Jeremy Walsh's impressive team/individual predictor
Trackie predictions thread
Finally, championship season is here. Tomorrow, the best cross country athletes in the province will test their mettle against each other, and against the Chedoke golf course in Hamilton for the first time ever, and potentially the weather, which is looking to be 9 degrees with an 80% chance of rain. Given the rain Hamilton has gotten this week, its going to be messy either way.
Course Maps:
Women: Race goes at 11am, and the women do two of the 3km loop.
Men: Gun at 12pm, they start with a single 1km loop and continue on to three 3km loops. Something tells me they will be hurting by the time they hit the hill on loop number 4.
Women:
Even with the loss of the majority of last years top seven, the addition of some strong rookies and grad student Kierstin Myers means that the women will be looking to continue their streak of OUA medals this year. Leading the way will be Maddy McDonald, who is coming off a strong outdoor track season and will be looking to improve on her 7th place finish from King City last year. Courtney Patterson and captain Chelsea Mackinnon, the only other returning top 7 athletes, will be using their championship experience and the home course/crowd to their advantage. Rookie Emily Nowak and Kierstin Myers have been within seconds of each other both times they've raced together, and will be pushing each other harder than ever come tomorrow. 2nd year Raquel Burgess and 2009 World Track and Field Championships competitor Megan Beverly round out the top 7.
Men:
With the loss of only their 7th man from last year, the mens squad is looking the best they ever have. Things are looking good for the team to come home with their 2nd-ever OUA podium finish. Lionel Sanders is going to be putting the hurt on the competition, especially with the home course advantage. Who knows how to hurt better than an Ironman champion anyways? Connor Darlington, coming off a strong summer season with a Canada Summer Games gold medal, will be looking to improve on his race in Montreal and threatening some guys for at least a 2nd team All-Star spot. Taylor Forbes, Blair Morgan, and Taylor Reid are showing no signs of slowing down, and with a solid 2 weeks of running behind them after Montreal will be surprising some people come race time (I know my opinion may be slightly biased). Rounding out the top 7 are 2nd-year Gabe Ghiglione, who surprised a lot of people after being cut from the team last year, and rookie Paul Rochus. Come tomorrow, the boys will be looking to run down Windsor while staving off competition from a strong Queen's team.
Cheerios:
As always, I'm predicting another overwhelming win in the cheering department for Mac. See below:
One last article from the Sil before the race. See you on the course!
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