Manitobans compete with elite

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This article was published 13/02/2024 (836 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Noah Neves won’t run from a challenge.

The Winnipeg teen is taking a less familiar event in stride this week as he prepares for one of the largest track and field meets on his calendar.

Neves has established himself as one of the top high school track athletes in the country by dominating the 600-metre and 800-m races but will compete in the 400m at the Simplot Games, beginning Thursday at Idaho State University in Pocatello, Idaho.

He is one of four Manitobans making the trip, along with Winnipeg runner Annika De Smet (1,600m) and sprinter Elijah Falade (60m), and Arborg high-jumper Sydney Burak. The meet is one of the premier high school indoor track and field events in the U.S., welcoming more than 2,000 athletes from around the world — many of whom have gone on to compete in the Olympics.

Neves, a Grade 12 student at St. Paul’s High School, appreciates the allure of the event; he took home a bronze medal in the 800m race last year.

“It was pretty electric,” Neves, 17, recalled Tuesday. “There were a lot of people, obviously, (as) it’s a huge indoor stadium (with) athletes from all over the world — North America, Australia. Lots of people… really loud, it was great. Good atmosphere.”

Neves has run the 400m before, but never in an event with the calibre of athletes he’ll face in this week. While switching distances can be difficult, Neves is determined to expand his horizon as a runner.

“It’s going to be a little different, so we’ll see how I do. I mean, I do have expectations but at the same time, I don’t really know where I’m going to place exactly. I know the results last year and I know that it’s definitely going to be a challenge but it’s gonna be fun and it’ll be something different for me,” he said.

Neves says he hasn’t abandoned the other disciplines, he’ll be a 600m and 800m specialist when he runs for the University of Manitoba Bisons beginning in the fall.

“What this week is about is a chance to represent Manitoba and I never take an (opportunity) like that for granted. I love representing Manitoba,” said Neves, who has travelled south of the border for several meets and represented Canada at the Commonwealth Youth Games last summer. “But also, there’s an individual aspect where I’d like to prove to myself that I can run another event and be good at it and be good at multiple events like the 400 — do something out of my comfort zone.”

De Smet, who is in Grade 10 at Vincent Massey Collegiate, will also stray from her comfort zone when she travels south of the border for the first time for a meet. The 15-year-old will run in the 1,600m event, a little longer than her typical 1,500m race.

“This probably goes without saying but I’m very nervous,” De Smet said. “But I’m thinking it’ll be a fun experience and I’m definitely going to have a fun time there.”

It’s been a remarkable two-week stretch for De Smet. Shortly after finding out she’d been selected for the Simplot Games, she set a U18 provincial record in the one-km race with a time of 2:53.14 at the Bison Open the first weekend of February.

De Smet said this week is about the exposure she’ll get to some of the other top athletes in her discipline and proving she belongs.

“I was super excited,” she said. “Being selected and knowing that there were four people, that made it a lot more exciting.”

Indeed, there were more than 30 applications to represent the province in Idaho, the most local track coach Derek Ozunko can remember in some time. To be selected as the best among their peers, Ozunko said, is a feather in each athlete’s cap.

“I think it just springboards their career a lot by going to a meet like this because they know it’s one of the top high school meets in the United States for indoor. I think something like this would entirely motivate them to continue on their path of excellence for their prospective events,” said Ozunko, a coach with Winnipeg Optimist Athletics who will accompany the athletes on the trip.

Falade is in Grade 12 at St. Boniface Diocesan High School, while Burak is also in her graduating year at Arborg Collegiate.

jfreysam@freepress.mb.ca

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