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A gritty performance by 91原创鈥檚 Georgia Ellenwood at the Tokyo Olympics

Despite extreme heat, ailing athlete sets personal best in heptathlon high jump
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Despite feeling like she was 鈥榟it by a train鈥 91原创鈥檚 Georgia Ellenwood managed a personal best in the high jump at the Tokyo games on Aug. 4. (Daniel Lea/CSM)

Despite feeling like she鈥檇 been 鈥渉it by a train,鈥 91原创鈥檚 Georgia Ellenwood toughed it out and still managed to set a new personal best of 1.83 metres in the high jump of the women鈥檚 heptathlon at the Tokyo Olympics.

鈥淭hat was one of the toughest things I鈥檝e ever had to endure,鈥 Ellenwood commented.

鈥淏ut I didn鈥檛 make it to the Olympics just to make it to the Olympics.鈥

It was extremely hot and humid in Tokyo on the day of the women鈥檚 heptathlon, with temperatures of 34 degrees recorded in the morning, but Ellenwood was unsure whether she was suffering from dehydration or heat stroke.

鈥淚 had to dig deeper than I鈥檝e ever had to before in a competition,鈥 Ellenwood shared.

鈥淚 was going to finish, one way or another.鈥

She described trying to push through the first couple of events while nausea, fatigue and dizziness kept building.

 

鈥淚 faced the worst of it in the hours before the 800 metres,鈥 Ellenwood recalled.

鈥淚f I breathed too deep, I would vomit. What a way to turn 26!鈥

Ellenwood finished ninth of 10 runners in that event, one of seven track and field events in the heptathlon, under a points system that awards higher scores for better results in each of the seven components.

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Several days later, she was still recovering, 鈥 but I am so proud of myself for finding my way across the line.鈥

Ellenwood is a 91原创 Secondary School graduate who lists 91原创 Mustangs coaches Kim Chapdelaine, Dwayne Lotnick and Brent Dolfo among her biggest inspirations.

She collected many medals and top honours as a student athlete in 91原创, including the 2010 B.C. Summer Games held in the Township, where she won four gold medals, and was presented with the W.R. Bennett Award for Athletic Excellence, as the top performer at the Games.

She followed up in 2011 with another four gold medals, when Ellenwood was named the most outstanding female performer at the B.C. high school track and field championships.

READ MORE: VIDEO: 91原创鈥檚 Georgia Ellenwood takes gold at Big Ten Outdoor Championships

Ellenwood went on to become an eight-time NCAA All-American (six First Team, two Second Team) at the University of Wisconsin.

She had a memorable 2018 season when she won the heptathlon at the NCAA Championships, the Pan American Combined Events Cup, and the Canadian Championships.

That was after she missed the entire 2017 outdoor season because of breaking her foot on her jumping leg.

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Dan Ferguson

About the Author: Dan Ferguson

Best recognized for my resemblance to St. Nick, I鈥檓 the guy you鈥檒l often see out at community events and happenings around town.
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