Rookies Gabriel Martynuck and Avery Cooper competed in their first Ontario University Athletics (OUA) Cross Country race in Hamilton, Ontario on Friday, October 14th at Bayfront Park. The McMaster Marauders hosted this race in hopes of capturing the win on home turf.

The race consisted of four two-kilometre loops on a complete grass course overlooking Burlington Bay. The loops zig-zagged through the park and had a bit of elevation, but it was nothing the team couldn’t handle. The men raced at 12:45 p.m. and the women at 1:30 p.m.

As the men stood at the orange line waiting to hit their watches to go, anticipation started to grow. Martynuck started strong and kept his pace consistent, nestled in behind the pack, getting more comfortable on each new loop. Martynuck finished his eight-kilometre race with a time of 33:22.2. The first-year business administration student and multi-sport athlete averaged 4:10.3 per kilometre.

On the women’s side, Cooper stood waiting to go with determination and a plan on how she would run the course. Once the gun went off, Cooper ran to find a comfortable pace and gained strength after each two-kilometre loop. The first-year biology student finished her race with a time of 37:31.5 at an average pace of 4:41.4.

Both athletes enjoyed their first university race and had a great time, and thought the overall experience was exciting, even though the competition was fast.

In two weeks, the Thunderbirds will be heading back down south to compete at the OUA Championships hosted in London, Ontario at Thames Valley Golf Club.

Source: Algoma Thunderbirds Athletics