Dakota’s Davis sets record in 100m hurdles

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This article was published 07/06/2024 (704 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Matthew Gooden, Jordyn Davis and Ajibola Yusuff are among many athletes who made their mark this Friday on the second day of the Manitoba Provincial Track and Field Championships.

The largest track and field meet in the province for students in Grades 9 to 12 has more than 1,500 students competing in various events at the University Stadium at the University of Manitoba.

Gooden entered his Grade 12 year having never competed in the high jump. The Windsor Park Collegiate student’s relative inexperience didn’t show when he won gold in the varsity boy’s high jump Friday afternoon.

With a 2.00 metre jump, Gooden was the clear victor.

“A lot of my friends told me that I jump very high,” said Gooden on why he decided to train high jump this school year. “I was planning on starting last year but I didn’t follow through with it. This year I was like, I gotta at least try some jumping event because I thought it would be fun.”

The 17-year-old hopes to continue working on his high jump this fall at the University of Manitoba.

“I wasn’t expecting to get this far in the competition,” added Gooden. “It meant a lot for me to get that height and it made me realize my abilities.”

Davis also had a successful Day 2 of competition, winning the varsity girls 100-metres for the first time at provincials.

“It’s very exciting for me,” said the Grade 11 student at Dakota Collegiate.

On top of her first-place finish in the 100-metres, Davis broke a provincial record in the girls 100-metre hurdles earlier on Friday with a time of 14.87 seconds.

“I had my heart set on this one just a little bit,” said a smiling Davis who broke the U18 60-metre hurdle provincial record earlier this year.

Davis trains three days a week and loves everything about the track and field environment.

Pembina Trails Collegiate is competing in its first Manitoba track and field provincials. Thanks to Ajibola Yusuff, Pembina Trails is on the gold medal list with Yusuff’s 11.04-second 100-metres in the junior varisty boys event.

“Winning,” was the sole word used to describe Yusuff’s favourite part of competing track and field.

“I was really excited to see my time,” said Yusuff. “I haven’t been able to run much in the outdoor season because I kept getting injured, so I was really excited today.”

The provincial events conclude on Saturday and Annika De Smet is the athlete to watch on the final day of competition.

De Smet, who is finishing Grade 10 at Vincent Massey Collegiate (Winnipeg), trains six times a week and has an impressive record.

The junior varsity athlete broke the girls 1500-metre provincial record with a time of 4:33.90 to win the finals on Thursday. She will be looking to get another win under her belt in the 3000-metre race on Saturday morning.

zoe.pierce@freepress.mb.ca