Two Sardis secondary grads helped the University of British Columbia Thunderbirds complete a historic sweep at the 2019 NAIA (National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics) Track and Field National Championships.
Distance runner Tanner Geary and thrower Rowan Hamilton made the trip to Alabama for the meet, which took place at Mickey Miller Blackwell Stadium in a town called Gulf Shores.
They helped UBC win the team title on the men’s side, the second in three years for the Thunderbirds. The UBC women placed first as well, earning their first championship after finishing second last year.
Hamilton, who is coached by Chilliwack’s Harold Willers, continued his season-long dominance in the hammer throw.
Hamilton achieved a top mark of 63.50 metres on six throws, which was more than a metre ahead of the runner up.
The former Sardis Falcon was one of just four freshmen in the 35 athlete field. The others finished 18th, 31st and 34th overall.Looking at the top five, Hamilton finished ahead of four seniors.
Geary, meanwhile, turned in an impressive showing in the 1500 metre run.
The second year T-Bird who trained in Chilliwack under the tutelage of Sue Northey, finished fifth in his heat and qualified for finals with a time of 3:59.42.
Geary shaved almost two full seconds off that time in the final, clocking in at 3:57.50 to place eighth.