A sizeable cohort of Cochrane's competitive cross-country runners capped off the 2022 season by competing at the national championships in Ottawa on Nov. 26.
Fifteen athletes at the Canada-wide meet represented the Cochrane Endurance Project, including full men's and women's U18 teams and a senior women's team for the first time. According to head coach Travis Cummings, it was the largest team the local club has sent to nationals in its brief three-year history.
While Cochrane's cohort fared well overall, a highlight of the meet at Ottawa's Mooney's Bay was the senior women's overall finish in seventh place in the team competition.
“There were some lessons, but it was overwhelmingly positive and they did really well,” Cummings said. “The races were super competitive – probably one of the top three most competitive senior women’s races I’ve seen. There were multiple Olympians. World Cross is back this year, so there were a ton of people racing to try and make the team.
“There were some ups and downs on the day, but overall the group set a great tone for the club going forward into the 2023 competitive year.”
Among Cochrane's highest-placing female athletes were Courtney Brohart, who finished 22nd in the senior women's race; Holly Moore, who finished 47th in the U20 women's race; Sophia Nowicki, who came in 39th in her race; and Csenia Irvin, who placed 65th in the U18 women's race.
“[Finishing] top 100 at nationals is a pretty big deal for any athlete,” Cummings said, noting here were over 300 athletes in each race category.
Other female athletes Cummings cited were Cochrane Endurance Project coach Pamela Moores, who raced in the 50-to-54-year-old age category, Makenna Fitzgerald, who came in 47th, Grace Beach, who placed 98th, newcomer Bridget Pyke, and veteran runner Jessica Kaiser.
Cummings noted the amount of experience among the group varied, and for many of the athletes, it was their first national championships.
“The athletes [for whom] this was their first kick at the can, it was a pretty big eye-opener,” he said. “It always improves their performances going forward, once they get their eyes open at nationals. That’s half the reason why we go.”
On the boys' side, Cummings noted the club's U18 team was very young, even including a few 14- and 15-year-old runners. He said the squad nonetheless huffed and puffed their way to a 24th-place overall finish in the team competition.
“They’ve got another three or four years of U18, so they just have to keep plugging away,” he said. “It’s valuable experience. They were re-motivated about what they need to do in training after that. That’s a good thing as a coach.”
Caden Jones, a Grade 11 student-athlete at St. Timothy Catholic School, came in 78th place with a six-kilometre time of 21:47. His top-80 finish was a big improvement from his 151st-place showing in 2021.
“It went all right,” Jones said of his performance in Ottawa. “It’s a big meet – there’s nothing like it in Alberta, so it’s a learning curve to race at a race with so many people and such high-quality competition. But I think I still finished well considering all that.”
Cummings said apart from Jones, who was the Cochrane Endurance Project's only returning U18 boys' runner this year, the club's other U18 male runners included Raimo Sollitt, Brady Malley, and Branson Cote.
According to the coach, nationals capped off what was a lengthy 2022 outdoor season for the Cochrane Endurance Project, and the club's members will enjoy a much-needed rest until mid-to-late January. After that, he said the athletes train and compete throughout the rest of the winter at indoor track meets, but are also encouraged to compete in other sports to maintain their fitness.
Then, he said preparations for the outdoor track season will ramp up in March and it will be full-steam-ahead for the rest of the spring, summer, and fall.
“A little bit of indoor racing is good to stay sharp, but we really don’t want them doing too much,” he said. “They need a little bit of a mental break before the long haul for outdoor.”
With nationals taking place in Abbotsford, B.C. next fall, Cummings said he expects a similarly large cohort of Cochrane athletes to compete at Canada's top cross-country meet.
“The club is still pretty new, so we’re moving from just being happy to be at nationals to athletes actually improving and having goals at nationals,” he said. “That’s a big shift at the club. That’s a big plus for me.”
