by Rylie Dobson
This week’s Flashback Friday features the 2003-04 men’s track and field team.
Back Row (L-R): David Antle (Trainer), Chris Goulet, Nicholas McBride, Paul Bennett, Andrew Leiper, Matthew Brikis, Al Yarr (Assistant Coach), Jeremy Koenig, Jayson Hilchie (Assistant Coach), Craig Slaunwhite (Assistant Coach).
Front Row (L-R): Dan Hennigar (Head Coach), Joshua Davidson, Aaron Samuel, Sandy White, Curtis Archibald, Colin Duffy, Peter Lord (Assistant Coach).
Dalhousie’s dominance in the AUS remained unchecked in the 2003-04 season, continuing the trend of frequent podium finishes from the past two years and earning the AUS banner for the third-straight season.
The season started with a meet a York University. Dal’s 4x400m relay team, composed of Colin Duffy, Sandy White, Joshua Davidson and Chris Goulet, earned gold in their event and kicked off the year on a high note for the Tigers. The annual Dalhousie Invitational took place the following weekend, and Curtis Archibald placed first in the 3000m run event.
In the second half of the season, Jeremy Koenig led the way in the sprints and finished first in the 60m dash at Dalhousie’s exhibition meet. Curtis Archibald won the 1500m event, Paul Bennett won the weight throw, and Josh Davidson won both the 300m and 600m events.
The Dalhousie relays were buried under the largest blizzard in Halifax history. The city was in a state of emergency, and the meet was postponed. At the makeup meet the Tigers didn’t disappoint, running a 4x400m relay that ranked them fifth in the country.
The Tigers entered the AUS Championship as clear favorites, and rightfully so. They won almost two thirds of the events and beat their closest rival by a margin of 73 points. Jeremy Koenig claimed the gold medal in the 60m run, making him the two-time fastest man in the AUS. Josh Davidson claimed gold in the 300m, Colin Duffy in the 600m and Nicholas McBride in the 1000m. On the field, rookie Paul Bennett turned heads with a pair of silver medals in throwing and Cary McNeil took home double gold in triple jump and long jump. Chris Goulet was named the athlete of the meet for his six-medal performance: three relay golds, two silvers in jumping events and a bronze in the 600m run.
In the CIS championship in Windsor, Ont., the Tigers faced adversity with key athletes faced with injuries. Despite having to make last minute changes to the lineups, the Tigers 4x800m and 4x400m relay teams finished seventh and ninth, respectively. Colin Duffy pushed through a severe hamstring strain to shave 2.5 seconds off his personal best time in the 600m and played a key role in both relay teams. Jeremy Koening placed sixth overall in the 60m dash.