Tigers add top running talent

Dalhousie cross country and track and field head coach Rich Lehman is pleased to announce the addition of Hudson Grimshaw-Surette and James Cromack to the 2017-18 lineup.

A middle-distance runner, Grimshaw-Surette comes to the Tigers with an impressive high school cross country and track resume.

On the track, he is a five-time Nova Scotia School Athletic Federation (NSSAF) provincial champion in both the 800m and 1500m events. He has broken 11 provincial records over the course of his junior high and high school careers and currently holds eight at the junior, intermediate and senior levels. Grimshaw-Surette has also picked up NSSAF medals in both the 4x100m and 4x400m events over the last three seasons.

Grimshaw-Surette is currently ranked first in Canada in the U20 indoor 1000m and eighth in the U20 600m events and placed third in the 800m international division at the Aileen Meagher Track Classic last Saturday. A member of the Nova Scotia-Nunavut Legion teams in 2014 and 2015, Grimshaw-Surette placed third in the 1500m event as part of Team Nova Scotia at the Eastern Canadian U22 Espoir Championships last summer.

A native of Yarmouth, N.S., Grimshaw-Surette is also an accomplished cross country runner, winning the NSSAF provincial championship in 2014, followed by a second-place finish in 2015 and third last fall.

“I look forward to training and competing with such a great group of athletes and coaches on the track,” says Grimshaw-Surette. “I am excited about being a member of the Tigers family and look forward to wearing the black and gold.”

An honours student, Grimshaw-Surette earned a Lieutenant Governor’s Award in 2016 and will graduate with a Silver Y for academic excellence and school participation as a graduating student. The recipient of a renewable entrance scholarship, he will begin his studies in kinesiology this fall.

“Hudson is the complete package,” says Lehman. “He's a great team guy and his 1:51 800m is the fastest high school time in Nova Scotia history. While his focus will be on the 600m and 1000m, he will be an excellent addition to at least two of our relay teams and can step up and help us out in cross country when needed. The way he has dominated the Nova Scotia high school scene has been nothing short of incredible, especially considering he's never been able to train full time on a real track!”

Joining Grimshaw-Surette on the course is cross country runner James Cromack.

A member of Mayfield Secondary School’s cross country and track and field teams since grade nine, Cromack has earned nine Ontario Federation of School Athletic Associations (OFSAA) regional championship medals. The school’s male athlete of the year in 2016, he was named MVP of both the cross country and track and field teams all four years of school.

Cromack also competes with the Speed River Track Club, and helped them to a third-place team finish at the national championships last year.

“I am excited to run for the Tigers,” says Cromack. “I’m looking forward to experiencing a new training environment and build on my success and accomplishments to further the success of the team.”

A native of Caledon, O.N., Cromack was an honour roll student in grade 10 and has enrolled in Dalhousie’s commerce program.

“James is the type of athlete that will be able to help our program from day one,” says Lehman. “He's a sub 8:50 3000m runner and a four minute 1500m runner with great cross country ability. He'll be coming to us from the same high school group and coach that produced Will Russell, so I have tremendous confidence that he'll be prepared to compete at this level.”

The Tigers won their 36^th track and field AUS conference championship this past season and placed second at the cross country championships.