Posted: June 29, 2004

Athletics: Athletics Canada Identifies Potential Olympic Qualifiers

(Ottawa, June 29, 2004) - With the 2004 Canada Dry National Championships only two weeks away, Athletics Canada is pleased to release a list of top ranked athletes who are fulfilling the performance requirements in order to be considered for selection to the 2004 Olympic Games team.

The qualifying procedure for the Olympic Games has included several stages. Athletes must have achieved a combination of a Canadian Olympic Committee/Athletics Canada A Standard and an Athletics Canada B standard (or competitive readiness standard). These standards must have been achieved a certain number of times, within specific time frames. In addition, athletes must finish in the top four at the 2004 Canada Dry National Track and Field Championships taking place July 9-11 in Victoria, B.C. (with the exception of the marathon, the race walk and the 10,000m events).

Name, Age, Event, Hometown

Courtney Babcock*, 31, 5000m, Chatham, ON
Tim Berrett, 39, 50km RW, Edmonton, AB
Mark Boswell*, 26, High Jump, Brampton, ON 
Diane Cummins, 30, 800m, Vancouver, BC
Carmen Douma-Hussar, 26, 1500m, Cambridge, ON
Dana Ellis, 25, Pole Vault, Kitchener, ON
Malindi Elmore*, 24, 1500m, Kelowna, BC
Perdita Felicien, 23, 100m Hurdles, Pickering, ON
Nicolas Macrozonaris*, 23, 100m, Laval, QC
Stephanie McCann, 27, Pole vault, Surrey, BC
Emilie Mondor, 22, 5000m, Mascouche, QC
Gary Reed, 22, 800m, Kamloops, BC
Brad Snyder, 28, Shot Put, Windsor, ON
Kevin Sullivan, 29, 1500m, Brantford, ON
Achraf Tadili, 23, 800m, Montreal, QC
Jason Tunks, 28, Discus, London, ON
Angela Whyte, 23, 100m Hurdles, Edmonton, AB

*Athletics Canada B standard still required.

Athletics Canada is allowed to enter up to three athletes per individual event at the Olympic Games.

In order for Canada to nominate relay teams for Athens, the following stipulations are in place. The men’s 4x100m (currently ranked 11th) and 4x400m (currently ranked 16th) relay teams, both of which placed in the Top 12 at last year’s world championships, must remain ranked in the Top 16 in the world according to the IAAF rankings. As Canada did not field any women’s relay squads at last year’s world championships, the women’s relay teams must achieve a Top 12 placing in the IAAF rankings in order to be considered for selection for the Athens team.

For the wheelchair demonstration events taking place in Athens, athletes will be selected based on their results at the 2004 America Series, Olympic Demonstration Events Trials taking place in Atlanta, GA, July 1-2.

Athletes who have met all requirements of the selection process will be nominated to the Canadian Olympic Committee following the 2004 Canada Dry National Track and Field Championships. All Athletics Canada nominations are subject to final approval by the Canadian Olympic Committee. The official Canadian team announcement by the Canadian Olympic Committee will take place on July 16th, 2004, along with the naming of the Canadian flag bearer for the Athens Opening Ceremonies.

For more information on the qualifying procedure, please refer to the official selection criteria document at www.athletics.ca for complete details.

Athletics Canada is the national sport governing body for the sport of track and field including cross-country running and road running. Its purpose is to support high performance athletics excellence at the world level and to provide leadership in developmental athletics.

Athletics Canada is a not for profit, charitable organization operating under a board of directors elected by provincial / territorial members.