Podbielski claims double U20 gold; Pritchard, Zablocki also win U20 gold at #BellTrials23

Jonathan Podbielski won both the U20 800-metre and U20 1500-metre races, Shelaine Pritchard took first in the U20 heptathlon, and Storm Zablocki claimed gold in the U20 100-metre dash at the 2023 Bell Canadian Track & Field Championships last week in Langley, B.C.

Pritchard got things started for the Cougars over the first two days in the U20 heptathlon, which she led from wire to wire. She won three of the seven events outright and finished the competition with 4589 points, 75 more than the second-place finisher. The victory gives Pritchard two heptathlon wins in as many years as she also won last year's U20 heptathlon with a nearly identical point total (4591).

Pritchard nearly added a second medal in the long jump on Saturday, but finished just off the podium in fourth place with a top jump of 5.62 metres.

Zablocki started out his weekend by winning his Thursday heat in the U20 100-metre dash, then dropped the fastest time of any competitor in the Friday semifinals. In the final, Zablocki finished with a time of 10.35 seconds to cruise to victory by two-tenths of a second over the second-place finisher. Zablocki will now get ready for his first international competition as he'll travel to Mayagüez, Puerto Rico next week for the U20 Pan American Championships.

It was then Podbielski's turn to shine.

His Saturday started by qualifying for the 800-metre final in late afternoon, then just a few hours later Podbielski outdueled the University of Michigan's Riley Flemington down the stretch to earn gold in the 1500-metre run (3:49.62). He completed the double on Sunday, putting together a dominating performance to win gold in the 800-metre run with a time of 1:50.71, over a second faster than the second-place finisher.

In the senior category, Sara Kozan and Kaila Neigum both qualified for the finals in their respective events. Kozan finished seventh in the long jump (5.64m) while Neigum placed 11th in the 1500-metre run.

NOTES: Cougar alum Adrea Propp finished sixth in the 400-metre hurdles and seventh in the 800-metre run ... Propp competed with the Cougars from 2010 to 2015 and raced unattached this weekend.