Track and field team has stellar performances before push to nationals
As expected, fifth-year Gee-Gee sensation Devyani Biswal claimed gold in the women’s 60m hurdle at the Ontario University Athletics (OUA) Track and Field Championships in Windsor, spearheading a successful showing for Gees track and field athletes.
Coming into the tournament on Feb. 26-27 ranked first in the OUA and third in the nation, Biswal was a frontrunner in the women’s 60m hurdle from the get-go. She solidified her status as one of the nation’s very best with her 8.45s personal best and gold medal run on day one of the tournament.
Day two of the tournament brought more triumphs for the Garnet and Grey, this time on the men’s side, in the form of two bronze medals.
First, Ottawa’s Jacob Powrie earned bronze in the men’s heptathlon with a score of 4,813 points, followed by Yvan Ntivumbura’s bronze performance, and personal best 2.07m in the men’s high jump. Ntivumbura entered the contest ranked sixth in the nation.
The U of O’s three OUA medal-earners qualified for the CIS Championship and will be representing the Gee-Gees at the national tournament hosted by York University two weeks from now.
Joining Biswal, Powrie, and Ntivumbura at the National Championships are Gee-Gees’ Scott Hancock for men’s long jump, Steve Nkusi for men’s high jump, and Charlotte Gardner in the women’s 600m.
The men and women of Gee-Gees track and field look to build off their sixth-place finish at the OUA Championships and make a statement at nationals in Toronto on Mar. 10-12.
