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THE HISTORY OF SOUTH FRASER TRACK & FIELD CLUB
South Fraser Track
& Field Club was formed in January, 1966 in a meeting at the home of
Dave Prior who would soon become the first Club President by acclamation.
Three families, the Priors, the Gledhills and
the McNays attended the organizational meeting.
We were on our way! With no equipment or financial resources and a cinder
track without lights the initial winter months brought athletes, parents
and coach closely together with resolve to build a strong, successful
community-based track club. The Cloverdale Branch of the Royal Canadian
Legion became the club's financial angel providing support for travel and
equipment and help with officials for competitions. Build it and they
will come! And indeed they came. The High School Coaches sent athletes,
officiated at Track and Cross Country Meets, as well as attending club
sponsored Coaches' Clinics. At Season end in 1966 the Club had fifteen
athletes primarily distance runners and three very good sprinters. Over
the next few seasons, hurdlers, jumpers and throwers joined the club and
Graeme Cooper was added to the coaching group.
Listed below are selected athletes whose outstanding performances in the
initial building years helped establish the club as a valuable community
resource:
Karen Prior
· Provincial medalist at 400 - 200 - 800
- X-Country
· Gold in the 400
Tom Howard
· Provincial 3 mile champion
· National Collegiate 3 mile champion
Penny Shanks
· Canadian Indoor Records for 400 and
800m
Paul Gledhill and Mike McNay
· Members of Canadian X-Country
Championship Team
Maxine Harris
· Provincial Senior Women's Pentathlon
Champion
Karen Beatch, Roberta Drinkwater, Rhonda
Jerome,
Deidre Torrance, Lori Kungle
· 4 X 100 Gold Medalist in
Provincial, Western Canadian, Canadian and Washington State
Championships.
2006 will mark the 41st operational year of the track
club. Legions of athletes have run laps, hurdled, thrown implements,
jumped and sprinted over the years. We have had Olympic and World
Championship Team members in addition to club athletes who have been Team
B.C. Members at Canadian Championships.
2005 was a year of unparallelled success from our
team over more than 90 members. The future looks just as bright.
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