Track athletes recognized by Athletics Ontario at banquet this weekend

Scarborough's Phoenix Athletic Club and United Tamil Sports Club lead the pack with a combined effort this year of 12 nominees.

Representing Phoenix are: Eamonn Kichuk, Matthew Lincoln and Merid Seleshi (Distances/Walks); Aaron Brown, Andre Hamilton and Marlon Laidlaw-Allen (Sprints/Hurdles); and Adam Karakolis and Steffi Stephenson (Throws).

Kichuck, a student at Bill Crothers Secondary School, was a triple Ontario Track and Field champ in June, winning the 800m, 1500m and 3000m sprint events. He finished with gold at the provincial high school championships for cross country and set a record in the 3000m for his midget class.

Brown, who is fresh off a tough Metro Bowl loss to Markham District High School with his Birchmount Park Panthers, won Athletics Canada's outstanding youth award in October for his performance this year.

"Unfortunately he couldn't go because he was down at U of South California negotiating a scholarship, so I was out there (in Vancouver) for a meeting at the time and I received the award for him," said Phoenix coach Bill Stephens.

Also nominated from the Scarborough club is Bendale BTI student Marlon Laidlaw-Allen, who won OFSAA in the 100m and 200m events and broke the Ontario record for his class in the 100m and 200m sprint events.

Another young distance runner, Seleshi is being recognized in part for his gold medal performance in the 800m at the Canadian championships for youths and for his silver medal 1500m showing at the nationals. He also finished fourth at OFSAA.

Club standout Hamilton, who was injured for OFSAA, but won a gold medal in the 400m at the Athletics Ontario club championships and finished third at the nationals, is off to Texas on a scholarship in the new year.

Another senior, Lincoln, is ranked fourth nationally in the 1500m and finished third in the 1500m for Canada at the JDLF meet, a competition for French speaking countries earlier in the year.

"He was ranked 8th going in (to JDLF) and he ended up getting a bronze medal, so next year he's trying to make the Canadian team for the Pan Am Games," said Stephens.

Rounding out the list from Phoenix Athletics, Karakolis, who won in the discus at the Canadian Youth Championships and Stephenson, currently at University of Windsor and named to the 2009 Ontario University Athletics All-star squad, are both also being recognized with nominee honours.

Sujeeth Pathmanathan and Divyanthan Thasarathan, both from United Tamil - operating out of Scarborough since 2006 - were nominated in the Jumps category, while Thasarathan Kandiah and Thevarajan Sinathurie were selected in the coaching category.

Long jumper Thasarathan, who also attends York Region track power Bill Crothers Secondary School, didn't make it to the nationals last year, but made up for it with a gold medal at the outdoor championships this year.

"He's trying to go to the world champions (this year) and he's working toward the Pan Am Games Junior Athletics Championships," said Kandiah, a coach and the director at the club. "I believe he's doing good so far."

Four athletes from North York's Centro Scuola Track Club, located in the Lawrence-Dufferin area, are also on the exclusive list.

Simone Capozzolo, Michael Troya, and Zach Waslenko, all in Grade 8, and St. Michael's College School Grade 10 student Matthew Loparco round out the nominees from the North York track club.

Loparco, who was named top student athlete at his high school last year, has been with the small club for five years.

A sprint and relay specialist, Loparco also set a new Canadian standard as a midget at an Athletics Ontario's meet recently.

"Matthew is probably the most dedicated athlete in our entire club," said club director Phil Ridell, who was also coach with the former North York Track and Field Club, which folded six years ago and re-emerged as Centro Scuola.

Also representing the North York community is York University Track Club's Brooke Rowland (Jumps/Throws), Crystal Emmanuel (Junior Sprint/ Hurdles), Cynthia Apiah, Elizabeth Petrov and Kristin Obrochta (Throws), and Karl Jennings (Senior Men's Sprints/Hurdles).

The Etobicoke Track and Field Club's Vennessa Mcleod (Distances/ Walks) is the lone athlete from her club on the list this year, while High Park-Swansea-area's Toronto Olympic Club will see Eric Dillon and Victoria Hanna, both in Distance/Walks, nominated.

The awards ceremony, which will also include hall of fame inductions starting this year, takes place during the afternoon of Saturday, Dec. 5 at Yorkland Hotel, located near Sheppard and Victoria Park avenues.