Record breaking and gold medal performances for T-Birds at Canadian Championships

OTTAWA – Gold medal and national record breaking performances highlighted a stellar Canadian Track and Field Championships for the UBC Thunderbirds.

Hosted in Ottawa from July 30 to August 3, more than a dozen current T-Birds and alumni competed at the Terry Fox Athletic Facility.

Of all the outstanding results produced by those who have represented the blue and gold, perhaps none could outshine Olivia Lundman's gold medal performance in the women's senior 20,000 metre race walk. The four-time NAIA national champion's finishing time of 1:37:40.40 set a new Canadian record by more than a minute.



UBC's race walking prowess was indeed on full display in the nation's capital as recently graduated Tyler Wilson took gold in the men's senior 20,000 metres with a personal best time of 1:30:56.74, nearly ten minutes ahead of the silver medallist.

Kieran Lumb managed to climb onto the podium twice in Ottawa, firstly by winning gold in the men's 5000 metres on Thursday. The Olympian's time of 13:40.53 was just three one hundredths ahead of silver medal winning Justyn Markus Knight. Former T-Bird Andrew Davies finished fourth in 13:48.29.

Lumb was back on the track Saturday where he won his preliminary 1500 metre heat to clinch a berth in Sunday's final where he claimed bronze.



One of Lumb's Olympic teammates from Paris, Rowan Hamilton, also found his way onto the podium in Ottawa as the two-time NAIA champion took bronze in the senior men's hammer throw with a top attempt of 71.25 metres.

Lauren Curtis set a new personal best to win the U20 women's hammer throw with her gold medal attempt reaching 53.94 metres.

Three-time NAIA women's pole vault champion Sonya Urbanowicz finished fifth in Ottawa having cleared 3.90 metres.

Holly MacGillivray continued her tremendous season with an eighth place finish in the senior women's 1500 metres. Fellow T-Bird Rachel Mortimer took 12^th.

Debbie Suleman earned a fourth place finish in the women's U20 100 metre final, her time of 11.68 just one one-hundredth off her personal best.



Will Kizell's best discus throw of 46.69 metres was good for fourth in the men's senior category.

Kiana Gibson finished 18^th in the women's 5000 metres.

Dylan Uhrich earned fourth in the men's 3000 metre steeplechase with a time of 8:52.60.

James Kerr advanced to the men's U20 400 metre hurdles final where he finished eighth, crossing the finish line in 53.72.

All told, the 2025 Canadian Championships proved to be one of the most memorable in UBC history with the potential for even more glory later this summer with T-Bird alumni set to be represented at the NACAC Championships in the Bahamas and the 2025 World Athletics Championships set for Tokyo next month.

FULL RESULTS