Sean Burges (Ravens Track and Field) - Photo: Miles Ryan Rowat / Mundo Sports Images
Carleton Ravens Track and Field kicked off the 2024 calendar year off with a great day at the first RSEQ meet of the season in Sherbrooke. Seventeen current Ravens and two alumni made the trip through the snow to Vert et Or Invitational, bringing home ten personal bests, three school records, and two gold medals. Ravens Alumni added to the success with an additional two wins.
Carleton is fast becoming a leading RSEQ and USports throwing school. Brianna Asiamah won the shot put with a massive heave of 13.31m, breaking the Carleton record she set in December by over two feet and just missing the USports auto qualifier mark by a whisker. The throw ranks Brianna third in USports and, based on last year’s rankings, should be enough to qualifier her for the national championships in March.
Canadian U20 champion Connor Fraser joined Brianna in the Carleton Ravens record demolition derby, shattering his shot put mark by just over a foot with a throw of 15.20m for the win. This mark ranks Connor seventh in USports and sees him closing in on the auto-qualifier standard.
On the track, Aria Macdonald is finding her track legs after a long cross-country season leading the Ravens throughout the hilly, muddy terrain of the fall racing circuit. She opened her 2024 short track season with a seven-second personal best in the 1,000m to break the Ravens record by nearly five seconds. This performance currently ranks her 7th in RSEQ.
On the alumni front, Alexandra Telford (2021 Usport 300m Bronze Medalist, 60mH, 300m Record holder) competed in her first ever 600m, controlling the field from start to finish and winning the race comfortably. In the long jump, Maria Okwechime (2023 Canadian National Champion in the Long Jump) shook off the early season rust with an easy win. Both women have big goals this outdoor season and this marks the start of what will be an exciting Olympic year!
Twenty-two members of the Carleton Ravens Track and Field Team are in action in town this weekend at the uOttawa Winter Classic, held at the Louis Riel Dome on Friday and Saturday, January 19th-20th. Entry is open to the public with events on Saturday going from 11:00 am-5:00 pm.
