2016 Don Olson Classic In The Books

Hundreds of athletes descended on Albion Hills Conservation Area on October 1 to participate in the 4th annual Don Olson Classic 2.5K & 5K trail race.
 
Defending men’s 5K Champion Thomas Witkowicz earned his 3rd consecutive victory in a course record time of 15:56. Dean Cameron took the silver in 16:18 & Jamie Tarling won bronze with a 16:27. Jamie’s time shattered the men’s 20-29 age group record.
 
In the women’s 5K, Alessia Pizzimenti won the gold in 19:59 with Aysia Maurice & Emma Everett close on her heels in the silver & bronze medal positions in 20:02 & 20:03 respectively.
 
Top overall male in the youth 2.5K race was Jack Wierzbicki who crossed the line in 8:32 while top overall female, Ella Jackson, navigated the course in 9:17.
 
For complete 5K results CLICK HERE. For complete 2.5K results CLICK HERE.
 
Thank you to all the athletes & volunteers who make the Don Olson Classic a huge success every year. Thanks to you, we will be making a $7,000 donation to Bethell Hospice this year bringing our 4-year total up to $25,000.

Everett, Pizzimenti Mine Precious Medals in Timmins

On July 8-9, the Royal Canadian Legion hosted their Provincial Championships in Timmins. 310 Running’s Emma Everett & Alessia Pizzimenti were there to compete on the District E team.
 
Emma entered the meet as the top seed in the U16 1500m steeplechase with a personal best time of 5:23.20. Everett brought home the gold with an impressive 5:11.51. This result, which was just 27/100ths off the Provincial record earned her an invitation to compete for Team Ontario at the Youth National Championships in Ste-Therese, QC in August.
 
14 year old Emma will head to Nationals ranked 1st in Ontario in the U16 age group.
 
Alessia Pizzimenti competed in the 17U 2000m steeplechase & the 3000m race. She won the bronze in the 2000m steeplechase with a personal best 7:48.18 & placed 4th in the 3000 in 11:05.70.
 
Pizzimenti has National standard in both events & will compete at Youth Nationals in QC in August for 310 Running.

Doyle, Quann Big in Edmonton

Paige Doyle & Simon Quann headed to Edmonton on July 7-10 to compete in the Athletics Canada Junior National Championships. This meet, which also served as the Canadian Olympic Trials, showcased the very best track & field talent in Canada.
 
Coming off her 5th place finish in the 400m hurdles at OFSAA, Paige proved she was ready for an even bigger stage in Edmonton. Seeded 13th at Nationals with a personal best time of 1:03.29, Doyle needed to run a brilliant semi-final to qualify for one of the eight spots in the finals. And she delivered a near perfect race finishing with a huge PB of 1:01.91.
 
Less than 24 hours later, Paige was back on the track for the finals where she ultimately finished 8th overall in 1:03.90. 17 year old Doyle is now ranked 9th in Canada in the U20 age group.
 
Simon Quann had a slightly different path in Edmonton. Simon’s personal best of 1:55.08 in the 800 was just short of the Junior men’s National standard of 1:54.00 which meant he needed to run a qualifier to earn his spot in the semi-final.
 
Ranked 7th among athletes in the qualifier, Quann had the luxury of running a more relaxed first race. He easily earned is place in the semi-final.
 
When it came time to really race in the semis, Simon put down a very competitive 1:55.56 landing him 5th in his heat & 15th overall.

310 Running to Co-Host MTA Indoor Championships

310 Running & Burlington Legion will be co-hosting the Minor Track Association Indoor Championships on April 9 – 10 at York University.
 
The MTA Indoor Championships attracts more than 600 of the best track & field athletes from all over Ontario between the ages of 7 and 14. It is the largest 14U indoor track meet in Canada.
 
Club athletes have the opportunity to compete in running events ranging from 60m to 1500m as well as hurdles, relays, race walking, high jump, long jump, triple jump & shot put.
 
The MTA is the organizing body for 14U track & field in Ontario.