Track & Field | 3/5/2026 11:55:00 PM

The York University Lions track & field team took on the opening day of the 2026 U SPORTS Track & Field Championships, hosted by the University of Manitoba.

York's first competitor of the meet was Brenique Whyte in the women's weight throw. With a toss of 15.90m, Whyte secured a top-ten finish on the national stage, placing ninth overall. Next up, Alina Bilenko and Ella Foster took to the sky in the women's pole vault. Bilenko cleared 3.70m to finish in sixth place, while Foster secured eighth with a 3.60m performance. On the track, Cameron Christian battled through the 60m preliminaries to earn a spot in the finals; in the final heat, Christian clocked a 6.81 to finish eighth in the country.

The remaining Lions in action Thursday were the two 4x200m relay teams. The women's team of Janae Brown, Alexandra Quaidoo, Charlotte Murchison, and Kyla Sleath finished second in their preliminary heat. Their time of 1:39.67 ranked as the sixth-fastest mark across all heats, successfully qualifying them for Saturday's final.

Meanwhile, the men's team of Brandon Choumbe Yami, Ibrahim Moustafa, Samuel Pinceau, and Cameron Christian dominated their 4x200m heat. Clocking a time of 1:27.64, they won their section and qualified for the final with the third-fastest time of the day. They will also race for a podium spot this Saturday.

Day two begins with Zac Osborne in the men's weight throw. On the track, Samuel Pinceau and Tamarri Lindo will look to advance through the 60m hurdle preliminaries, while Brandon Choumbe Yami takes on the 300m. In the field, Tristan Boateng will take flight in the men's high jump, and Arwin Mathivathanan rounds out the Lions' Friday schedule in the long jump.

You can catch the Lions in action on the national stage with live coverage of the U SPORTS Track & Field Championships at cbcsports.ca.