The thinnest margin of victory

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This article was published 10/06/2022 (1501 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The varsity girls 100-metre dash final lasted less than 15 seconds from the time the starting gun fired to when a blur of athletes crossed the line for a photo finish, but it was a payoff years in the making.

It took 12.87 seconds to crown the event’s first champion since 2019 on the second day of the Manitoba High School Provincial Track and Field Championships. Jazmin Birch, a Grade 11 student at College Beliveau, emerged victorious by five-hundredths of a second to capture the provincial title Friday afternoon at University of Manitoba Stadium.

“I would say before I’m really nervous,” said Birch. “But I use that nerve as excitement and I use it to boost me and hopefully get a good run.”

Birch was one of many provincial champions crowned during Friday’s event and said sometimes the race goes by fast and others slowly, but felt good about her performance in the 100-metre final.

“I think I did really good, I made sure I got a good start,” said Birch. “I used my long legs with strides.”

Maples Collegiate’s Zandre Castello smashed his personal best three times and nearly lept out of the stadium en route to the varsity boys high jump title.

The Grade 12 student won the event with a 1.9-metre jump. However, it wasn’t all smooth sailing for Castello, who only cleared the previous mark on his third and final try.

Castello said he focused on his breathing, closed his eyes and started his approach when he felt calm to recover and nail the 1.88-metre attempt. He only needed one shot to clear the 1.9-metre mark after narrowly passing the previous attempt.

“It feels very good, I feel like I want to pursue track now,” he said. “I’m doing very good… and it’s my first year doing high jump.”

Castello is off to the University of Manitoba and wants to try out for the school’s track team. He also had a lot to say about his teammates, who were actively trying to convince their coach to buy them Chicken McNuggets if Castello took home the gold.

“The support, I really appreciate it,” he said. “Not many people supported me… before all of this. This is nice.”

He’s also looking forward to celebrating the victory with his family.

“I’m gonna go home and celebrate with my mom and my dad and train more for it so I can go higher,” he said.

The varsity girls high jump final took place in the heat of the afternoon, which made for another obstacle as the competitors braved the elements in order to put their best foot forward.

Vincent Massey Collegiate’s Signy McKim took home the title by clearing a 1.56-metre jump on her last attempt.

“I haven’t been able to compete as much as I wanted to and I’ve definitely had to come back to where I was in Grade 10 a long time ago,” said McKim. “But I’ve been working hard to get back to where I was and I’m getting there.”

“I’m proud of what I did today, but I think I can do better still,” she added.

McKim thought the weather played a role in the performance of the field, noting the heat impacted their jumps. She laughed while explaining that as a redhead she had to work extra hard in order not to leave with a sunburn.

“I felt a little heavier today,” said McKim. “I think everyone did because I saw some people do a lot better yesterday, but I think everyone did great.”

The Grade 12 student will attend the University of Manitoba and compete on its track team after finishing high school. Before that, she’s excited to round out the meet and keep competing into the weekend.

“Honestly, I was scared for a bit that we wouldn’t have a track season,” said McKim. “But I’m really glad we did, I’m glad to be back.”

The 2022 Manitoba High School Provincial Track and Field Championships wrap up Saturday.

Just like the 100-metre dash the meet has gone by so fast that if you blinked you’d probably miss it. Everyone from athletes to event organizers agreed it’s been an event worth waiting for after two years of not being able to hold provincial championships.

“It feels good, I’m just really excited,” said Birch. “Even before coming here and before going to provincials, I was just excited to get back into the groove of everything.”

Gavin.Axelrod@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: Gavin77axe