Young athletes from Air Blastoff, a track club in Greater Sudbury, are making waves by breaking national records – with the help of an Olympic champion as their coach.
At a recent meet, the club’s girls’ relay teams claimed gold in the 4x200m and 4x400m events while setting two new Canadian records.
The squad trains four days a week under Robert Esmie, a 1996 Olympic gold medalist and Greater Sudbury Sports Hall of Famer. Esmie was part of Canada’s iconic 4x100m relay team, alongside Donovan Bailey, that triumphed at the 1996 Atlanta Summer Games.
“I’m cheering for them just like, ‘Go girls, go girls!’ That’s phenomenal – and boys, there’s a couple boys,” said Esmie in a recent interview.
According to the program’s website, Esmie dedicated the first 25 years of his life to his passion of “running fast,” and now he dedicates his time to helping others achieve their dreams by “teaching them how to blastoff.”
Members of the program told CTV News that their success is fueling ambitions beyond the track. Some, like runner Nadia MacDonald, hope to leverage their skills for U.S. scholarship opportunities.
“The skills and abilities you learn here can be used in your future life, and the discipline you learn is really helpful,” MacDonald said.
