New to 2017: Thunderbird Athletes of the Month!
New to 2017, we are pleased to introduce our first ever “Thunderbird Athletes of the Month". Each month, Thunderbirds’ management and coaches will highlight one male, and one female club member who have demonstrated outstanding performance, strong leadership, and/or significant athletic progression. We are proud of what our club represents, our trained and dedicated coaching staff, and the work ethic of our athletes. As such, we look forward to showcasing some of our local talent, and hope to encourage others to develop a sense of personal-achievement through the sport of track and field.
Male Athlete of the Month: Paul Fisher
Age: 17
Hometown: Vancouver, BC
Provincial affiliation: BC Athletics
Thunderbird Club Coach: Mary Chewning
Personal Best: 54.55 400mh
Athletics Canada Profile: http://athletics.ca/national-team/our-team/455628/#sthash.7WOw6J1V.Yjk1H7wx.dpbs
17 year old Paul Fisher has been awarded with the title of Male Thunderbird Athlete for the month of May, after an outstanding month of competition. Born and raised in Vancouver, BC., the senior at Tupper High-School recently qualified for Athletics Canada’s Commonwealth Youth Games Team, in Nassu, Bahamas, July 19-23. Lowering his personal best by over one second from the 2016 outdoor season, Fisher blasted a 54.55 second 400 meter hurdle performance at the UBC High Performance Meet on April 26th , securing his first national team selection.. Showing impressive consistency, Fisher topped his competition, winning both the 400mH and 400m dash at Vancouver Public School Zone Championships. Fisher will compete this weekend at BC High-School Provincial Championships with high hopes for a similar podium performance in both events. Well done, and good luck Paul!
Female Athlete of the Month: Maya Baechler
Age: 12
Hometown: Vancouver, BC
Provincial affiliation: BC Athletics
Thunderbird Club Coach: Graeme Fell and Stan Jang
Personal Bests: 2:21.01 800m, 3:50.78 1200m.
Our Thunderbird Female Athlete for the month of May is highlighted by 12 year old, Maya Baechler. With an impressive series of personal best performances already in 2017, including an 18:54 clocking at the West Van 5k road race in March, Baechler has excelled into shorter, and even speedier distances on the track. On May 6th, Baechler ran 3:50.78 over 1200m, putting her 3rd on the top 10 all time list within BC athletics, for her age group. The speed did not stop here however! Over three competitions in May, Baechler dropped consecutive personal best times in the 800m of 2:38, 2:24, and finally an outstanding 2:21 on May 13th at the Eagle Classic in Maple Ridge. To put things in perspective, while only in the 6th grade, this 800m time would typically place within the top 8 at BC High School Provincial Championships! Further, Baechler’s 2:21 ranks her in the top 4 all time BC Athletic performances for her age grouping, in a very competitive field. Next up for Maya is the Jesse Bent Memorial, on June 11th. Congratulations and good luck Maya!