Canadian track and field's best aim to build on Olympic success at World Athletics Championships
CBC
For the first time, the World Athletics Championships is being held in the United States, with the University of Oregon's stunning Hayward Field playing host.
More than 1,900 elite track and field athletes from 192 international teams will descend on TrackTown USA, the nickname for the campus in Eugene, Ore., a nod to its illustrious history in athletics. Competition begins Friday and runs through July 24.
Canada is sending a team of 59 athletes to worlds — 34 women and 25 men — who have won a total of 15 Olympic medals. The Canadians are led by six-time Olympic sprint medallist Andre De Grasse, 2020 Olympic decathlon champion Damian Warner, and Moh Ahmed, who won silver in the 5,000 metres in Tokyo last summer.
At the previous world championships in 2019 in Doha, Canada won four medals — one silver and three bronze.
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Here are some key Canadian storylines to follow throughout the event.
The big question mark going into these world championships for Canada is the status of De Grasse.
The 27-year-old from Markham, Ont., tested positive for COVID-19 in June, forcing him to miss the national championships in Langley, B.C. A week later he told the Canadian Press he was still suffering symptoms while recovering, including shortness of breath.
Despite a less-than-ideal lead-up to his third world championships, De Grasse will compete in the 100m and 4x100m relay, saying the 200m, in which he won gold in Tokyo, is a "game-time decision." He's proven time and again that when the stakes are at their highest, he performs his best. This time he'll need to overcome a stacked field of athletes and a short recovery time from COVID-19 if he wants to reach the podium once again.
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The 31-year-old long-distance runner just quietly goes about his business, winning medals and breaking records along the way.
Ahmed missed nationals last month because of an injury, but it's believed he'll be racing at full health by the time he competes in the 10,000m and 5,000m in Oregon.
Last summer in Tokyo, Ahmed won silver in the 5,000m, Canada's first distance medal in Olympic track and field. This season, he's set national records in the indoor 5,000m and the 10,000m, both of which he previously held.
At the 2019 World Athletics Championships in Doha, Ahmed won bronze in the 5,000m, also Canada's first distance medal at the competition.