RECAP: Gee-Gees turn in strong showing at the uOttawa Winter Classic
The Gee-Gees track and field team hosted the 16th annual Winter Classic meet at the Dome at Louis Riel on Friday and Saturday.
In all, the team logged 32 personal bests and won key events against strong competition from OUA and RSEQ opponents.
Friday night's key result for the Garnet and Grey was in the women's 4x200m relay where Ottawa's team of Bianca Borgella, Emma Martins, Katie Manor, and Sarah Firmie Ouangre won with a 1:42.57, finishing ahead of York and Toronto. As of Sunday, the team's time ranks seventh nationally and third among OUA schools.
With the meet in full swing on Saturday, the Gee-Gees logged more key performances to set the tone for early in the season.
The women's 4x400m relay was the highlight of the day as the team of Katie Manor, Sia Mahajan, Kennedy Banton-Lindsay, and Doyin Ogunremi blazed to a time of 3:55.33, edging out Toronto by .02. When posted, the time was good for second best in the nation, while other results have filed in over the weekend, the time stands as the sixth best in the nation and third best in the OUA as of Sunday.
"It was a great boost of team morale," said Banton-Lindsay about the 4x400 performance. "We couldn't do it without the support of the team on the sidelines. We wanted to start the season off on a strong foot, put ourselves in the conversation for U SPORTS, and show everyone what we can do – I think we did just that today."
In the women's 300m, Ogunremi was the top U SPORTS finisher with a 39.79 (11th U SPORTS / 5th OUA) while Manor was the top U SPORTS finisher in the 60m with a 7.69.
On the men's side, David Moulongou was the top U SPORTS finisher in the 600m with a 1:20.54, which places him just outside the Top 12 nationally at 15th.
For field events, Jessica Gyamfi impressed in shot put with a personal best of 12.39m, which ranks her 10th nationally and 4th in the OUA. Vienna Courteau continued strong results in the long and high jump, while Heather Grandy won the triple jump (11.50m).
"It was great to be home. We usually see a lot of athletes step up with the comfort of our home venue. Really decent weekend overall," said Gee-Gees head coach Richard Johnston.
"Our two women's relay performances were really great, two of the best we've seen at this stage in the year in a long time," said Johnston. "Those two results bode really well for us, and we have a lot of depth on both sides, so it gives the athletes some edge and confidence in each other, but also keeps them motivated to make sure their spot is secure."
Up next, the Gee-Gees will travel to Montreal for the McGill Team Challenge next Friday and Saturday.
Full results are available at the following link: https://ottawalions.com/results/2024-results/2024-uottawa-winter-classic/