As the world prepares for the 2016 Summer Olympics and marks the 2,792 anniversary of the very first recorded Olympics in 776 BC, the York Lions’ wrestling and track and field teams continue to excel in these traditional sports.
The Lions earned 13 medals in track and field at the Can Am Track Classic in Windsor this past Saturday. On that same day, decorated Lion wrestlers Alexandria Town and Ali Koca battled their way past some of Canada’s top wrestlers to fifth-place finishes at the Brock Open.
Town, who has arguably been the Lions’ most successful wrestler so far this season, squared off against Jade Parsons and Cierra Carere, two of Canada’s leading wrestlers in the women’s 55-kilogram weight class. Parsons recently placed third in qualifying trials for Canada’s Olympic team for Rio 2016 and is previously a four-time Canadian Interuniversity Sport champion. Carere was the junior national champion in 2014.
Town defeated both competitors but came in at fifth place, unable to secure herself a familiar spot on the podium. Her teammate Ali Koca earned the same result in the men’s 130-kilogram weight class, defeating the Badgers’ Josh Gomer twice, but then falling to Gomer’s teammate Donovan Lozada.
Meanwhile in Windsor, the track and field team was climbing up and down the podium throughout the day. Richard Jansen’s 14.18 metre jump in the men’s triple jump earned him a gold medal, and Nicholas Fyffe jumped 6.82 metres in the men’s long jump to earn himself bronze.
On the race track, Ayo Agusto sped through the 300-metre dash in 34.49 seconds to win the silver medal and qualify himself for the upcoming CIS championships. Along with Brandon Shoukour, Jalen Pidlubny, and Daniele Orsini, Agusto also won a bronze medal in the 4×200 metre relay for a time of 1:32:29.
Brittany Crew won two gold medals in the women’s weight throw and shot put events, effectively reminding her competition that she is ranked first in the CIS in both events. Holly Peters also won a gold medal for leaping a personal-best 5.92 metres in the women’s long jump.
The Lions’ Sheereen Harris won a silver medal in the women’s 300-metre dash with a time of 38.94 seconds. This was her second medal of the meet, having won her other one with Christy Ihumaegbo, Shania Payne, and Mikeisha Bobb in the women’s 4×200 metre relay.
At the same time, two of the Lions’ pole vaulters were competing at the Akron Pole Vault Convention in Akron, Ohio. Three-time CIS gold medalist David McKay won a gold medal at the event and qualified himself for a fourth chance at CIS gold, while his rookie teammate Samuel Adams came within four centimetres of the 4.75 metre national standard and finished ninth.
Hassam Munir, Sports and Health Editor
Featured image courtesy of Steve Kriemadis via York Lions
