While his first love remains hockey, Brock McKenzie has served notice to the world of cross country running.
The Elora resident has had an auspicious start in the sport at Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic High School in Guelph, winning gold at the OFSAA (Ontario Federation of School Athletic Associations) championships last weekend.
McKenzie, 14, finished first with a time of 17:32.56 in the midget boys’ 4,995-metre race on Nov. 7 at Highlands Nordic in Duntroon, near Collingwood.
“I was just pretty pumped to have the race done and finish first,” he told the Advertiser three days following his victory. “Finally crossing the finish line was an amazing feeling.”
McKenzie beat out more than 260 runners in his event, finishing over 13 seconds ahead of his closest competitor – a margin of victory described as “huge” by his coach Albert Tschirhart.
“He’s had some very good background training,” Tschirhart said of McKenzie’s physical abilities. “But the main reason he won was his intelligence … because he was able to carry out a plan.”
Tschirhart said the course at Duntroon was the toughest he’s seen, with the first 4km mostly uphill terrain and the final kilometre down hill.
“With [McKenzie’s] intelligence, he easily handled that, so he’s got a great future ahead of him,” he said.
The coach explained McKenzie was smart to pace himself behind two other competitors for 4km and then make his move near the end of the race.
“He played to his strengths,” said Tschirhart, noting McKenzie has “incredible endurance” and is a strong downhill runner.
McKenzie said as soon as he came over the crest of the course’s final climb, he knew he would be able to make his move and take the lead.
The OFSAA win caps off an impressive cross country season for the Grade 9 student, who ran his way to the top of the podium at the District 4/10 championships in Fergus on Oct. 21 and at the CWOSSA (Central Western Ontario Secondary Schools Association) championships in Waterloo on Oct. 29.
“I just like the whole atmosphere and going there to compete,” McKenzie said of the high school meets.
Cross country running was definitely part of the reason McKenzie chose to attend Lourdes, he said, adding his older sister had nothing but rave reviews for the program run by Tschirhart.
McKenzie, who first picked up cross country running in Grade 5 – “I’ve loved it ever since,” he said – will now focus his attention on the rink, where he has also experienced great success.
In fact, not long after winning OFSAA gold last weekend, McKenzie headed from Duntroon to Sudbury to help his hockey team, the major bantam AAA Waterloo Wolves, claim victory in the annual Big Nickel Tournament.
“It was a good weekend for sure,” he said of his double-gold performance.
While McKenzie has in the past also played lacrosse and soccer, he noted next year he will be eligible for the Canadian Hockey League draft, so for now he will focus on hockey.
“I want to see where I can go with that first,” he said.
However, in the back of his mind is running long distance track and field events in the spring – and “hopefully” a return to cross country running next fall.
Tschirhart, who encourages young athletes to participate in multiple Sports, said McKenzie likely has a bright future regardless of his eventual focus, thanks to an impressive combination of intelligence and physicality.
