Martens named to National Junior Track Team

Posted on July 13, 2015 by bcorcoranMHC
Mirelle Martens (foreground) has been selected to Team Canada for the 2015 Pan Am Junior Championships

Mirelle Martens (foreground) has been selected to Team Canada for the 2015 Pan Am Junior Championships

Athletics Canada announced today the names of 63 athletes who will represent Canada at the 2015 Pan Am Junior Track and Field Championships later this month in Edmonton.  Grande Prairie’s Mirelle Martens has been selected to contest the 3000m.

Martens qualified for the team based on achieving the Jr Pan Am standard time of 9:50 plus her placing in the recent 2015 Canadian Junior Track and Field Championships.  She becomes the first Grande Prairie athlete since the late Jeff Halvorsen  to earn a spot on the Junior National team.  Halvorsen represented Team Canada in 2000 in the Canada-US Challenge Junior meet.

The Pan Am Junior meet will attract over 500 athletes from 38 different countries from North America, South America, Central America, and the Caribbean.  It takes places from July 31 to August 2.  Martens’ race goes Friday, July 31 at 7 p.m.

2015 Pan Am Juniors Website

Athletics Canada Press Release

 

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Personal Best Times for Hollowell and Martens at Tracktown Classic

Posted on July 13, 2015 by bcorcoranMHC
Hayden Hollowell established two personal best times at the Tracktown Classic in Edmonton on July 11/12. 2015

Hayden Hollowell established two personal best times at the Tracktown Classic in Edmonton on July 11/12. 2015

Wolves Athletic Club runners Hayden Hollowell and Mirelle Martens established several personal best times at the Tracktown Classic in Edmonton on the weekend.

Hollowell posted a time of 15:40 for 5000m on Sunday and placed third.  On Saturday, he recorded a time of 4:02 for 15000m, good for 7th place.

Martens recorded a lifetime best time of 4:38 in the women’s 1500m on Saturday.  She finished 4th.

Wolves alum Fiona Benson, now running for the Langley Mustangs, also had a notable meet.  She placed second in the international section of the women’s 800m with a time of 2:00.55.  This is the second time this season that Benson has bettered the 2016 Olympic standard of 2:01.  She currently sits #1 in Canada and #19 in the world on the 2015 rankings for 800m.

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Benson Triumphs in AC Nats 800m; Qualifies for Worlds

Posted on July 6, 2015 by bcorcoranMHC
The 350m mark of the 2105 AC Nats 800m final. Fiona Benson is the second runner from the left

The 350m mark of the 2105 AC Nats 800m final. Fiona Benson is the second runner from the left

Wolves Alum Fiona Benson continued her breakout track season on Sunday, capturing the 800m title at the Athletics Canada National Track and Field Championships in Edmonton on Sunday.

The 23 year old runner from Tomslake, BC, took the lead with 250m remaining in the race and held on for victory, recording a time of 2:08.52.   2012 Olympians Melissa Bishop and Jessica Smith placed second and third respectively, just meters behind Benson.

The victory at nationals, coupled with a qualifying time run earlier in June, earned Benson for a spot on Team Canada for the 2015 IAAF World Track and Field Championships in China later in August.

In May, Benson shocked the Canadian running community by taking 6 seconds off of her personal best time in the 800m, running 2:01 in a race in Victoria, BC.  Over the next month, she reeled off three  more victories in high performance races on the West Coast lowering her best time to 1:59.94.  Benson became only the fifth Canadian woman ever to run under 2 minutes.

Benson ran for the Wolves in the 2010-11 season.  She won the 2010 CCAA Cross Country Running individual gold medal and represented Canada at the 2011 IAAF World Junior XC Running Championships.  She was named co-winner of the GPRC Female Athlete of the Year in 2010-11.  For the past four years, she has competed for Trinity Western University in Langley, BC where she’s won multiple CIS team and individual teams medals in both track and cross country running.

Six other current and former Wolves also competed at nationals.  On Thursday,  Mirelle Martens won the bronze medal in the Junior Women’s 5000m (17:33).  Martens also contested the Junior Women’s 3000m on Sunday, where she ran into a bit of bad luck.  Entering the final lap in third place, a trailing runner clipped her heel causing a stumble and near fall.  Martens was unable to recover from the mishap and faded to 8th place (10:07).

Other local results included:

Hayden Hollowell    Senior Men’s 1500m (27th, 4:07)

Jamie Wigmore        Senior Women’s 800m (27th, 2:16)

Jessica Baraskewich    Senior Women’s 800m (28th, 2:17)

Danae Keddie        Junior Women’s 3000m (14th, 10:52)

Dylan Zambonelli    Senior Men’s 400m (22nd, 58)   and Senior Men’s 400m Hurdles (13th, 1:04)

Full results from the 2o15 Athletics Canada Track and Field Nationals

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Bronze for Martens in Athletics Canada Jr Nats 5000m

Posted on July 3, 2015 by bcorcoranMHC
15BigMir5000Bronze

Mirelle Martens placed third in the Jr Womens 5000m at the 2015 AC National Track and Field Championships

Wolves Athletics Club runner Mirelle Martens added another national bronze medal to her portfolio on Thursday, finishing third in the Junior Women’s 5000m at the 2015 Athletics Canada National Track and Field Championships in Edmonton.

Martens recorded a personal best time of 17:33 under hot and sunny conditions.  The race was won by Quebec’s Anne-Marie Comeau  in a championship record time of 17.05.  Fellow Quebec athlete Aurélie Dubé-Lavoie was second, seven seconds ahead of Martens.

Last fall, Martens won the bronze medal in the Junior Women’s 6ooom race at the Athletics Canada National Cross Country Championships.

On Sunday, Martens will contest the 3000m, where she is seeded second among 16 competitors.

Team mates Jamie Wigmore and Jess Baraskewich take to the track on Friday morning in the qualifying round of the Senior Women’s 800m.  Hayden Hollowell runs in the semi finals of the Senior Mens 1500m on Friday evening.

Full results and schedules are posted on the 2015 AC Nationals website.

 

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Wigmore PRs her way on to the National List

Posted on June 23, 2015 by bcorcoranMHC
Jamie Wigmore ran a strong 800m at the 2015 Caltaf Classic Track meet

Jamie Wigmore (middle)  ran a strong 800m at the 2015 Caltaf Classic Track meet

Wolves Athletics Club runner Jamie Wigmore finished second in the Senior Women’s race and established a new personal best time of 2:12.16 for 800m on Sunday at the CALTAF Classic Track Meet in Calgary.  The mark currently ranks her as #50 on the 2015 Canadian list for the Women’s 800m.   Former Wolves runner Fiona Benson, now running for the Langley Mustangs, occupies the #1 position on the National 800m list.

Wigmore also contested the 1500m on Saturday, placing 5th in a time of 4:43.93.

Two other Wolves athletes had podium finishes.  Hayden Hollowell placed second in the Senior Mens’s 3000m Steeplechase (10:07.57) and third in the 3000m (9:07.08). Mirelle Martens placed third in the WCG 16-20 1500 (4:42.28) and second in the 3000m (10:09.08.)

Martens currently is ranked #1 in the country in the Junior Women’s 3000m and #4 in the 5000m.

Full meet results are posted here.

Next up for Wolves Athletics Club athletes is the Athletics Canada National Track and Field Championships in Edmonton from July 2 to 5,

 

 

 

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Top five finishes for local tracksters at high school provincials

Posted on June 7, 2015 by bcorcoranMHC
Brittany Duvall (far left) and Kailey Bratland (far right) both notched top 5 performances at the 2015 ASAA Provincial Track Meet in Lethbridge

Brittany Duvall (far left) and Kailey Bratland (far right) both notched top 5 performances at the 2015 ASAA Provincial Track Meet in Lethbridge

A quartet of local women registered top 5 results at the 2015 Alberta Schools Athletics Association High School Provincial Track and Field Championships in Lethbridge on the weekend.

Charles Spencer’s Kelsey Bishop recorded a 4th place finish in the Junior Girls 400m (63 seconds), while St Joe’s Janai Martens also placed 4th in the Intermediate Girls Long Jump (5.09m).

Fifth place performances by Eaglesham’s Brittany Duvall (Intermediate Girls 800 – 2:27) and by Beaverlodge’s Kailey Bratland (Intermediate Girls 3000m – 11:29) were the next best local placings.

All four athletes achieved personal best marks at the meet.

In the team standings, Hillside School from Valleyview had the best placing, third amongst the 2A schools,

Full results are posted here

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Multiple Records Fall at Zone Track Championships

Posted on May 31, 2015 by bcorcoranMHC
14BritandKailey

Kailey Bratland (left) chased Brittany Duvall (right) to three Zone records in the Intermediate Women’s 800, 1500, and 3000 on Friday/Saturday. The duo also teamed up with Taysha Dunnington and Kelsey Bishop to set another Zone record in the Women’s 4 x 400m relay

Eaglesham’s Brittany Duvall had a career day on Saturday, setting four Zone records in the Intermediate Women’s category at the 2015 ASAA NW Zone Track and Field Championships at the Legion Track.

Duvall set new standards in the 800m (2:33), the 1500m (5:17) and the 3000m (11:21) in the two-day meet.  She also teamed up with Kailey Bratland, Taysha Dunnington, and Kelsey Bishop to establish a new mark of 4:34 in the Women’s 4 x 400m relay.

Other multiple record setters included Janai Martens from St Joes (Int Women’s Long Jump and Triple Jump), Mark Simpson from Hillside Valleyview (Sr Men’s Shot Put and Discus), Kris Baird from Charles Spencer (Sr Boys Shot Put and Discus), and Madigan Ewan from Hillside Valleyview (Jr Girls Shot Put and Discus).

Hillside Valleyview defended  its Jr High team title, while High Prairie’s EW Pratt School ended Hillside’s 10 year Sr High team winning streak and took Sr High crown.

The top two athletes in each event from the meet qualified for next week’s ASAA High School Provincial Track and Field Championships in Lethbridge.

Full results are posted on the NW Zone Track and Field page.

 

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Super Saturday for Wolves Runners

Posted on May 24, 2015 by bcorcoranMHC
Six WAC athletes = 4 wins, 1 second, and 1 5th at the 2015 DHT Press Run

Six WAC athletes = 4 wins, 1 second, and 1 5th at the 2015 DHT Press Run

Wolves Athletics Club runners acheived great success on two different surfaces in two different locales on Saturday.

In Grande Prairie, Club runners took the top male and female spots in two of three races at the 39th Annual Daily Herald Tribune Press Run.  Hayden Hollowell established a new race record in the half marathon distance, clocking a time of 1:18:11.  Hollowell’s margin of victory was 8 minutes; over 2 km ahead of the runner up Landon Dunbar.

Hayden Hollowell cruising to victory in the 2105 DHT Press Run

Hayden Hollowell cruising to victory in the 2105 DHT Press Run

Amanda Patteson (women’s 10km – 42:11), Jackie Benning (women’s 5 km – 19:11), and Brandon Wladyko (10 km – 38:00) were the other WAC winners.  Kirsten Manz placed second in the women’s 5 km while Josh Malmstem was 5th in the men’s 10 km.

In Edmonton, a trio of WAC women contested the U of A Golden Bear Challenge.  In the women’s 1500m, the Grande Prairie duo of Mirelle Martens (4:39) and Jamie Wigmore (4:45) went 1-2.  Marten’s clocking was a personal best time and achieved the qualifying standard for the  2015 AC National Junior Championships.

Two hours later, Martens and Wigmore, along with Jess Baraskewich,  lined up for the meet’s featured event, the 800m.  This time it was Wigmore who was the best local, placing 5th in a personal best time of 2:14.  Martens (2:18) was eighth, while Baraskewich (2:19) was ninth.

Results for the 2015 DHT Press Run

Results for the 2015 U of A Golden Bear Challenge

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2015 Peace Country Classic was one for the Ages

Posted on May 10, 2015 by bcorcoranMHC
15PCC5000m

Eric Martinek (left), Jamie Wigmore, Mirelle Martens, and Brandon Wladyko in the early stages of the 5000m at the 2015 Peace Country Classic Track Meet

Over 200 athletes of all ages and abilities descended on the Legion Field Saturday to contest the 2015 Peace Country Classic/ GP Kids Track Meet.

In the featured 5000m race, Eric Martinek captured the win with a time of 17:30, two seconds better than Brandon Wladyko.  Mirelle Martens placed third in 17:35 and achieved the qualifying time standard for the Athletics Canada Junior National Track and Field Championships.

15CiannaPCC

Cianna Forseille was “thrilled” with her 5th place “ribbon” for the Senior High Womens Discus. In her defence though, she won the Javelin and was third in the Shot Put.

The meet also served as a qualifier for the Alberta 55+ Seniors Games in July.  88 year old Dorothy Sudnik won the Women’s 80+ Javelin with a mighty toss of 5.47m.  Sudnik also place second in shot put and discus.

The Dawson Creek Track Club won the team competition; Hillcrest Christian School was second.

Full results are posted here 15pccresults

Team scores are posted here 15pccteamscores

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Wolves Trio Cracks Top 25 at TC 10 km

Posted on April 27, 2015 by bcorcoranMHC
Seven Wolves athletes contested the 2015 TC 10 km in Victoria

Seven Wolves athletes contested the 2015 TC 10 km in Victoria

Eight GP athletes were in Victoria, B.C.  on Sunday to contest the 2015 Times Colonist Road Race.

Mirelle Martens recorded the top local performance, placing 7th among all women runners.  Martens stopped the clock at 36:39 for the rolling 10 km course.

Teammates Jackie Benning (20th-39:37) and Amanda Patteson (24th-39:57) also both posted huge personal best times.

Other Wolves finishers included Brandon Wladyko (38:17) and Emily Whalen (52:10).  High schooler Brittany Duvall ran 46:17, 15 seconds better than Wolves coach Bill Corcoran.

In the half-marathon event, GP’s Andrea Snider placed third among the women in a time of 1:29:46.

With nearly 10,ooo finishers, the TC road races is one of Canada’s largest running events.

Full results are posted at Race Day Timing

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