. Both AWD-II athletes represented Seaquam Secondary.
Cathlene Van Zyl became the BC Champion in the Senior Girls Discus, with a huge throw of 40.36m. Keerat Dhillon took silver with a throw of 36.14m, and Lindsay Goudron was third with a throw of 35.57m.
The jumping events also got underway on Day 1, with finals in triple jump, long jump, and high jump.
Madison Gordon of RE Mountain was crowned the Senior Girls Long Jump Champion with a leap of 5.54m. Jasleen Nagra jumped 5.44m for second, and Marlena Tresnjo joins the podium with a jump of 5.35m.
In the Junior Boys Long Jump, Kevin Malo of Meadowridge School jumped 6.39m for gold with an impressive 32cm lead. Enoch Lee and Tason Tran took silver and bronze, respectively.
In the Junior Girls Triple Jump, just 1cm was the difference between gold and silver. Sofia Verma-Vitug of York House School jumped 10.98m for the win, with Allison Torrance taking silver with a jump of 10.97m. Mbunya Tateh was third with a jump of 10.68m.
In the Grade 8 Boys triple jump, Acheleke Tateh became BC Champion with a jump of 12.19m. David Ude took second, and Jose Pacheco Gramani took third.
Both Grade 8 High Jump finals took place today. Jaime Armstrong of York House School won the girls competition with a jump of 1.55m. Ian Tyler of Saint George's won the boys competition over Jairus Sorokovsky of Langley Christian on countback, as both cleared 1.75m.
After an already action-packed Day 1, there is lots to look forward to as the championships continue on Day 2 in Langley.