Guelph’s Carson places 11th at world university championships; Boorsma finishes 15th

By Mike Treadgold

For the first time in history, a Canadian team landed on the podium at the Federation Internationale du Sport (FISU) cross-country championships, the ultimate international university event.

Led by a fifth-place finish by the University of Toronto’s Megan Brown, and an 11th-place finish by Guelph Gryphons star runner Lindsay Carson, the Canadian women’s team brought home the bronze medal from last weekend’s FISU races in Kingston.

“Lindsay may have even exceeded our expectations for her in the race,” said Canadian assistant coach Chris Moulton, who had speculated that Carson was capable of a top-15 finish, but also had to consider that she has fought injuries throughout the season. “She ran exceptionally well.”

The women’s 5km race was comprised of four 1.25km laps around the Fort Henry Hill course. The pace was quick and the race was ultimately won by Portugal’s Sara Moreira. A pair of British women, Jess Sparke and Joanne Harvey, joined Moreira on the podium, giving the British women’s team their second consecutive title. The third-place finish for the Canadian women was even more incredible considering the team was missing Guelph’s Rachel Cliff, who was held out due to a stress reaction injury in her lower leg.

Western’s Bob Vigars was the head coach of the Canadian teams, assisted by McMaster’s Rory Sneyd, who offered his leadership to the women’s team and Guelph’s Moulton, who helped lead the men. After the outstanding women’s result in Sunday’s opening race, the men were next, taking off at a furious pace.

“It was unbelievable how fast the men went out,” said Moulton, who coached the Canadian men to a fourth-place overall finish, their best ever result. “The pace would have been as fast as some of our guys would have started their 3km track races.”

The Canadian men, however, were prepared for such a quick start, establishing their positions and hanging on to finish all five runners in the top 30. Scoring was determined by the top four finishers on each men’s team. The Canadian men’s team was led by Gryphon Male Athlete of the Year, Kyle Boorsma, who finished 15th, tying him for the best all-time finish by a Canadian male. Japan took the men’s team title, led by a gold medal win by Tetsuya Yoroizaka.

“I was very pleased with my result at FISUs,” said Boorsma. “I was proud to be a part of the Canadian team and happy that I could contribute to our fourth-place finish.”

Fellow Canadians Kyle O’Neill (Western) and Dave Weston (Windsor) finished in 20th and 24th, while Boorsma’s Gryphon teammates Allan Brett and Matt Brunsting, the CIS cross-country champion, finished 25th and 27th respectively.

The outstanding performances by both the Canadian men’s and women’s teams proved just how strong the cross-country program in this country really is.

“The FISU championships were a great race,” said Boorsma. “I think they were a testament to how strong the CIS competition is right now, given that the Canadian teams placed third and fourth in a very competitive international field.”

For the first time in the history of the FISU cross-country races, the Canadians enjoyed a home field advantage, competing on the same course as where the CIS championships took place earlier in the year. The crowd support was instrumental in pushing the Canadians to the next level.

“The atmosphere was phenomenal,” said Moulton, who speculated that there were about 1500 spectators in attendance. “It was unique because you don’t usually go to a cross-country meet where everyone is cheering for one team. When you to an OUA or CIS championship, everyone is cheering for their own school.

“But on the weekend, almost everyone was cheering for Team Canada. It was pretty special.”

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