Azariah John
Windermere鈥檚 Azariah John recorded one of the fastest times in the province in the senior boys 100 metre dash and he鈥檒l be on the B.C. championship podium this weekend if he even comes close to meeting his personal best.
His best time of 10.74 seconds was recorded last year at a track meet in St. Vincent and the Grenadines, the Caribbean island nation where John grew up. It鈥檚 faster than the 11.22 he recorded at the city championships on May 9, which he believes he can outrun.
鈥淭hat day, I was feeling pretty good and my performance was pretty good but I know I can do better. I wasn鈥檛 peaking yet,鈥� said the Grade 12 student.
His time entered at the provincial meet is the seventh fastest on paper and his personal best is second to only one time, 10.44 seconds recorded by Jerome Black from Rutland secondary.
John, 17, who trains with Winston Reckord of the Burnaby Striders, wants to medal.
鈥淚 have a lot of confidence in myself. I鈥檓 gong into this meet with a lot of confidence. I think I can win the finals. I鈥檓 actually pretty excited to go into the finals and do really good.鈥�
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Conny Bregman
Conny Bregman can鈥檛 help but go faster and faster. The Grade 11 sprinter at Hamber secondary ran for two gold medals in the senior girls 100 metre and 200 metre races at the city championships May 9.
She clocked a personal best in both distances and wants to drop even more time at the B.C. track and field championships this weekend in Langley. She also set a city record in the longer distance, running half a second faster than any time recorded in the past six years.
鈥淚 was really happy with my performance because it was an improvement over my time from last year,鈥� said Bregman, 16, in an email. 鈥淚鈥檇 never gotten a time like that before so it was a welcoming surprise.鈥�
In the 100m, she finished first in 12.91 seconds and in the 200m, came in 1.20 seconds faster than the runner-up when she crossed the finish line in 25.94 seconds.
She plays basketball and field hockey at Hamber and joined the track team in elementary school because of a family connection. "My brother was also a sprinter and I wanted to sprint like him," she said.
As one of the fastest in B.C., she's now setting the example.
