By Mandy Moraes
After months of hard work, three John Barsby Secondary athletes won provincial gold medals at the 2026 British Columbia School Sports Track and Field Championships earlier this month.
Grade 10 student Megan James won gold in the 1,500-metre steeplechase. Grade 12 student Natasha Phillip took first place in the 100-metre event, and Grade 9 student Autumn Techen earned her second straight provincial title in shot put.
The championships were held from June 4-6. Athletes qualified by finishing in the top five at the Vancouver Island High School Zone Track and Field Championships in May.
Coach Brett Synnott believes the three gold medals show both the athletes’ dedication and the strong culture within the school’s track and field program.
“As a smaller community school, it really highlights the exceptional students and student-athletes we have in our building,” said Synnott. “We also have a lot of staff volunteers who help coach and create a culture of excellence. It gives these students an opportunity to show the results of their hard work and dedication.”
This success comes as the program keeps growing. In the past two years, John Barsby has focused more on student participation, leading to more athletes joining and better results overall. This year, about 45 athletes represented the school at the Island championships, up from 34 last year.
“We’ve seen a lot of growth,” Synnott said. “Attendance at practices was up, commitment throughout the season was stronger, and the athletes were really dedicated to their training.”
Their commitment made a difference when it counted. Synnott pointed out that one of the biggest challenges for athletes is handling the long season and heavy training while making sure they perform their best at the right time.
“Track and field is demanding physically and mentally,” he said. “The challenge is performing when it counts. These athletes were able to do that at Islands and again at provincials.”
Other Nanaimo Ladysmith Public School students also had strong results at Track and Field. Jayden Torney from Cedar Secondary won bronze in shot put. Tessa Bell from Nanaimo District Secondary took gold in the 100-metre hurdles, long jump, and heptathlon for senior girls. Ember Vaitekunas from NDS earned bronze in the 1500-metre run. Ryan Luch from NDS won bronze in the 1500-metre steeplechase. Rebecca Mann from NDS took silver in the 3000-metre run. Rowan Clarke from NDS won gold in the 1500-metre racewalk. Karlin Korkowski from NDS earned silver in the triple jump, and Brooklyn Chase from NDS took gold in discus.