Aden Bowman’s Regier, Wildeman finish final high school track foray

Both set to join U of Saskatchewan Huskies program in fall

By Darren Steinke
Gordie Howe Sports Complex

Sam Regier takes part in pole vault at the SSSAD championships.

For track and field athletes Sam Regier and Charlotte Wildeman, there is no place like home.

The two Saskatoon Track and Field Club members are finishing up their Grade 12 studies at Aden Bowman Collegiate, and they just concluded their high school chapters of their track and field lives. Both have committed to joining the University of Saskatchewan Huskies Track and Field program overseen by head coach Jason Reindl in the fall.

For Regier, he has found joy in the sport again after missing pretty much all of his Grade 11 year with a hamstring injury. During that Grade 11 season, he suffered the injury early in the indoor season and was out for the entire school season, club season and outdoor season. After getting his Grade 12 season in, Regier wanted to continue his track and field life and a door opened to join the Huskies.

“After the injury, I’ve fallen again in love with the sport, and I was enjoying it so much so that I wanted to move forth with it as well,” said Regier, who is set to study in the kinesiology program at U of S. “I talked to Jason (Reindl) about it, and he was happy to take me in.

“(I am) super, super pumped about it. It will be great.”

Wildeman always had an underlying desire to join the Huskies. She was thrilled to have the chance to join her hometown university program.

“I always thought about going post-secondary, but I never knew exactly where I wanted to go,” said Wildeman, who is slated to study at the Edwards School of Business at U of S. “I knew the Huskies had always felt like home, because you grow up with them.

“You see the community and you see just how like intertwined everyone is and especially seeing like other teams come in. They are great teams from other provinces, but no one has the bond that the Huskies have. I think I knew probably around - it was definitely the start of Grade 12 - that I knew that is where I wanted to go.

“I had known a lot of the coaches. I had made my decision definitely the start of Grade 12 or midway going through it.”

During his final high school season, Regier soaked in everything like it was a blessing. 

Charlotte Wildeman won four high school provincial titles in pole vault.

At the Saskatoon Secondary Schools Athletic Directorate’s Bob Adams City Track and Field Championship that ran May 27 to 28 at the Track and Field Track on the Gordie Howe Sports Complex grounds, the 18-year-old captured gold in the senior boys’ 100-metre hurdles and silver in the shot put and pole vault.

At the Saskatchewan High Schools Athletic Association Track and Field Championships that ran June 5 to 6 at the Track and Field Track, Regier picked up a pair of silver medals. He took second in the senior boys’ pole vault with a vault of 4.15-metres and second in the 100-metre hurdles with a time of 13.93 seconds.

“I’ve got a new appreciation for every time I get to compete,” said Regier, who stands 6-foot-1. “I’m pretty lucky I get to compete in these races, get the opportunity and just enjoy myself while I’m doing it.

“It (the injury) was really tough. All my life, I’ve been super active and losing that part of myself I guess it was a year, but it felt like eternity. It is crazy to think how much all these sports are a part of my life and how much I take for granted the healthy body I have.”

In her final appearance at the SSSAD’s Bob Adams City Track and Field Championship, Wildeman claimed gold in the senior girls’ pole vault and 80-metre hurdles and took home bronze in the long jump. At the SHSAA’s Track and Field Championships, she captured silver in the senior girls’ 80-metre hurdles in a time of 12.19 seconds.

Wildeman’s biggest highlight came when she took home gold in the pole vault with a vault of 3.00 metres. That marked the fourth straight year that Wildeman won a gold medal in pole vault at a Saskatchewan high school provincial championship meet. The victory gave Wildeman a special conclusion to her high school career.

“It came way faster than I expected,” said Wildeman, who stands 5-foot-5. “I have looked back on my four years, and it is just, it is insane.

“I’ve accomplished so much. I’m in awe of all that has happened and how fast it has gone.”

Regier enjoys how supportive everyone in Saskatoon’s track and field community is towards each other. He started in the sport taking part in track days in elementary school competing in middle distance running events, while growing up playing soccer.

Sam Regier runs the 100-metre hurdles at the SSSAD championships.

In Grade nine, he joined the Saskatoon Track and Field Club, and at his father’s urging, tried pole vault. Regier’s grandfather, Max Abraham, won the senior boys’ SHSAA provincial title way back in 1966. In June of 2024, Regier claimed gold in the junior boys’ pole vault in that year’s SHSAA Track and Field Championships held at the Track and Field Track.

He has enjoyed the atmosphere Saskatoon Track and Field Club head coach and Huskies assistant coach Ivan Tam has created with the team. Regier is aware that the atmosphere on the Huskies has been extremely positive too.

“It is an individual sport, but everyone, especially in Ivan’s group, everyone, they’re so lovely,” said Regier, who played for Aden Bowman’s volleyball program in all four of his high school years. “They take you in, and they’re so kind to you.

“It makes practices that much more enjoyable.”

Wildeman joined the Saskatoon Track and Field Club around the time when she was in Grade 6 and 7. Before taking up track and field, Wildeman had been a gymnast for the longest time, and she took about a couple of years off from sports before getting into track.

The standout said the thing she likes the most about the track and field in Saskatoon is the fact the community in the sport is so supportive. She is happy she will continue to be part of a positive atmosphere with the Huskies.

“The community is so awesome,” said Wildeman, who will turn 18-years-old before the midway point of June. “It is just like as much as it is an individual sport everyone is there for you.

“It is like no matter where you are, what event you’re doing, there is always a team cheering for you. As much as it is individual, that is definitely my favourite part.”

In looking towards the future, Regier said he is just going to enjoy being part of the Huskies on a daily basis and will see if more doors open in the sport in the future.

“I’d love to continue all throughout my university years,” said Regier. “I’m super excited to see what I can do, where I can go with this and what opportunities it’ll have for me.”

Charlotte Wildeman runs the 80-metre hurdles at SHSAA provincials.

When asked about how far she wants to go with the sport, Wildeman said she hadn’t looked too far ahead, but she is aware athletes from the Huskies have gone on to do special things in the sport. She just wants to take things as they come.

“I want to see what is in store for me,” said Wildeman. “Honestly, I don’t have a really great answer for that question.

“I’d like to take it as far as I can go.”

Ostertag rediscovers fun in track and field

Standout athlete almost quit sport due to rough couple of years

By Darren Steinke
Gordie Howe Sports Complex

Nicole Ostertag helped the Huskies win a Canada West title.

Nicole Ostertag was oh so close to hanging up her track and field spikes for good.

Having built a reputation as being one of the best combined events athletes to come out of Saskatoon in some time, Ostertag went through a 2024 season where she didn’t compete at all due to injuries and illness. She returned to action in early 2025 only to have another setback at the Bryan Clay Invitational in Azusa, California, in April of that year.

“I hurt myself again, and that was really tough for me,” said Ostertag. “We were in California getting some early competitions in, and I took off funny in high jump and injured my knee.

“That was just devastating, and that was when I kind of decided that I had enough. My body seemed to be rejecting it, so I took a long break.”

The 25-year-old returned to the University of Saskatchewan to begin studying in the Master of Physical Therapy program. At that point, Ostertag considered rejoining the Huskies Women’s Track and Field Team.

She built a lot of great memories in her time with the Huskies that included setting the Huskies women’s program record for most points obtained in the pentathlon at 3,996 back in 2020. That record still stands to this day.

Ostertag approached Jason Reindl, who is the head coach of both Huskies women’s and men’s track and field teams, with the notion of making a possible return.

“I was ready to hang up my spikes and end my track career,” said Ostertag, who stands 5-foot-8. “I started my master’s of physical therapy at the university this year.

Nicole Ostertag makes a hurdles practice run on July 7, 2023.

“I realized I still had three years of eligibility left with the Huskies, and I decided I wanted to start going to the track again. I just did hurdles, and I’ve been only training three days a week. I started having fun again, and things have been going really well.”

At the Panda Open held this past February 6 and 7 in Edmonton, Alta., Ostertag broke the Huskies women’s team record in the 60-metre hurdles running in a time of 8.12 seconds. The old mark of 8.15 seconds run back in 2020 was held by one of her best friends in Michelle Harrison, who represented Canada running the women’s 100-metre hurdles in the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, France.

Harrison’s record came in a gold medal winning race in the 2020 U Sports Track and Field Championships.

On the first day of this year’s Canada West Conference Track and Field Championships on February 20, Ostertag won the conference title in the 60-metre women’s hurdles running the championship final in a Canada West record time of 8.07 seconds edging fifth-year veteran Sienna MacDonald of the U of Calgary Dinos. MacDonald, who won both the Canada West and U Sports titles in the women’s 60-metre hurdles in 2024 and 2025, held the previous Canada West conference record in that event, running a time of 8.08 seconds in a preliminary race earlier in the day.

“It was so much fun, especially this year having Sienna MacDonald from Calgary to compete against,” said Ostertag, who also helped the Huskies women’s team win an eighth straight Canada West Conference team title. “She is a force, and she has been putting down crazy hurdle times for the last couple of years.

“To be able to kind of dethrone her, this is the first time she has been beaten in a while, it was fun. We are really good friends. We keep it light, so just having that energy between us is quite unique.”

On the second day of the U Sports Track and Field Championships on March 6 in Winnipeg, Man., Ostertag again edged MacDonald in championship race of the women’s 60-metre hurdles. Ostertag posted another Huskies program record time of 8.05 seconds to just edge MacDonald at 8.06 seconds. The Huskies women’s team finished second overall in the team points race at U Sports nationals, which wrapped up on March 7.

Nicole Ostertag, right, and Michelle Harrison are great friends.

Ostertag credited Reindl with helping her get back on track on the track. Reindl is well known for his ability to help athletes get healthy and stay healthy and perform their best in big competitions.

When he became the Huskies head coach in 2017, Reindl helped Harrison return to the sport and the Huskies after she became disillusioned having battled numerous injuries. Harrison went on to run better than she ever did piling up numerous accomplishments in making it to the 2024 Summer Olympics.

“I’m in a very similar position as Michelle (Harrison) was all those years ago, where she just decided to go back to school and do track for fun,” said Ostertag. “I came into this season just wanting to have fun, and Jason (Reindl) was fully accepting of that.

“He kept me limited to three practices a week. He would not let me over do it.”

Reindl said the key to bringing back the fun for Ostertag in track and field was to be intelligent with her training, which helps with confidence and shows through in competitions.

“I think it just goes into my, you know, kind of coaching philosophy,” said Reindl. “We are going to make smart decisions and really look at long term high performance.

“If we can stay healthy and get quality work in, there really are no limits. That is what Michelle (Harrison’s) kind of pathway was, and Nicole (Ostertag) is you know in this non-combined events world at the moment doing exceptionally well. We’re just excited to keep on working with her and seeing how far we can take this.”

Reindl said Ostertag has always been an extremely hard worker with a positive attitude. The coach added the star athlete’s day-to-day effort has allowed her to have the success she has had. For the Huskies as a team, Reindl said it has been big to have Ostertag back.

“It is awesome,” said Reindl. “She is such an exceptional athlete.

Nicole Ostertag throw a shot during the 2023 Saskatchewan provincials.

“Her ability to show what elite level high performance is like on the track and in training is just a huge positive for our team and program and our training group. It is just awesome.”

While she ended up with the Canada West record in the 60-metre hurdles, Ostertag entered the season with the desire to break Harrison’s Huskies record in that event.

“That was my goal coming into this year,” said Ostertag. “It kind of played into my motivation to come back.

“I wanted to go get Michelle (Harrison’s) record, because she is such a good friend to me, but we’re always trying to one-up each other. She is like one of the best hurdlers that Canada has seen, so to break her record is pretty darn special.”

Harrison stepped away from track and field after giving birth to a baby daughter named Izzy and starting a family with her husband, Graeme, in June of 2025. Ostertag and Harrison trained together for a number of years since the Track and Field Track opened on the Gordie Howe Sports Complex grounds in 2019, which helped develop their friendship.

In the summer of 2023, their training group included the pride of Borden in Savannah Sutherland, who made the final of the 400-metre women’s hurdles in the 2024 Summer Olympics, and star heptathlete Madisson Lawrence from Winnipeg, Man. That provided a lasting memory for Ostertag.

“It was so much fun just having so many elite women training together, and our coach Jason (Reindl) kept things light and made the hard training days feel a little bit easier,” said Ostertag. “I’m hoping that if Michelle (Harrison) makes her comeback that we can train together once again, because that was pretty special.”

With that said, Ostertag is doing her best to stay in the moment and enjoy the day to day of the sport of track and field. Still, she admits she has had visions of getting back into combined events or maybe pushing for the next Summer Olympics in 2028 in Los Angeles, California.

Nicole Ostertag, right, enjoys working with Jason Reindl, left.

“The thought has definitely crossed my mind,” said Ostertag. “When I came into this season, school was my priority, and track was just something I was going on the side.

“I did not expect to run this fast, but now that the joy has come back, I am starting to get the itch to start combined events again and maybe make a run at the 2028 Olympics. We will see. Time will tell.”

Hagerty leaps her way to FISU Summer World University Games

Huskie athlete makes quick rise in track and field

By Darren Steinke
Gordie Howe Sports Complex

Hannah Hagerty takes to the air during a meet on June 15.

An open mind created new opportunities in track and field for Hannah Hagerty that might not have been envisioned eight or so years ago.

These days the 24-year-old Regina product is a star for the University of Saskatchewan Huskies Women’s Track and Field Team in the long jump and the 4 X 200-metre relay. Back when she was a Grade 11 student at Regina’s Campbell Collegiate, Hagerty was trying the sport for the first time just for fun participating in high school competitions.

She had taken part in dance for a lengthy stretch of time before testing out her skating stride in ringette. When she finally tried track and field, Hagerty found a space that she felt she belonged in.

“I, obviously, really liked it,” said Hagerty. “Then, I joined a club.

“I joined Excel (in Regina). I did that for two years, and I found a really big passion for it, especially with long jump.”

The 2024-25 campaign was a memorable one for Hagerty. With the Huskies, she claimed the Canada West Conference title in the women’s long jump with a leap of 6.17 metres at the conference championships held February 21 and 22 in Regina.

At that meet, she proceeded to help the Huskies capture gold in the 4 X 200-metre relay in a time of one minute and 39.82 seconds. Hagerty’s performances helped the Huskies Women’s Track and Field Team claim a seventh straight conference title.

She then took part in the U Sports Track and Field Championships that ran March 6 to 8 in Windsor, Ont. Hagerty placed sixth in the long jump with a leap of 5.97 metres and helped the Huskies finish second in the 4 X 200-metre women’s relay with a time of 1:36.67. The Huskies placed third in the women’s team standings at that event.

Thanks to her steady performances, Hagerty will compete in the long jump at the track and field competition that will be part of the FISU Summer World University Games that run July 16 to 27 in Rhine-Ruhr, Germany. She will be joined at the World University Games by Huskies women’s teammate Paige Willems (400-metre race), Huskies men’s teammate Jake Neufeld (decathlon) and the head coach of both Huskies Track and Field Teams in Jason Reindl.

Hagerty was pumped to get the chance to head to the World University Games.

Jason Reindl, left, and Hannah Hagerty go over video of a jump.

“That was honestly a dream come true as well,” said Hagerty, who stands 5-foot-10. “Representing Canada at the national level is obviously something that you don’t really think that you’re going to be able to do.

“With that dedication and hard work, I know that I am capable of competing at those higher levels and wearing that Team Canada gear. I feel like it will add a whole other level of excitement. I’m very thankful and very honoured, and I’m excited to see what I can kind of produce while I’m there under those pressures.”

On top competing at the World University Games, Hagerty will experience being in another country. She thought it might be a bit overwhelming for the first few days just being in Germany. Hagerty added it will be different seeing athletes wearing the team gear of their respective countries adding to the importance of the event, but she believes she can show she belongs there.

“I think there will be added pressure, but I think it is just all exciting, and I’m excited to see what comes from it,” said Hagerty.

After graduating from Campbell Collegiate in 2019, Hagerty first joined the University of Regina Cougars Women’s Track and Field Team and studied in kinesiology. Before the start of the 2022-23 campaign, she transferred to the Huskies and became a business major at the Edwards School of Business at the U of S. She made the move to get a fresh start in both athletics and academics.

Reindl has enjoyed coaching Hagerty with the Huskies as the program’s head coach and recently took on the role of being Hagerty’s primary coach in the long jump.

“As a head coach, I’ve kind of been working with Hannah for three years now, but as her primary coach, I really just started working with her in the last three months,” said Reindl. “It has been a unique change, but a pretty exciting one in terms of her enthusiasm for training and just excitement for pushing herself to be better.

“When we look at long jump as her primary event, it is speed, it is power and the ability to have a strong dynamic takeoff and some leverage. She has some long levers. She is a taller gal.

“Whether it was her development at Regina, what initial coaches here at USask in Kevin Cumming and Jayden Wiebe have been able to do with her, she just has a knack for the event and is able to do quite well and develop positively.”

Reindl said it will be a great opportunity for Hagerty, Willems and Neufeld to represent Canada on the international stage at the World University Games.

Hannah Hagerty works on her speed during a July 2 practice.

“We’re pretty fortunate in the sense that we’ve got Jake Neufeld, Paige Willems and Hannah (Hagerty) all going to Germany later this summer with myself as a team coach,” said Reindl. “It is something where the athletes get to experience not only an international event, but also one that is age regulated.

“The maximum age is now 25-years-old. It is kind of an international (competition) amongst their peers and student athletes. The opportunity to put on a Team Canada singlet (and) compete against some of the world’s best, it is just a great opportunity to test themselves and have some fun.”

Going into the World University Games, Hagerty said she gained a boost of confidence from how well her 2024-25 U Sports season went with the Huskies.

“I think I just surprised myself,” said Hagerty. “I have abilities to perform, but I don’t think anyone fully trusts that they’re going to be the one to like be a Canada West champion or anything like that.

“I think it came with a lot of surprises, but with those surprises, it also did come with a lot of hard work and dedication to being at practice and working hard and always focusing when I am at practice. The season was very exciting. I think it was eye-opening, and it is just exciting to see what can come from that.

“I think that was obviously a very good start, and I just want to keep building on that.”

To prepare for her upcoming international competition, Hagerty said being able to train at the Track and Field Track on the Gordie Howe Sports Complex grounds has been a huge help.

“The past summer months of training have definitely been really, really good training,” said Hagerty. “That is where I transitioned under Jason (Reindl).

“He has obviously put in a lot of work and a lot of work into every single practice, into lifting and into the organization of preparing for each week. I know that when I come to practice there is a purpose and something that I’m supposed to be focusing on. I think, especially with long jump, each practice focuses on kind of a different element, which I need, because it is not just improving altogether.

“It is just working on specific things, so that when I do go to those big stages, things hopefully can come together all in one.”

Hannah Hagerty won the Canada West title in the long jump in February.

Hagerty also enjoys the fact that she can draw strong support from the very athletic family she comes from. Her father, Jeff, was a member of the 1990 Vanier Cup champion University of Saskatchewan Huskies Football Team and helped the Regina Rams win CJFL titles in 1993 and 1994. Her mother, Tammy, was once a triple jump specialist in track and field and played softball for a very long stretch.

Her older brother, Josh, is an alum of the Huskies football club. Josh broke into the CFL as a defensive back with the Toronto Argonauts in 2021 and was a member of their Grey Cup championship team in 2022. 

Josh played for the Edmonton Elks last season and started this season as a member of the Winnipeg Blue Bombers before being released on July 2.

Hannah said her family’s sports background is pretty cool.

“I think it has been really fun,” said Hagerty. “When I was little, I was always just very active being at baseball for my brother and being at football for him.

“Wherever he kind of was, I was just the little sister that kind of followed around, and it, obviously, added like a lot of excitement and fun. I know growing up being around sports, I was always very, very active. Then just seeing him (Josh) and how much time and dedication he has put into his sports and the things that he loves, it gives me a lot of motivation that knowing if you have that ability to kind of use that as your strength and really push towards what you want.

“He has been someone who has very much inspired me into just dedicating to what I want to do and seeing if I can take it to the next step. Obviously, I am very proud of him, and I know that he still has a lot to give. He is definitely someone that I’ve been very much inspired by.”

When the World University Games wraps up, Hagerty will return to the U of S to complete her final season of eligibility with the Huskies and finish up work on her business studies. She would like to continue with track and field when her Huskies days wrap up.

“I feel like I haven’t really thought about it being my last season, because I always feel like there is more to come,” said Hagerty. “That is just the mindset that I’ve been in for the past few years of being a university athlete.

Hannah Hagerty aims to stick good results at the World University Games.

“I feel like, even though it is my last season competing of eligibility with the Huskies, you never know what can happen. You never know where that might take me. There are very big goals and dreams that I want to achieve, so after this season, my hope is to still continue training and continue competing, and then just see what happens from there.”

Reindl follows ultra-busy family track and field legacy

By Darren Steinke
Gordie Howe Sports Complex

Jason Reindl is one of Canada’s best track and field coaches.

In track and field especially on a coaching front, Jason Reindl seemingly does it all.

The 40-year-old has served as the head coach of the University of Saskatchewan Huskies Track and Field and Cross-Country Teams since the start of the 2017-18 campaign. Reindl can coach athletes as young as eight years old all the way to 90-years-old. No matter who he coaches, Reindl is driven by optimism of what could possibly be.

“I’d say one of the biggest things is the future isn’t written,” said Reindl, who basically lives at the Track and Field Track on the Gordie Howe Sports Complex grounds during the spring and summer months coaching athletes. “I’ve learned that no matter how much success or lack of success someone had today, the unknowns of the future are kind of what drive me to kind of push to help these individuals.”

Reindl began coaching in his teenage years while attending high school at Evan Hardy Collegiate and still competing in track and field as an athlete. He began coaching one day a week on Thursdays with the Saskatoon Track Club working with athletes around the age of 10. Reindl attended various coaching courses on weekends during his high school days leading to his graduation from Evan Hardy in 2002.

Since the start of January 1, 2024, his life schedule has been a whirlwind.

He coached his Huskies team through that time and saw the Women’s Track and Field Team win Canada West Conference Championships in February of 2024 and this past February for a run of seven straight conference title victories.

The Huskies Women’s 4 X 800-metre relay team won a Canada West title in February 2024 and a U Sports Championship in March of 2024 and was named Sask Sport’s Team of the Year for 2024 this past January. On Saturday, the Huskies Women’s Track and Field Team captured the bronze medal at the U Sports Track and Field Championships in Windsor, Ontario.

Reindl has been heavily involved with the Running Wild Athletic Club in Saskatoon and Saskatchewan Aboriginal Track and Field. He holds assistant coach roles with Saskatoon Track Club and supports Huskies athletes with Riversdale Athletics Club.

With Saskatchewan Athletics, Reindl is the master coach developer for the province, which is a fairly large role when to comes to coaching education helping future coaches. He was the personal coach for Michelle Harrison at the Summer Olympics in Paris that ran from July 26, 2024 to August 11, 2024.

Jason Reindl has coached track and field since high school.

Reindl was the sprints, hurdles and relays coach with Team Canada for World Under-20 Championships that ran August 27 to 31, 2024 in Lima, Peru. 

On the national front when it comes to education for track and field, Reindl was the lead combined events presenter for Athletics Canada in Winnipeg in October and sits on the national coach education committee. He is also a board member for the Coaching Association of Canada and Saskatchewan Athletics.

Again, those were all the roles Reindl has fulfilled for about the last 14-and-a-half months. He jokes he has to thank “caffeine” for allowing him to do all those roles.

On the serious side, Reindl said it helped that his parents in mother, Caren, and father, Bob, were great role models. 

During their lives, Caren (Rathie) and Bob were star track and field athletes and have served in numerous coaching and administrative capacities for the sport.

“I’ve been able to see a lot of amazing people through their network,” said Jason Reindl. “I would kind of say in my teenage years where you start to realize who you can kind of call upon for advice.

“Having the last name Reindl within the track and field and kind of the sport coaching community was a significant blessing, because I was able to inquire, ask questions and get a lot of support, but also see people in action. At the same time, I’ll say I know I’m blessed, and you know, the opportunities have come with hard work. It has been an interesting last couple of years we’ll say.”

When it comes to the highlight over the 14-and-a-half months, Reindl backs up the calendar to October 7, 2023 and said the highlight was marrying his longtime partner Rebecca Goldie, who competes in triathlons. For his coaching career, Reindl said getting to coach at the Olympics was the highlight.

He said the Olympics had a unique aura, but when it came to coaching and the execution of the track and field part of the games, it was normal to most other international events. While he was Harrison’s personal coach, Reindl said it was special to have two other athletes he worked with at the Olympics.

When Reindl lived in Fredericton, New Brunswick, and coached the University of New Brunswick Varsity Reds before joining the Huskies, he coached 110-metre hurdler Craig Thorne. Thorne is based out of Guelph, Ontario, now.

Michelle Harrison, left, and Jason Reindl chat at a practice last May.

Reindl also coached 400-metre hurdler Savannah Sutherland. The bulk of that coaching happened in Saskatoon before Sutherland joined the University of Michigan Wolverines Track and Field Team in the fall of 2021. 

The veteran coach also worked with Sutherland for short periods of time when she returned home to visit family in her hometown of Borden, which is located 53 kilometres northwest of Saskatoon.

“It was pretty, pretty special that I was able to kind of give high-fives to three different athletes that I had an impact on at various stages of their career,” said Reindl. “It was very special and definitely the highlight at present.”

Reindl said getting to coach Harrison racing in the 100-metre hurdles was emotional and meaningful as the culmination of a big journey.

“It is hard to even put into words how remarkable and impactful it was,” said Reindl. “I actually can go back and say that when I was coaching the Saskatoon Track Club one day a week Michelle was one of those first athletes in the group.

“Not only was I one of her first coaches in her career when she was 10-years-old, the fact that we got back together in 2017 and had the next seven years from her and I both moving back to Saskatoon all the way to three national titles, university accolades, six national teams and culminating with the Olympic Games was pretty special. It is a journey that not a lot of coaches get to have.”

Harrison returned to Saskatoon in 2017 after training at the high-performance hub in Toronto from 2015 to 2017. She was injured most of the time she was at the hub and became disillusioned with track and field.

Upon returning to Saskatoon, Harrison got back in touch Reindl and rejoined the Huskies after being part of the program previously winning gold at the U Sports Championships in the 60-metre hurdles in 2014. After rejoining Huskies with Reindl as head coach, things took off for Harrison at that point.

“Jason (Reindl) was a major turning point in my career as an athlete, changing things for the better,” said Harrison, who turned 32-years-old in December. “He has been a constant source of guidance, belief and support throughout my journey.

Jason Reindl loves being at the Track and Field Track.

“He’s pushed me beyond what I thought I was capable of while always having my back through the toughest moments. His dedication and passion for the sport are contagious, and his ability to balance accountability with encouragement has helped shape me into the athlete and person I am today. I’m incredibly grateful for everything he’s done, from the tough workouts to the words of wisdom that go far beyond the track.

“I wouldn’t be where I am without him.”

Now, Harrison is expecting her first child with husband, Graeme Harrison. Reindl said it is always special to see his athletes embark on their paths outside of the sport.

“I think it is just that full circle where one journey ends and another begins,” said Reindl. “The number of athletes that I’ve been a part of their journeys that are married, have kids, have successful careers, MDs, PhDs, you name it.

“It is never lost on me the important of all of that. I guess the recency effect the time that Michelle and I spent together and seeing her grow and develop as a young woman to now her soon to be a mom is just a pretty cool thing. We just have a special relationship, and I am extremely proud of her.”

During the spring and summer and the month of September, Reindl enjoys coaching athletes of all ages at the Track and Field Track since it opened in the spring of 2019. He said the facility has developed a great upbeat vibe.

“It is just a fun place to be,” said Reindl. “I say a lot of coaches get the opportunity to kind of have a home.

“To get the chance to go to Gordie and know that I can execute my tasks to help these athletes achieve their goals with the equipment on hand and all the space, it is a blessing. It is something that I do not take for granted, because traveling the world and going to areas where you might have a track or you might have rubber, might not mean you have grass or it might not mean you have space to do medicine ball throws. There are a lot of intangibles that come around the whole facility.

“This year we’re actually going to have our first Huskies track and field sport camps there in the first two weeks of July. Getting the opportunity to kind of make that connection even stronger between our Huskie development side of things into that facility is something we’re really looking forward to.”

Jason Reindl, centre, enjoys coaching the Huskies.

As he continues coaching, Reindl always strives to help his athletes be the best they can be.

“I guess bringing that back to the Huskie side of things, the last couple of years we’ve brought in some athletes who were OK coming out of high school that have turned into all-Canadians national medalists,” said Reindl, who was a Huskies track athlete from 2002 to 2006 and a member of the U Sports men’s and women’s double title win in 2005. “I can’t promise that everyone will be an Olympian, but I can promise you will get better.”

Farmer embarks on final Huskies hurrah

By Darren Steinke
Gordie Howe Sports Complex

Kendra Farmer does a practice run at the Track and Field Track.

Kendra Farmer plans to soak in and enjoy her U Sports track and field career before it is gone.

The 23-year-old Saskatoon product is embarking on her final season of U Sports eligibility with the University of Saskatchewan Huskies Women’s Track and Field Team. After graduating from Centennial Collegiate in June of 2017, Farmer, who is a sprints specialist, joined the Huskies in the fall of that year and has been with that program ever since.

During the spring and summer months, Farmer is a regular at the Track and Field Track on the Gordie Howe Sports Complex grounds training and racing as a competitor and coaching young athletes with the Running Wild Athletics Club.

“I feel like every year I’ve kind of went in just really like always looking like performance wise for myself,” said Farmer. “I think this year obviously I would love to improve on my performances from last year.

“I think I am just really like going in and just like excited to and ready to just like embrace the experience fully. I think I am just like planning on just like taking it all in (and) hopefully passing on the love and the spirit to all the new rookies and the rest of the athletes on the team to move on forward with the Huskies spirit. Honestly, it is weird for sure.

“I thankfully have had my time to accept that this will be my last year.”

Last season with the Huskies, Farmer won silver in the women’s 300-metre race and gold in the women’s 4 X 200-metre and 4 X 400-metre relays at the Canada West championships. She helped the Huskies capture a fourth consecutive Canada West team title.

Farmer ran the 300-metre final at the Canada West championships in a time of 38.32 seconds, which was a new record for the Huskies women’s team. The old mark of 38.44 seconds was posted by Joanne McTaggart back in 1975.

Farmer said that record and the fact the Huskies women’s team has won the Canada West title in her previous four seasons of eligibility are her biggest highlights with the program.

“Breaking the Huskie record last year in 300-metre (race) was a huge goal for me kind of honestly since I started Huskies,” said Farmer, who stand 5-foot-5. “That was a really big personal accomplishment.

Kendra Farmer takes flight at the Canada Summer Games Trials.

“Team wise, I think just like showing up with the girls every year and getting that Canada West banner and getting those second place U Sports performances. Both of those have just like been really exciting, and I’ve just like have seen our team bond more and more each year. Just getting closer and getting those wins together has been really awesome.”

At the U Sports championships, Farmer took home silver medals in the women’s 4 X 200-metre and 4 X 400-metre relays. She helped the Huskies team finish second overall.

Farmer was also named the winner of the outstanding Student-Athlete Community Service Award at both the Canada West and U Sports championships. She has also been a U Sports academic all-Canadian for the past five straight campaigns including the 2020-21 campaign where all U Sports nationals were cancelled due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic that has gripped the world and athletes still pursued their studies.

This season, Farmer will get to go out with a couple of special opportunities to go along with taking part in the Sanderson Classic to be held at the Saskatoon Fieldhouse on January 13 and 14, 2023. The Huskies will host the Canada West Championships on February 24 and 25, 2023 and the U Sports Championships on March 9 to 11, 2023 at the Saskatoon Fieldhouse.

The Huskies last hosted the U Sports Championships way back in the 2005-06 campaign. Farmer will get to graduate from the Huskies with her last two big meets to be held at home.

“It is pretty cool,” said Farmer, who studies in the engineering program at U of S. “It will be really fun ending it in front of a home crowd.

“It will be a little more nerve-racking, because I have all of the family and friends here. That is also awesome, because there is more support. We’ll have all of the cheers and the big crowd too.

“It is a pretty cool way to end my career. I’m excited about that. That will be sweet.”

Jason Reindl, who is the head coach of both the U of Saskatchewan Huskies Men’s and Women’s Track and Field Teams, found it hard to put into words what it has meant to have Farmer as part of the women’s team. Reindl became the Huskies head coach in June of 2017, and he said Farmer has been key creating a great vibe and culture for the program.

“I cannot put the amount of positives into words,” said Reindl. “She was one of the first main recruits when I took over in the summer of 2017 that was coming into the program.

Kendra Farmer, second from left, was Huskies rookie of the year in 2017-18.

“Just her leadership and her development, the support that she has really given this program has been I’ll use the term remarkable.”

Reindl is happy he gets to coach Farmer with the Huskies for one more season and that she will have two special opportunities in her final season with the Huskies hosting conference and national championships.

“It is going to be a little bit of a unique year in the sense that we are hosting both the Canada West and the U Sports championships,” said Reindl. “For her to end her Huskies career as a fifth year of eligibility with the two biggest meets of the year at home, it is going to be a pretty special opportunity for her, her family, her friends and just all the relationships she has made over these last couple of years, because everyone is going to be able to come out and support her and the rest of the team.”

Farmer said one of the big turning points in her track and field career was winning the Patricia Lawson Trophy Huskies Female Rookie of the Year for the entire Huskies program in 2017-18.

“I can tell you when I got that award I was not expecting it,” said Farmer, who also claimed the Huskies Track and Field female rookie of the year award that is named after McTaggart. “That was a really exciting experience for me.

“I think that was really good, because it kind of solidified me as actually a Huskie that can go on and do things. I had expectations for myself, but I didn’t really know how far I would be able to go. I think getting that award really kind of helped step up my goals a bit.

“After that kind of first year, it was when I really kind of started eyeing down those records that Huskie 300-metre record and getting some of the higher-level awards, which I guess would be a goal for me this year as well. That was a big kind of moment for me just in terms of like, ‘OK. I’m actually not bad at this sport. I can go places.’ That was exciting.”

Going into her final season with the Huskies, Farmer had some highlights during the outdoor season. At the Track and Field Track on the Complex grounds, Farmer won gold in the women’s 200-metre at the Canada Summer Games Trials on June 12 and the Bob Adam’s Saskatchewan Track and Field Championships. She also captured a silver in the women’s 400-metre at the Summer Games Trials on June 11.

At the Canada Summer Games held in the Niagara Region of Ontario, Farmer helped Saskatchewan win a bronze medal in the women’s 4 X 100-metre relay on August 19.

Farmer wants to help the Huskies win a fifth Canada West team championship this season. 

Kendra Farmer helps coach with the Running Wild Athletics Club.

Once the U Sports season wraps up, she wants to keep competing in track and field and plans to continue to be a regular at the Track and Field Track.

“I don’t think I’m quite ready to give up on this sport yet,” said Farmer, who is a member of the Central Urban Metis Federation Incorporated. “I think I’ll definitely hang around for a little while.

“I love this community and just what track has done for me over the years and who it has all connected me with. I definitely want to keep going. I’ll for sure have another outdoor season after Huskies this year.

“I’m going to keep going kind of until I reach my limit. I know I’m not ready to go until I kind of reach that top point where I feel like I’ve gotten to the point where I can. I’d love obviously to make a national team at some point.”

Harrison, Ostertag tackle busy outdoor track season

Pair gets chance to represent Canada internationally

By Darren Steinke
Gordie Howe Sports Complex

Michelle Harrison and Nicole Ostertag are track and field standouts.

Michelle Harrison and Nicole Ostertag are continuing to keep Saskatoon’s great track and field tradition on the map.

Harrison and Ostertag are part of the current generation of a long line of athletes that have come from Saskatoon and excelled in the track and field world. Harrison, who is 29-years-old, won the women’s 100-metre hurdles final at the Canadian Olympic track and field trials that doubled as the Canadian nationals in June of 2021, and Ostertag, who is 22-years-old, is a national standout in the women’s heptathlon.

Both will compete in the Canadian Track and Field Championships that run later this month from June 22 to 26 in Langley, B.C. Both have represented Canada on the international stage and aim to continue representing Canada in future internationals events.

“It is definitely a privilege to work with athletes of their calibre,” said Jason Reindl, who is the head coach of the University of Saskatchewan Huskies Track and Field teams and is a high-performance track and field coach in Saskatoon. “It is just always fun to see where they go, where they can compete and the opportunities that kind of present themselves at the highest levels of the sport.”

Harrison, who is an alumna of the Huskies track program, represented Canada at the World Athletics Indoor Championships in Belgrade, Serbia, where she finished in a tie for 15^th overall in the women’s 60-metre hurdles. In April, Harrison took part in a training camp in California and won the 100-metre women’s hurdles title in the Bryan Clay Invitational, the Beach Invitational and the Steve Scott Invitational, which were all held in that state.

Also in April, Harrison traveled to Eugene, Oregon, and took the women’s 100-metre hurdles title at the Oregon Relays.

Michelle Harrison competed at indoor worlds in March.

On May 21, Harrison took the 100-metre women’s hurdles final at the Johnny Loaring Classic in Windsor, Ont., and on June 5, she topped the 100-metre women’s hurdles field at La Classique d’Athlétisme de Montréal in Montreal, Quebec.

“The indoor season started out well,” said Harrison, who stands 5-foot-6. “I was able to make the world indoor team, which was my standard for the indoor season, so I was able to achieve that goal.

“I’m hoping to just use that momentum and move forward into outdoors and hopefully be able to make the world outdoor team as well. My hope is to run the world standard this year, which is 12.84 (seconds).”

She did indeed run the world standard. On June 8 at the Royal City Inferno Track and Field Festival in Guelph, Ont., Harrison ran a personal best time twice with her fastest run in the 100-metre hurdles coming in at 12.80 seconds. Her second fastest time at that event of 12.83 seconds also bested the world standard.

Harrison aims to compete in the World Athletics Championships that run July 15 to 24 in Eugene, Oregon. Following worlds, she would like to take part in the Commonwealth Games, which run July 28 to August 8 in Birmingham, England.

After the Commonwealth Games, Harrison would like to compete at the North American, Central America and Caribbean Athletic Association (NACAC) Senior Championships slated for August 19 to 21 in Grand Bahama, Bahamas.

Harrison has enjoyed getting back into a steady competition schedule after the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic that gripped the world caused numerous cancellations in 2020 and 2021.

“I think the best part is just getting out and having some consistency, where as the past two years you never really knew what was going on more than like a couple of days ahead of time,” said Harrison. “I really like having a plan and being able to like have relative certainty these X-amount of meets are going to happen and be able to get in consecutive workouts as well especially because I dealt with lots of injuries during COVID.

Nicole Ostertag is quickly putting up good results in the heptathlon.

“It was just nice getting in some consistent training and having a plan moving forward.”

Ostertag is still a relative newcomer to track and field having taken up the sport in her Grade 12 year at Holy Cross High School in 2017-18. She is currently a member of the Huskies track team.

A lower leg injury sidelined her for the 2021-22 U Sports season with the Huskies, and she got back more in the swing of things around the time she joined Harrison in California for that training camp in April. Ostertag returned to full training about a week before she left for the training camp in California.

Taking part in the Bryan Clay Invitational, she placed second among 25 competitors in her division in the women’s heptathlon.

The women’s heptathlon includes the 200-metre race, the 800-metre race, the 100-metre hurdles, high jump, long jump, shot put and javelin throw.

Ostertag’s result at the Bryan Clay Invitational allowed her to earn a spot to represent Canada at the at the NACAC Combined Events Championship that ran May 14 and 15 in Ottawa, Ont. At that event, Ostertag, who was representing Canada for the first time in her track and field career, placed second in the women’s heptathlon setting personal bests in the 200-metre race, the 800-metre race, the 100-metre hurdles, high jump, long jump and javelin throw.

Due to lost training time because of her injury troubles, Ostertag is still looking to round into top form.

“I haven’t done as much training as I would have liked, but it is coming along quickly,” said Ostertag, who stands 5-foot-8. “I’m surprising myself I guess.

Michelle Harrison has her sights set on making worlds in July.

“I have been able to work on my endurance and my strength and kind of working out some imbalances in my body, so that is serving me well. I’ve been a bit rusty with the technical side of things, but we’ve been able to do a lot more work. It is not ideal preparation, but it is how it has to be.

“You’ve always got to be adaptable with combined events too. There is a little more wiggle room.”

Ostertag will join Harrison at the Canadian Track and Field Champions. Following that event, Ostertag has her sights set on competing at the Canada Games that will run August 6 to 21 in Niagara, Ont., before returning to the U of S to rejoin the Huskies and continue her academic studies in kinesiology.

“Winning nationals would be the ultimate goal for this season,” said Ostertag. “Canada Games is in August, and I would also love to win that one as well.

“I’m actually happy to be able to compete in Canada and have a little bit more of a low-key summer.”

Reindl expects Harrison and Ostertag to make noise in the track and field world for some time to come. He said their ability to zero in and complete what they need to do in training on a day to day basis helps them excel in track and field at an elite level. 

When they are in Saskatoon, Reindl said it has been big for them to train at the Track and Field Track and Indoor Training Centre at the Gordie Howe Sports Complex.

Nicole Ostertag is aiming for first at nationals and Canada Games.

“Their mindset and just ability to focus and get the work that they need to get in is a testament to them and their characters as strong women,” said Reindl. “Having facilities like the Gordie Howe Sports Complex here and the Indoor Training Centre and Ignite Athletics are really the other pieces of the puzzle.

“You can have all the determination in the world, but you need to have somewhere to go and somewhere to train and somewhere to work. This is why on a Wednesday morning at 10 a.m. we’re able to come out here and have a focused high-quality training environment, which is truly world class for what we are trying to achieve.”

User groups pumped to use K+S Potash Canada Multi-sport Centre

By Darren Steinke
Gordie Howe Sports Complex

The K+S Potash Canada Multi-sport Centre.

The K+S Potash Canada Multi-sport Centre is bringing in good reviews.

The newest building on the Gordie Howe Sports Complex grounds first started earnestly housing user groups inside its doors during the start of this past winter’s skating season. The Saskatoon Lions Speed Skating Club was the first user group that got to take advantage of the new structure.

Lions President Chris Veeman said the storied speed skating club enjoyed settling into the new stomping grounds.

“We’re getting used to this new home, and so far, so good,” said Veeman. “The upstairs viewing area and the timing rooms are really fantastic.

“We’ve been able to run some meets pretty easily, because it is has been easy for us to set up electronic timing. It has meant that our kids can have some races where we don’t have to have a whole army of volunteers, so that has been really good. The change rooms and all of that are nice and new and functional.

“That has worked out well.”

The Multi-sport Centre replaces the old grandstand at Cairns Field, which was torn down in April of 2018. The old grandstand was used by both the baseball and the speed skating communities.

The new building, which has 20,000 square feet of space on its two floors, will be used by the baseball and speed skating communities along with the track and field community. The Clarence Downey Speed Skating Oval that is located to the west of the Multi-sport Centre during the winter months converts into the Track and Field Track during the summer months.

The Track and Field Track was first used in 2019.

A timing and announcer booth overlooks the Oval.

The Lions were the initial group to use the new dressing rooms in the Multi-sport Centre along with the features on the building’s west side that included the outdoor stands, the second floor indoor spectator viewing area, and the timing and announcer booths.

Along with those features, the Lions and those that came out for public skating were able to use an indoor sitting area that was made to allow people to change into skates.

For the maintenance staff, they made great use of the comforts of a new Zamboni garage located on the building’s south side.

On the ice, the Lions usually held practices four nights a week from December to February and often hosted club speed skating meets on Saturday mornings. Challenges with the ongoing coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic didn’t allow the club to host any competitive meets this past season.

During speed skating and track and field meets, the west side of the Multi-sport Centre can seat 1,850 spectators and can be expanded to seat 3,500 spectators with temporary seating.

The Lions put the new electronic timing booths to good use at club meets, and that was a feature the club couldn’t believe it went without in the past.

“It is a lot easier to run an event,” said Veeman. “In the past, we had a couple of huts that were outside, and that is where our timers would be.

“They would be crowded into a little kind of a wooden hut. It was challenging to set up the electronic timing equipment, because you basically had to haul it between the two huts for different distances. It is hard on the equipment, and it just slows things down.

The official’s lounge at the Multi-sport Centre.

“This going to be a lot more time efficient when we have a big competition plus the volunteers don’t have to be outside and running around outside during the day, so it will be easier on the volunteers too.”

Jason Reindl, who is the Head Coach of the University of Saskatchewan Huskies Track and Field teams, said the track and field community is looking forward to using the Multi-sport Centre.

“It is just a huge addition to how we are able to kind of orientate our practices and our track meets,” said Reindl, who is the Head Coach for Athletics Canada’s under-20 team along with holding a number of other elite coaching positions. “Any time you can offer meeting rooms and officials spaces and a timing booth that can withstand inclement weather, they are all benefits to just kind of increase the professionalism of hosting a track meet in Saskatoon at the Gordie Howe Sports Complex.”

Reindl was pleased to hear the speed skating community was happy with the timing booths, and he said the track and field community is looking forward to using that feature of the Multi-sport Centre.

“It really just provides a stable environment for our timers,” said Reindl. “So much of track meets operates on very tight schedules, and when they can just sit in a nice warm room and don’t have to worry about rain or wind or any of those things, it just goes a long way to providing a great environment.”

The east side of the Multi-sport Centre serves the Cairns Field baseball park. By the end of the 2021 baseball season, user groups were able to utilize the new stands that ran along the Cairns Field baselines and inserted on the second level of the Multi-sport Centre behind home plate.

The east side of the Multi-sport Centre also contains a new scorers and statistics booth, a new media booth and an events office to serve users of Cairns Field. There is also an official’s lounge on the second floor that can be used by all sports groups.

“It is going to be great knowing that fans have a place to sit,” said Greg Brons, who is the High Performance Director for Baseball Sask. “The dressing rooms are going to be nice.

An area to change into skates at the Multi-sport Centre.

“The kids won’t have to dress in the parking lot. The umpires had to dress in the parking lot. It is going to be nice to have a clean bathroom as opposed to the porta potties.

“We’re really looking forward to those facilities for sure.”

The new Multi-sport Centre will allow the baseball, speed skating and track and field communities to hold bigger competitions and potentially nationals.

Reindl said the new building will be a huge benefit in going after national track and field championship meets.

“That is going to be the primary reason why that will happen,” said Reindl. “The bid process to secure championships is quite competitive across the country.

“With this venue, we’re now able to actually able to put our name in the hat and try and secure some of these larger scale events and bring hundreds and thousands of people to Saskatoon and bring tourism dollars and let them know that we have a great city, and especially in the summer, you definitely want to take advantage of all that the city has to offer.”

Brons said the Multi-sport Centre makes it more possible to bring the Baseball Canada Cup and potentially other national events to Saskatoon.

“It will help quite a bit, especially because we need meeting space,” said Brons. “We need areas for fans to sit.

“I think it will be an ideal spot for the Canada Summer Games in the future or any national tournament maybe another Baseball Canada Cup, because we hosted it back in 2015. I think the most important thing is just a good playing surface is one of the most important things when it comes to hosting a nationals or a Canada Games more than anything.

“It is going to be a real nice bonus to have a good building.”

A look at the Multi-sport Centre from Cairns Field.

Veeman said the COVID-19 pandemic is still causing difficulties in scheduling for speed skating. He said the local club will have a good chance to get some of those bigger events, but he was cautious about the wheels going in motion on that front.

“Having this new facility, I think it would be attractive to the people that are awarding those competitions,” said Veeman. “The big competition that we have is a brand new indoor oval in Quebec City that was just finished.

“Once there are more meets, because COVID has still cancelled almost all the meets this year, I think we will have a good chance to host some of those big ones again for sure.”