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Cross Country Committee Report
to BC Athletics Annual General Meeting
January 24, 2003
This meeting marks the second complete year of operation for the BC
Athletics Cross Country Committee. The committee was formed to handle the
responsibilities of awarding our annual Cross Country Championships to a
hosting club; selection of the B.C. Team for the Canadian Cross Country
Championships; the selection of B.C. Cross Country awards; and any other
matters of concern brought to it by the membership. Of course one of our
prime concerns is the current status of Cross Country in our province. It
is our desire to seek ways to continually improve the level of
participation and calibre of athletes competing. As required we will
recommend actions to ensure there will be continued existence, growth and
development of our sport. As well we need to ensure there is a coordinated
program for the various age groups from Junior Development to Masters. The
ultimate goal is to provide top quality races for everyone and thereby
provide opportunities for athlete development. A further benefit of a
well-developed program will be to produce runners who will represent our
province well at regional and national competitions.
The committee is structured with representatives from the 8 zones, the
age group committees and 4 members at large. As you participate in the
activities this weekend, I ask each of you to consider becoming a member
on our committee, particularly if you are from an outlying zone as we are
lacking representatives from those areas. We do most of our communicating
by emails and schedule meetings for times when we are all centrally
gathered. I continue to look forward to the exciting possibilities that
can be achieved by an enthusiastic and creative committee.
It is gratifying to note the increased participation levels across all
levels of competition in the past season. We are following the lead in the
growth of cross-country in the US as more athletes are discovering the
benefits of a good season of cross-country in helping their development in
the sport of Athletics. In the bigger picture it was very impressive to
see such a large increase in participation at the Canadian Cross Country
Championships at the end of November with over 800 registrants contesting
the various races held on that wet and slippery day at Sunnybrook Park.
All categories this year were hotly contested and it was very difficult
choosing winners of the annual Cross Country awards. This is a pleasant
problem to have to deal with and bodes well for the future growth of Cross
Country in BC. Congratulations to those selected, you have worked very
hard in achieving your successes. To those who were so close, keep on
plugging away and give it your all again next season. Best of luck to all
of you.
In closing I would like to thank Andrew Lenton and his hard working
committee for staging the last two BC Championships at Blue Mountain Park.
The many favourable comments the committee has received on the
professional manner in which the Championships were staged are an
indication of how successful they were. In 2004 and 2005 we are looking
forward to the Championships being held in beautiful Crescent Park in
White Rock, hosted by the Semiahmoo Sunrunners under the direction of BC
Athletics Chair Tom Hastie and his crew. This park promises to be a
fantastic venue for both competition and spectator viewing. Mark the end
of October on your calendar and all you athletes out there set aside that
weekend for running the race of your life and making the BC Team to the
Canadians in Toronto.
On behalf of the current committee:
Brent Fougner
Marek Jedrzejek
Al Johnson
Andrew Lenton
Mike Lonergan
Mike O'Connor
Gerry Swan
Respectfully, Frank Reynolds
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