‍

BY:  GERRY SWAN

           Coaching has its rewards and none can be greater then to witness an athlete that you personally coached distinguish herself first as a truly international caliber athlete and then in later life go on to develop a number of runners who have become distinguished in the same events as she competed in.  

           In a span of 16 years from the early 1970’s to the mid 1980’s, I oversaw the development of one of Canada’s all time best middle distance runners.  During that period Brit Townsend established seven Canadian records and was a finalist in the 1500 meters at both the Olympic Games and World Championships.  She traveled the world in pursuit of running excellence during a time frame that saw a number of her competitors representing countries that encouraged the use of performance enhancing drugs.   Fortunately, Townsend was befriended by a number of world ranked runners that included John Walker, Steve Scott, Mary Slaney and Canada’s Greg Duhaime and these individuals demonstrated to Brit that a talented athlete could obtain success without the use of drug enhancers.  It was a career complete with experiences and associations that gave Townsend a deep appreciation of what is required of an individual who aspires to be the same caliber of athlete that she was.

           When Brit retired as a competitive athlete, she turned her efforts to coaching aspiring teenaged club middle distance runners that included Heather Degeest who as a 17-year-old ran 1500 meters in 4:18 and represented Canada at the World Junior Championships and Lisa Egami who won the BC High School Senior Girl’s 800-meters in four consecutive years.   Brit’s accomplishments as an international athlete combined with her success in eliciting excellent performances from athletes she coached culminated in Simon Fraser University, the school from which Brit herself had competed and graduated, employing her as the school’s track and field coach.

           Amongst the many athletes that Brit has brought to SFU are two female 800-meter runners, Lindsey Butterworth and Jessica Smith, who by chance were both raised and attended secondary school in the same community of North Vancouver in which Brit spent her teenaged years.  

           Although Lindsey Butterworth had taken part in running and numerous other sports from a young age she didn’t begin serious running until as a 17-year old she joined the NorWesters Track Club and was coached by Cindy O’Krane and Darcie Montgomery.  She made quick progress and in her senior year was the 800-meter champion at the BC High School Championships.

           Lindsey explored the possibility of attending several universities both in Canada and the USA but a meeting with Brit and a bit of nudging from her dad convinced Lindsey that SFU was the school she should attend.  “In choosing SFU, I would be enrolled at a school with an excellent academic rating and a university at which I would have the chance to compete in both indoor and outdoor running competitions of very good caliber.  But the major reason I chose SFU came down to coaching and the reputation that Brit had established of being able to guide, develop and improve athletes during their university years and beyond.  It seemed the school offered me the best chance to develop into a top-level runner while remaining close to home.”

       Amongst her major running strengths Lindsey believes that her ability to deal with pressure is something she has learned to successfully cope with.  “I don’t easily become flustered and believe that the best comes out of me when it’s important to do well.  Strange as it might seem, I enjoy pressure and the exhaustion that comes with demanding workouts.  I guess I just like the challenges of middle distance running. There is very little that I don’t enjoy about competitive running and that is probably why I am still involved with the sport.”   If there was a stressful aspect to the sport Lindsey feels that probably comes when trying to balance the demands of academics with running and now that I have graduated with the pressures of her work, running and social life.   “Making running a priority is a learning process and a matter of continually refocusing your goals,” is how Lindsey phrased it.

           When Lindsey is asked what drives her most in her running she is quick to reply, “knowing what I want to accomplish and that is pretty clear in my mind.”   If she has had disappointments they came during her first two years at SFU when as a younger person she had to deal with the pressures of competing well at a national championship.  “The experience of enduring that pressure several times and overcoming it has helped me in this stage of my running career.”  Of her future aspirations, Lindsey hopes to compete at this year’s World Championships and the 2020 Olympic Games.  An immediate priority is to do well at this year’s Harry Jerome meet on June 20.

           Jessica Smith began her competitive running career in earnest as a grade 10 student at Argyle Secondary School.   She never contemplated competing in events other than the middle distances and her long, easy stride combined with a good dose of natural speed seemed to make her a natural for the 800-meter distance.   In her final year at Argyle, just two years after beginning to compete seriously, Jessica won the BC High School 800-meter title in the excellent time of 2:12.59.  

           Jessica went through the usual searches and visits to schools that most athletes do before making their final decision.  “I met with Brit and toured SFU and liked what I saw academically as the school offered the courses that I wanted to pursue.  But most importantly Brit’s approach to competitive running impressed me and the fact that she herself had been such a successful athlete went a long way in making me believe in the school’s running program.   Of course, the opportunity that I would have at SFU to take part in top-flight competitions was an attractive incentive that helped sell me on the school.

           Successes came in droves during her running career at SFU.  She won championships in cross country and both indoor and outdoor track events particularly at the 800-meter distance. Among her most memorable performances was the Under 23-Canadian record she established for 800-meters of 2:01.54. One of her most spectacular performances came at the 2012 Harry Jerome Classic when she won the 800-meters by coming from behind to win in a personal best 1:59.82.  Jessica was named to the Canadian team that competed at the London Olympics where she was a semi-finalist in her specialty.

           There have been setbacks during her running career perhaps most profoundly what happened in the Olympic year of 2016 when she was deigned selection to the Canadian team despite the fact that she had achieved the qualifying standard. “My non selection was a huge disappointment because the reason I was given did not make sense,” is all that Smith wanted to say about that occurrence.

           What drives Smith to keep competing and striving for success?

“Over the past couple of years I have endured injuries that have forced me to take time off from running but at present I am healthy once again and I still have that passion to succeed and compete at a high level.”  Her persistence and talent seems to once again being rewarded as on May 11 she posted a time of 2:02.52 in a meet held in Los Angeles.

           “My aspirations in running remain as they have for a number of years and that includes running faster, qualifying for national teams and to continue enjoy running and competing.”   As with her teammate Lindsey, Jessica is employed as an assistant track coach at SFU while Lindsey has a position at the school as a student advisor.  Earlier this year Jessica married Ryan Brockerville who himself was a former mainstay of the distance running group at SFU.  “Ryan understands the demands of running and he is completely supportive of my continued involvement,” stated Smith.

           Although the season has barely begun for both Jessica and Lindsay they are busy at present preparing for the upcoming Harry Jerome meet when both of them intend to contest the 800 meters and may well be matched in that event against the Canadian Record holder Melissa Bishop-Nriagu of Ontario.  This year’s Jerome meet takes place at Swangard Stadium on the evening of Thursday, June 20.  

Get your tickets at www.harryjerome.com/tickets

‍