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Big medal haul for Nelson track athletes

Nelson’s Kootenay Chaos Track and Field Club proved hard work does pay off during the Van Ryswyk indoor meet in Kamloops this past weekend.
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Nelson’s Kootenay Chaos Track and Field Club competed at the Van Ryswyk indoor meet in Kamloops this past weekend and proved that hard work does pay off.

Danny Burgel, Kieren Dehnel, Mitchell and Matti Erickson, and Avie Waterfall finished the two-day meet with a total of 29 medals: 16 gold, nine silver and four bronze. New meet records were set, starting with Dehnel Friday evening in the 2,000 meter run.

In his first event at his first-ever track meet, Dehnel let all his nervous energy flow, maintaining a blistering pace start to finish. He crossed the finish line in just under seven minutes, breaking the existing meet record by over one minute. Dehnel finished the weekend with one gold, two silver and three bronze medals. Matti Erickson set age group meet records in the 200, 300, 800 and 1,200 meter runs as well as the 60 meter hurdles. He took home five gold, three silver and one bronze.

Both Mitchell Erickson and Waterfall contributed significantly to the team’s medal count. Mitchell, the junior member of the team at age ten, received seven medals, six gold and one silver. Waterfall also came home with a total of seven medals: four gold and three silver. Both were particularly dominant in the middle distance runs, 300to 1,200 meters, as the whole team has focused on speed-endurance training over the past several months.

Burgel, also in his first-ever meet, showed true determination, with a respectable finish in the 60m run and a bronze medal in the 400m despite sustaining a soft tissue injury during warm-up earlier in the day.

The Kootenay Chaos track team is coached by former national team coach Alex Ulaszonek. Outdoor practises will start after spring break at Lakeside field. New members are encouraged and welcome.