Whitney Rowe will be wearing the Canadian colours at the North American, Central American and Caribbean (NACAC) championships next week in Toronto.
The Colorado Mesa University alum will line up as a member of the Canadian women’s 4x100-metre relay as part of a 57-athlete squad who will be competing against athletes from 28 other nations, Aug. 10 to 12.
Rowe, 25, is looking at building on a solid season so far, which included competing against the Chinese national team in the 4x100m relay at the Harry Jerome Classic in June, where she also placed sixth in the 200m event with a time of 24.14 seconds. Her personal best in the event, set at the 2016 Sunshine Invitational in Florida while representing Colorado Mesa, was 23.52.
Based in Seattle and training under Seattle Speed head coach Mike Cunliffe, Rowe will be making a second trip to the NACACs, having captured two silver medals as a member of the 2014 Canadian under-23 relay team.
As a track athlete at Burnaby Mountain Secondary, the Burnaby Striders product took it upon herself to help salvage the season when the program was on the verge of being cancelled without a coach. Later, she would train under Olympic gold medallist Robert Esmie. Rowe wrapped up her high school career in 2010 with the provincial silver in the 200m.
Over four years at Colorado Mesa, the one-time dancer established eight indoor and outdoor school records and a pair of Div. 2 All-American honours.
Her collegiate track record includes a number of highlights, including a third-place result in the indoor 200m at the 2015 NCAA Div. 2 championship, on the heels of having won the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference title in the same event.
At the 2016 Canadian Olympic trials, Rowe finished fifth in the 200m and eighth in the 100m. She’s worked hard to become a key part of the 4x100 lineup.
The progress this season has been bolstered by a strong indoor season, where Rowe finished first in three of four meets and set personal marks each time out. Her new 60m best is 7.38.
