NEAT athletes win big at Provincial Indoor Championships

Four local athletes from the North East Alberta Track Club traveled to Edmonton last weekend to take part in the Provincial Indoor Championships, with Hayley Lucas and Nicole Kitt bringing home hardware.

Lucas had a strong outing at the event, picking up gold medals in shot put and long jump as well as a bronze medal in the high jump. Lucas also competed in the 60-metre sprint, where she finished fourth, and the 60-metre hurdles where she finished fifth.

Kitt also had a strong weekend in Edmonton, as she picked up a gold medal in the 3,000-metre run and a bonze medal in the 1,500-metre run.

“It was really a very productive weekend for them. They did extremely well,” said NEAT head coach Reg Green, adding that in the 3,000 metre Kitt finished over 20 seconds ahead of her competitors with a time of 10:27.42. “She also set the club record and broke her own personal record.”

Kitt and Lucas managed to gather these five medals only two weeks after competing at the Simplot Games in Idaho, and made a note of thanking all of those who have helped them have such a successful year.

“(We) would like to thank Reg Green, Dr. Albert Harmse, Loree Laramee, and Alex Lawrence for coaching them and giving them the opportunity to compete at high leveled competitions like the Simplot Games,” Kitt said in an email to the Journal.

Also competing at the event were Eric Laramee, who managed a fifth place finish in the 60-metre hurdles, and Rachel Abejero, who fell shy of qualifying to the finals in the 60-metre and 200-metre sprint events.

“He’s coming back from (a leg) injury so I’m really pleased with the progress that he’s making at this point . . .Once that (injury) gets straightened away, he’s a really good jumper,” Green said, adding that Abejero only joined NEAT this winter, but has become a key athlete. “All of us coaches are very impressed with the progress (Abejero’s) making . . . We’re still kind of looking to see where she can use her talent the most productively.”

NEAT will now prepare for the outdoor track and field season, and Green says if weather permits they will be out training come mid-April.