In track and field personal bests appear to be key.
Given a shot at a record, an athlete will strive to achieve it, the PB gives them a record to shoot at every time out of the gate.
Courtenay Neville-Rutherford managed to set her bar way high before heading to a national competition this summer.
“My PB right now is 48.85, that’s what I threw at BCs,” she said. “When I got that one, I was pretty happy because it was six metres over my last PB.”
The 15-year-old is a member of Peninsula Track and Field, and has taken a shine to the hammer throw. Her PB and gold medal at BCs nabbed her spot on the BC track and field team for the Legion Canadian Youth Championships in Ottawa last weekend.
A sandy circle hampered her efforts, keeping her from achieving the 50 metres she sought.
“The circle was really bad, it was sandy and wasn’t really easy to turn,” she explained. “I don’t really mind, I got close enough.”
Her best throw was 45.94 metres in the U16 hammer throw. Good enough for gold.
“I was really excited,” Neville-Rutherford said, post competition.
While she’s still a member, and trains with Pen Track, Neville-Rutherford has also started working with Pacific Athletic under coach Sheldon Gmitroski in Victoria.
“It’s just fun and I’m in a new group,” she said. “In my group [at Pacific Athletic], if you don’t get a personal best you’re not happy.”
Seven years into the sport — she’s dropped dance, rowing and some school sports in favour of track — the Sidney teen has focussed on her favourite hammer and javelin events.
“I’m reading a book now on the mental athletes … and I’m going to practices and doing visualization,” she said during an interview before heading to Ottawa for competition.
The week before heading east, she was busy doing shadow turns with the shot put, and throws four days a week, two hours at a time. Then the coaches added springs and v-sits.
“Just to get us in shape for the new season,” Neville-Rutherford explained with a grin. With the major competition over, there will be a small break before throwing herself into training for the new season, about the time she begins Grade 10 at Parkland secondary this fall. She has to get back into the swing of things, to prepare for even bigger and better PBs.
“I want to try and go to other competitions, in school, and PanAms … maybe the Olympics,” she said.