Athletics Canada selects 44 athletes to join Team Canada at the 2019 Pan American Games
UPDATED: July 17, 2019
Ottawa (June 26, 2019) – Athletics Canada and the Canadian Olympic Committee announced Wednesday the 44 athletes who have been selected to represent Canada at the 2019 Pan American Games taking place in Lima, Peru, from July 26 to August 11. The team, comprised of 18 men and 26 women, will focus on contributing to the overall Canadian medal count and improving on its 27 podium finishes (11 gold, 7 silver and 9 bronze) from the TORONTO 2015 Pan American Games.
The Canadian contingent heading to Lima features 17 athletes who competed on home soil in 2015 and 27 first-time Pan American Games participants. Of the 18 athletes who competed at TORONTO 2015, seven stood on the podium, including decathlete Damian Warner (gold) and steeplechaser Geneviève Lalonde (bronze), who hope to repeat or better their success in 2019 alongside their Canadian teammates.
“For me, the goal heading into every competition is to win. On the day of the event, it’s taking care of all the little things to make that a real possibility,” said Damian Warner. “Some of my top competitors in decathlon will be at Pan Ams, which will give me another opportunity to compete against them prior to the World Championships this fall. It will also serve as an opportunity to test some events and see what needs to be worked on or changed before my focus turns to Doha.”
The 2019 season has rejuvenated Lalonde, whose primary event is the 3000m steeplechase.
“It’s been a really great year, my team has been extremely consistent with training and very diligent with recovery. I have also been rewarded with some amazing experiences at the World Cross Country Championships (Canada’s best finish by a woman since 2004) and Speed River Inferno where I set a new personal best in the steeplechase,” said Lalonde. “My goal at Pan Ams is to compete to the best of my abilities and to wear the Canadian singlet with pride. It would be great to upgrade my medal from 2015 and to see how fast I can run.”
The Pan American Games serve as a vital component towards development, as was seen in 2015 with breakout performances by Rio 2016 triple Olympic medallist Andre De Grasse (100m, 200m, 4x100m relay), world silver medallist Melissa Bishop (800m), world champion Shawn Barber (pole vault) and Rio 2016 Olympic gold medallist Derek Drouin (high jump). A total of 38 of 90 athletes from the 2015 Pan American Games team went on to represent Canada at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, which means Canadians can expect to see a number of outstanding performances in Lima that will lead to positive results in Tokyo.
Athletics competitions will be held at National Sports Village (VIDENA) from August 6 to August 10, with the exception of the marathons (July 27) and race walks (August 4 and August 11) which will be held at Kennedy Park.
“Anytime you get to put on the Team Canada singlet it’s a special feeling,” said Warner. “When I first got into track, that was one of my biggest goals. Now, I’ve had the pleasure of representing Canada a handful of times and it still feels special every time.”
“I always tell people it’s like stepping into your superhero suit,” added Lalonde. “Wearing the Canadian singlet gives your performance a whole new meaning and ups the adrenaline, too. It is such an honour to represent your country with pride.”
The list of Canadian track and field athletes and coaches selected to the 2019 Pan American Games team includes:
Athletes
| Name | Event(s) | Personal Coach | Hometown | Club Affiliation |
| Kelsie Ahbe | Women’s pole vault | Jim Bemiller | Toronto, Ont. | Unattached |
| Mobolade Ajomale | Men’s 100m, 4x100m relay | Kevin Lasure | Richmond Hill, Ont. | Flying Angels Track & Field Academy |
| Marco Arop | Men’s 800m | Ron Thompson | Edmonton, Alta. | Voleo Athletics |
| Ashlan Best | Women’s 4x100m relay | Gabe Sanders | Guelph, Ont. | Speed River Track and Field Club |
| Mathieu Bilodeau | Men’s 50km race walk | David Gagnon | Quebec City, Que. | Unattached |
| Khamica Bingham* | Women’s 4x100m relay | Dennis Shaver | Brampton, Ont. | Brampton Track Club |
| Jerome Blake | Men’s 200m, 4x100m relay | Tara Self | Vancouver, B.C. | Coquitlam Cheetahs Track and Field Club |
| Maïté Bouchard | Women’s 800m | Simon Croteau | Sherbrooke, Que. | Athlétisme Sherbrooke |
| Leya Buchanan | Women’s 100m, 4x100m relay | John Smith | Mississauga, Ont. | Unattached |
| Lindsey Butterworth | Women’s 800m | Brit Townsend | North Vancouver, B.C. | Coastal Track Club |
| Johnathan Cabral* | Men’s 110m hurdles | Tim O’Neil | Peribonka, Que. | Unattached |
| Keira Christie-Galloway | Women’s 100m hurdles | Hugh Conlin | Ottawa, Ont. | Ottawa Lions Track & Field Club |
| Rachel Cliff | Women’s 10,000m | Richard Lee | Vancouver, B..C | Mile2Marathon |
| Kyra Constantine | Women’s 400m, 4x400m relay | Caryl Smith Gilbert | Toronto, Ont. | Project Athletics Track and Field Program |
| Brittany Crew | Women’s shot put | Richard Parkinson | Toronto, Ont | SISU Throws Club |
| Evan Dunfee* | Men’s 50km race walk, 20km race walk | Gerald Dragomir | Richmond, B.C. | Racewalk West |
| Crystal Emmanuel* | Women’s 100m, 200m, 4x100m relay | Charles Allen | Toronto, Ont. | Flying Angels Track & Field Academy |
| Phylicia George* | Women’s 100m hurdles, 4x100m relay | Darryl Woodson | Markham, Ont. | Flying Angels Track & Field Academy |
| Liz Gleadle* | Women’s javelin | Laurier Primeau | Vancouver, B.C. | Vancouver Thunderbirds Track & Field Club |
| Travia Jones | Women’s 4x400m relay | Darryl Woodson | Regina, Sask. | Unattached |
| Geneviève Lalonde* | Women’s 3000m steeplechase | Dave Scott-Thomas | Moncton, N.B. | Speed River Track and Field Club |
| Pierce LePage | Men’s decathlon | Gregory Portnoy | Whitby, Ont. | Unattached |
| Rory Linkletter | Men’s 10,000m | Ed Eyestone | Calgary, Alta. | Unattached |
| Django Lovett | Men’s high jump | Zbigniew Szelagowicz | Surrey, B.C. | Kajaks Track & Field Club |
| Michael Mason* | Men’s high jump | Jeff Huntoon | Nanoose Bay, B.C. | Nanaimo Track and Field Club |
| Natassha McDonald | Women’s 400m, 4x400m relay | Wellesley Johnson | Brampton, Ont. | Project Athletics Track and Field Program |
| Sarah Mitton | Women’s shot put | Richard Parkinson | Brooklyn, N.S. | SISU Throws Club |
| Tim Nedow* | Men’s shot put | Darrin Reesal | Brockville, Ont. | Ottawa Lions Track & Field Club |
| Christabel Nettey* | Women’s long jump | Stuart McMillan | Surrey, B.C. | Unattached |
| Alysha Newman | Women’s pole vault | Doug Wood | Delaware, Ont. | Bolton Pole Vault |
| Jessica O’Connell* | Women’s 5000m | Mike Van Tighen | Calgary, Alta. | University of Calgary Athletics Club |
| Philip Osei* | Men’s 400m | Jason Kerr | Toronto, Ont. | Unattached |
| William Paulson | Men’s 1500m | Cory Leslie | Quebec, Que. | Club d’Athlétisme de l’Université Laval |
| Camryn Rogers | Women’s hammer throw | Mohamad Saatara | Richmond, B.C. | Kajaks Track & Field Club |
| Brendon Rodney* | Men’s 200m, 4x100m relay | Maurice Wilson | Etobicoke, Ont. | Unattached |
| Andrea Seccafien | Women’s 5000m | Nic Bideau | Guelph, Ont. | Monarch Athletics Club |
| Ryan Smeeton | Men’s 3000m steeplechase | Dave Smith | Calgary, Alta. | Unattached |
| Gavin Smellie* | Men’s 100m, 4x100m relay | Milt Ottey | Brampton, Ont. | Flying Angels Track & Field Academy |
| Aiyanna Stiverne | Women’s 200m, 4x100m relay, 4x400m relay | Ronald Morency | Laval, Que. | Unattached |
| Damian Warner* | Men’s decathlon, 4x100m relay | Gar Leyshon | London, Ont. | Unattached |
| Sage Watson* | Women’s 400m hurdles, 4x400m relay | Fred Harvey | Medicine Hat, Alta. | Unattached |
| Jillian Weir | Women’s hammer throw | Larry Steinke | Kingston, Ont. | Unattached |
| Natasha Wodak* | Women’s 10,000m | Lynn Kanuka | North Vancouver, B.C. | Prairie Inn Harriers |
| Regan Yee | Women’s 3000m steeplechase | Mark Bomba | South Hazelton, B.C. | Langley Mustangs Track and Field Club |
*Represented Canada at the 2015 Pan American Games
Coaches and staff
| Name | Role | Hometown | ||
| Glenroy Gilbert | Team Head Coach | Ottawa, Ont. | ||
| Charles Allen | Team Coach | Mississauga, Ont. | ||
| Kurt Downes | Team Coach | Windsor, Ont. | ||
| Heather Hennigar | Team Coach | Halifax, N.S. | ||
| Jeff Huntoon | Team Coach | Toronto, Ont. | ||
| Richard Parkinson | Team Coach | Stouffville, Ont. | ||
| Larry Steinke | Team Coach | Lethbridge, Alta. | ||
| Jessica Scarlato | Team Manager | Richmond Hill, Ont. | ||
| Andrea Stephen | Team IST Lead and Physiotherapist | Toronto, Ont. | ||
| Dr. Melina Thibodeau | Team Physician | Victoria. B.C. | ||
| Danielle Chow-Leong | Team Massage Therapist | Toronto, Ont. | ||
| Eric Corda | Team Massage Therapist | Sarnia, Ont. | ||
| Dr. Simon Pearson | Team Chiropractor | Victoria, B.C. | ||
| Dana Way | Team Biomechanist | Winnipeg Beach, Man. | ||
Lima 2019, which will run from July 26 to August 11, will bring together approximately 6,700 athletes from 41 nations of the Americas and feature 62 disciplines in 39 sports. It will be the largest sporting event ever held in Peru.
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MEDIA CONTACTS:
Amanda Nigh, Manager, Communications and Marketing
Athletics Canada
T: 613-260-5580 x3307
E: amanda.nigh@athletics.ca
Josh Su, Specialist, Public Relations
Canadian Olympic Committee
C: 647-464-4060
E: jsu@olympic.ca