Media Room
Press ReleasesJune 14, 2005
Canada Captures Inaugural Pacific World Cup As Three Records Fall At 22nd Harry Jerome Track Classic
BURNABY, BC -- Team Canada prevailed over China to win the inaugural Pacific World Cup at Tuesday's 22nd annual Vancouver Sun Harry Jerome International Track Classic.
Two meet records and a national junior mark were also rewritten at the international meet, where pre-event thunderstorms created cool, damp evening conditions at Swangard Stadium for the more than 300 athletes from 21 countries. But the weather did not dampen the spirit of the event or the crowd of 4,200 spectators as future Olympic hosts Canada and China also competed in a special intra-meet competition - the Pacific World Cup, presented by Paystone.com.
Canadian hurdler Priscilla Lopes led the Canadian team with a meet record 12.98 seconds in winning the women's 100-metre hurdles. China's Gao Shuying countered with a meet record of her own in winning the women's pole vault with a leap of 4.41 metres. But at the conclusion of the meet it was Canada taking the Cup with 34.5 points to China's 19.5 points. Eighteen-year-old steeplechaser Alex Genest also earned a spot in the record books by running a Canadian junior record 8:37.83 to finish fourth in the men's 3,000-metre steeplechase behind Matt Kerr of Elora, Ont., who won in 8:33.00.
The Pacific World Cup concept for the Jerome meet was conceived as a result of an April 2005 bilateral agreement signed by the Canadian and Chinese Olympic Committees in Beijing. The agreement has both countries committing to providing each other's athletes with early access to training and acclimatization sites leading up to the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing and the 2010 Winter Olympic Games in Vancouver.
Enter the Pacific World Cup concept featuring a historic entry of eight Chinese athletes competing against Canadian counterparts in six designated events on the 21-event Harry Jerome meet card. Each team's athletes scored points based on their results within the respective events.
"This is a really good opportunity, especially for younger athletes who need the world-level competition," said Lopes, of Whitby, Ont., about China's entry in the 2005 Jerome meet. "This is what we need to improve and I'm sure it helps their athletes as well. Competition can't help but make you better."
A year ago Lopes, now 22, garnered some attention at the 2004 Harry Jerome meet in finishing second while attaining part of the standard necessary to compete at the Summer Olympics in Athens. This year she not only won the women's 100-metre hurdles but in stopping the clock at 12.98 seconds she improved upon the 12.99 meet record earned by Canada's Julie Rocheleau back in 1988.
Jamaica's Antoinette Wilks finished second at 13.02 followed by Edmonton's Angela Whyte at 13.38. China's Zhang Rong was fourth at 13.70.
"This is my first race this year on home soil so it was good to come out here and represent Canada and to get a win," said Lopes, who took second at the NCAA championships in Sacramento just days earlier. "It's really good to be home."
On the men's side, Karl Jennings of Brampton, Ont., came into the Jerome meet as defending men's 110-metre hurdles champion and he went away with another victory in one of the most exciting races of the evening. Jennings, 26, finished in 13.81 seconds to edge China's Liu Lilu, who took second in 13.83. Canada's Jared MacLeod took third at 14.26.
Canadian sprinter Anson Henry won Section A of the men's 100 metres in 10.57 seconds, opting not to extend himself as he is just coming back from a hamstring injury. Trinidad's Jacey Harper took second at 10.60 with China's Yang Yaozu third at 10.67. The second Chinese entry in the race, Zhou Jiamin, was eighth at 11.30.
Meantime, American Babatunde Ridley won the second division of the 100 metres in a hand-timed 10.4 seconds.
China dominated the women's pole vault portion of the Pacific World Cup, with Gao Shuying improving upon the 4.40-metre meet record set by American Becky Holliday in 2004 with a 4.41 effort. Saskatoon's Kelsie Hendry took second at 4.10 while 2004 world junior championship bronze medallist Zhao Yingying, also of China, was third at 4.00.
"I'm extremely happy, this is only the third day we have been in Vancouver so we are still suffering from the time difference," said China's Gao via an interpreter. "I am very happy with what I achieved today."
Also happy with his achievement was 18-year-old Genest, of Lac-aux-Sables, Que. His 8:37.83 effort in the 3,000-metre steeplechase bettered the national junior mark of 8:40.98 set in 1992 by New Westminster's Jeff Schiebler.
"I felt great through all the race," said Genest. "I wanted to get it, get the record. At the end that was the only thing going in my head - the record, the record. I can't believe it. I was so focused before the race and I was positive. I said I was here to compete and to break that record. This might get me some carding and I think is also a standard for Francophone Games. So in all I am very happy."
If there was a downside to the meet it was that the Canadian men's 4x400 relay team had come to the event eager to run the 3:04.00 standard for the upcoming world track and field championships in Helsinki. The Canadian foursome of Nathan Vadeboncoeur, Keston Nelson, Gary Reed and Tyler Christopher were also seeking to break the 29-year-old national record of 3:02.64, set by the Canadian team in finishing fourth at the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal.
But it wasn't to be, even with national 400-metre record holder Christopher running an inspired anchor leg to wrest the lead from Trinidad with 300 metres left in the race. Canada won the race in 3:05.48 to Jamaica's 3:06.43 but Christopher could not deny the victory was bittersweet.
"You win some, you lose some, and this one we lost," said Christopher. "We won the race but we lost on the time."
Reed, who recently rewrote his national record in the 800 metres, was also disappointed with the result.
"I felt pretty good, everyone seemed to be feeling pretty good, it just didn't happen for us tonight," he said. "I don't have any excuses, I don't have any reasons, it just didn't happen. It's frustrating, this marks a couple of times now we have come close to getting an important qualifying time and we just haven't got it done."
Christopher refused to blame the cool, damp conditions for the Canadian foursome running slower than anticipated.
"You have to run, no matter what," said Christopher, who was born in Chilliwack, BC and trains in Edmonton. "I was born and raised with this weather, I like it, it's okay. I'm not sure if we'll have another chance, I'd like another chance. I'd like to have this team there, at the worlds."
In other events the men's mile, featured prominently in 2004 as a celebration of the 50th anniversary of the Miracle Mile, saw four runners finish under the magic four-minute mark. Britain's Chris Mulvaney won the race in 3:58.35 with Mexico's Juan Luis Barrios an eyelash behind at 3:58.45. Kenya's Elkanah Angwenyi was third at 3:59.51 while another Mexican, Alejandro Suarez Velazquez, also beat the four-minute clock at 3:59.81. Reid Coolsaet was top Canadian, fifth at 4:01.45.
Toyin Olupona of Orillia, Ont., fifth at the recent NCAA championships, won the women's 100 metres in a hand-timed 11.4 seconds with compatriot Genevieve Thibault second at 11.6. Trinidad's Ayanna Hutchinson took third, also at 11.6 seconds.
