St. Thomas More student-athlete Katelyn Stewart-Barnett added to what has been a terrific summer with a gold-medal performance at the Legion national youth track and field championships in Cape Breton last week.
As a member of Team B.C., Stewart-Barnett captured the under-18 women’s 2000-metre steeplechase title at the annual meet, posting a winning time of 6:51.47. She was more than six-and-a-half seconds faster than her nearest rival, Jenna McFadyen of Saskatchewan. Her time was 10 seconds back of fellow New West native and current Oregon State Beaver Grace Fetherstonhaugh’s meet mark of 6:41.46, set two years ago.
A member of the Royal City Track and Field Club, Stewart-Barnett also represented B.C. in the high jump, and teamed up with three others, including New West Spartan Caleigh O’Flaherty, with B.C.’s u18 4x400m relay team that finished seventh overall.
Former Burnaby Striders’ runner Jaeland Cummings collected gold in both the u16 girls 100- and 200m dash events, winning with first with a time of 12.55 seconds. The Notre Dame Regional student picked up her second gold by finishing in 25.34. Cummings also collected a bronze in the 300m race, and joined up to compete in the u18 4x100 relay, placing sixth.
Michelle Dadson cashed in for silver in the u18 shotput, hitting a personal-best distance of 14.95m. An STM student-athlete, Dadson would also place fifth in the discus.
In the u18 girls’ hammerthrow, Zuzanna Liniewski, a Burnaby North student-athlete with the Royal City club, placed 10th with a distance of 41.98m.
