The Craik School cross country team completed a successful season earlier this month with three of its nine members qualifying for provincials.

Senior boys runners Aiden Sanden and Drayden Selinger and midget girls athlete Sky Stinson all qualified for the Provincial Cross Country Meet held Oct. 12 at Little Loon Regional Park near Medstead. Aiden and Drayden, who declined the invitation to attend, made it to provincials after a seventh and a 10th place finish respectively at the Oct. 2 District Cross Country Meet in Moose Jaw while Sky qualified after winning a silver medal at districts.

Sky, 14, said she finished 51st out of 100 runners who competed in the provincial three-kilometre midget girls race. She said the competition was diverse at provincials and she is happy with her results.

“Some of the girls were extremely fast because they train for it,” said Sky. “Then there were other people who, they qualified for provincials, but they weren’t as fast. It seemed they didn’t train as much.”

The Craik School Grade 9 student said she began training about a month before the provincial meet running every three days after school. She said her routine depended on how tired she was, but it usually consisted of rotating back and forth between running three kilometres one session and one-kilometre the next.

Lindsay Shaw, who coaches the Craik cross country team with Charla Edwards, said they are encouraged with the team’s results this year and each runner’s dedication to the sport. She said the coaches approach the sport with a focus on instilling a life-long love for improved fitness among the team members and also a training method for other sports in the student’s life.

“Since our goal is for life-long fitness, we encourage students to run every day, but it is a personal choice to how rigorous their training is,” said Shaw. “Sky is a dedicated runner and that was revealed in (her) placement at both the district and provincial level.

“I am happy for Sky and her achievement, but it was her achievement. I am just pleased that I was able to provide the opportunity for her to represent Craik School and (the) Prairie South School Division.”

Sky said winning the silver medal at districts and then competing at provincials was a great experience and all her hard work training during the preceding month was worth it.