U of A track stars work towards national and Olympic qualifiers

Two broken records, a U Sports qualifier here and there, and a ton of personal bests — you can’t complain about the 53rd Golden Bears Open and 12 podium finishes.

Led by an impressive group of fourth-year veterans who have been “fantastic leaders,” according to head coach Wes Moerman, the Bears and Pandas have set the right tone for a large crop of rookies.

“We’ve been switching the team around a lot this year, trying to get rookies experience. I was the only experienced athlete. Everyone else on the team was a rookie,” fourth-year runner, Jake Sawatzky said.

Sawatzky is in a good spot to focus work newer events

Sawatzky’s team in question was the 4×200 meter relay, who now auto-qualify for nationals with a time of 1:29.42. With the Canada West championship coming up in February, you’d have to think this would take a load off, right?

“It does. Obviously, that’s something you want to get done as early, as possible,” Sawatzky said.

“Now we don’t really have to focus on the four by two as much. We can look towards the four by four and the four by eight.”

With the relay set in motion, Sawatzky’s in a good spot to finesse his rookie team after “a little bit of a bumpy race.”

But it wasn’t the only rocky start. Sawatzky’s 60-meter dash, placed only at 14, was pretty odd for the typically high-ranking runner.

“The 60-meter is developing for me this season. I broke my foot this summer, so I’m just getting back into racing. And the 60 is one of those things. It’s very technical. It’s a very short race. So we’re working toward that this season and hopefully I can get that together.”

With a broken foot, we can let it slide. Instead, we can look forward to the hundred meter races Sawatzky is adding to his schedule.

Grace Cook, a little late to the party

Similarly to Sawatzky, Grace Cook missed a podium finish in her individual 600-meter, but placed second and third in the 4×400 and 4×800 meter, respectively.

Not bad, but it’s not what she was hoping for either.

“I thought it was a pretty good weekend. There’s a couple things I’m looking to work out in my 600-meter going into the next couple of meetings in Canada West, but I thought the four by four went really well,” Cook said.

That’s kind of the name of the game isn’t it? After all, “it’s not a given you’re going to go out and break a personal best every year,” Moeram said.

True, but as a fifth-year who didn’t decide to come back until November, Cook has some leeway to improve before conference leading meets.

Justin Rose heads to Olympic trials — again

In a more ‘look at me now’ direction, Justin Rose placed first in the 60-meter hurdle prelims, and second in the meet, after coming in first the year before.

“Last year I got a personal best [and Canada West record] here. This year I was so close I know that final would have been really good. So yeah, headed to Texas in two weeks with some of the best hurdlers in the world,” Rose said.

While it’s not odd for players to head to the states and do a couple of events before coming home, the Bears have yet to send someone to Texas Tech, or Texas for that matter.

But it’s not the craziest place Rose has, or will be going.

“I went to the Olympic trials [in 2024] and looking at some of the the competitors there, that’s what I aspire to be, an Olympian. But you need to hit a standard to go to Olympics. Obviously, I was just a little bit short of that standard.”

Don’t worry though, Rose will be back there this year, and he’ll “definitely be running faster.”