By Ryan Laverty
The University of Calgary Dinos made a quick jaunt up to Edmonton this past weekend. They didn’t stay long, just long enough for three athletes to earn the right to go to the Canadian Interuniversity Athletic Union Championships in a few weeks.
It was a weekend dominated by rookies, as both newcomers Michael MacDonald and Amy Barnett managed to meet CIAU qualifying standards for their respective events. MacDonald made standard in both the shot put, with a put of 14.85, and in the 35lb weight throw, with a toss of 14.48. Barnett is guaranteed her spot as a result of a blistering run of 1.34.34 in the women’s 600m event. Samantha Anderson also squeaked by the national standard of 5.64 with a leap of 5.65m in the long jump. Anderson, who already qualified for the national finals in the pentathlon, put her amazing versatility on display this weekend as she ran away with the crown in the 60m hurdles.
While not everyone managed to make the standard for their respective events, some honourable mentions must be made. Melissa Van Hal was the weekend’s champ in the pentathlon with a score of 3409.00, while Jill Salus hopped, skipped and jumped her way to a first place finish and distance of 11.31m in the triple jump. Aaron Swanson managed a very respectable third-place finish in the men’s 1500m.
This meet was a High-Performance competition and so it did not count for overall team points. As a result, many of our Dinos athletes did not compete. However, they’ll all be back on the track–or in the field–come Feb. 23 as the team heads to Regina for the Canada West Conference championships. The CIAU championships will go March 9-10 in Sherbrooke, Quebec.