Track and Field (W)
By RANDY PHILLIPS, The Gazette
The best CIS track and field athletes are at McGill for the national championships and at the top of the list is Université de Sherbrooke sprinter Marie-Ève Dugas.
Dugas, a 22-year-old from Laval, was named the outstanding female track athlete of the year as the nationals got under way at Richard Tomlinson Field House yesterday.
Dugas was undefeated in the 60-metre sprint and 60m hurdles in the Quebec conference this season, and set a meet record in the hurdles (8.43 seconds) at the conference championships, where she also won gold in the 60 and 4x200 relay.
She entered the nationals ranked first in the country in both her specialties and eighth in the 300-metre event, in which she will compete this weekend, along with the 4x200 relay.
She got off to a good start last night, winning the 60m sprint in 7.59 seconds.
"It's been a really good season for sure. I couldn't have asked for any better," Dugas said. "And I'm excited about being here for the national championships."
Dugas was rookie of the year in the CIS in 2004-2005 while at the Université du Québec à Montréal, where she completed an undergraduate degree in fashion marketing. In her fourth year of CIS eligibility, she's finishing up the first year of a two-year MBA program at Sherbrooke.
In addition to her meet record in the 60m hurdles, Dugas also ran a personal best in the 60 with a time of 7.55 seconds.
"I hope to improve on both my times. It's what you're always trying to do. Trying to go faster," said Dugas who noted that she runs faster "between the hurdles" than she does in the 60 dash.
"Maybe it's the challenge of the hurdles being there that makes me go faster," she said. "Hurdles are what I really love."
Calgary's Sam Effah, a triple gold medallist in the 60, 300 and 4x200 at the Canada West finals, was male track athlete of the year, while Regina's Janine Poliscuk and Western Ontario's Andrew Judge - long- and high-jumpers - were named female and male athletes of the year in field events.
Sprinter Tommy Lecours of Université Laval and Guelph's Lindsay Carson, a middle-distance runner, were honoured as the top rookies, while Western sprinter Randy McAuley and distance-runner Sarah Skotty of St. Francis Xavier received student-athlete community service awards.
More than 400 athletes from 23 universities are competing at the nationals, which continue today from 1:30 p.m. to 9:15 p.m. and tomorrow from noon to 3:45 p.m.
Schedules and results are available online at www.cisport.ca/e/ championships/track/2008 or www.athletics.mcgill.ca.
rphillips@thegazette.canwest.com© The Gazette (Montreal) 2008