Gieni’s happy place is track and field track

Masters athlete has set Canadian records at least 60 times

By Darren Steinke
Gordie Howe Sports Complex

Muriel Gieni is an all-time great masters athlete in track and field.

Muriel Gieni discovered a whole new life when she followed her son into a sport.

About 23 years ago, Gieni’s son, Morgan, joined the Riversdale Athletics Club. At first, Gieni would drive Morgan to practice and watch him take part in the sport.

One day, Morgan’s coach, Doug Boyd, invited the parents to come out and take part in training. That led to Gieni at the time in her early 40s becoming a regular participant in practice sessions and eventually to taking part in masters athletics competitions.

In over two decades, Gieni is now 66-years-old and still going strong in the sport. Over her career, she has traveled all over and broken Canadian masters records in track and field on at least 60 occasions.

That included earning 3,852 points in the pentathlon at the Alberta Indoor Games on Edmonton this past February 4. Gieni’s point total set a new Canadian masters women’s indoor record for those aged 65 to 69.

“Your life has a journey, and you are rolling along here,” said Gieni. “What I learned is find what you love to do and do it.

“The second I walk on to a track I’m in my happy place. This is where I belong. This is where I should be.”

Before joining the Riversdale Athletics Club, Gieri had an athletic background. She grew up in a small town and in high school she took part in basketball, volleyball, badminton and track and field. Like small town athletes in the current day, Gieri moved from one sport to another as the year went along.

She remembers back then taking a liking to track and field.

“Our track season was four or five weeks long whatever it was,” said Gieni, who stands 5-foot-6. “I loved it.

“I loved track and field. It just was very limited to the time. I didn’t really get proper counselling to further my pursuit in track and field.

Muriel Gieni has set a number of records in triple jump.

“I was married with children for 20 years after that and then joined track again.”

Following high school, Gieni played volleyball in her post-secondary years as a student. After her post-secondary school was complete, Gieni continued to stay in shape doing workouts in the gym.

Upon getting back into track and field with the Riversdale Athletics Club, Gieni felt a new motivation in her pursuit to stay fit forming friendships with the athletes at the club. She enjoyed the youthful energy of the young members who were in junior high school or high school.

At first, Gieni saw herself being in the background as the person that was working to stay in shape and offer words of encouragement to the young athletes in the club. To her surprise, she received coaching, and she loved it.

“Right away, every single coach I’ve ever had has treated me like an athlete, and they talk to me like they would anybody in the group coaching specific technique, coaching specific to me what I need to do,” said Gieni. “It has been, ‘OK. I’ll ride this wave.’”

Gieni said the coaching she has received over the years from the Riversdale Athletic Club and the track and field community as a whole in Saskatoon has been outstanding. She added the track and field coaches in Saskatoon genuinely want to see the athletes they work with do well.

As for track events themselves, Gieni’s favourite is hurdles. Her main disciplines are hurdles, triple jump and long jump. Over the years, Gieni has picked up shot put, high jump, the 200-metre race, 800-metre race and javelin in order compete in pentathlons and heptathlons.

The pentathlon in masters women’s competitions includes 60-metre hurdles, 800-metre race, high jump, long jump and shot put. The heptathlon for masters women’s competitions is made up of the 80-metre hurdles, 200-metre race, 800-metre race, high jump, long jump, shot put and javelin.

When Gieni picked up new track disciplines over the years, she usually encounters a local coach who is an expert in that discipline, and the instruction she receives helps her performance immensely.

“I’ve always believed a champion is made by the athlete who buys into the coach,” said Gieni. “If you can coordinate that where your believing what he or she is saying you have magic.

Muriel Gieni takes part in Saskatchewan provincial in July of 2023.

“Sometimes I have a regular coach say just in high jump or some other coach and it could be from another club. It could be a senior coach that has come back to visit. I’ll just hear one thing, and I’ll say, ‘OK,’ because you hear it different. Then that works.”

As a bonus, the Canadian records started to come. Gieni’s first Canadian record was set in Calgary in the women’s 80-metre hurdles at age 45 in the 45-49 masters age class.

“I was absolutely over the moon, because it means I’m the first Canadian woman at this age that has ever run this fast,” said Gieni, who also sometimes has to chuckle when she sets a record. “Then I got into jumping, and I found out I could set Canadian records in the triple jump and long jump.

“I’ve been very successful in shotput as well. I’ve been very successful in high jump lately for some reason in my 60s. I’ve over 65.

“I’m jumping higher than I ever did in my 40s. What’s with that? The things that coaches challenge me with then I ask my body to try it, and I have actually no idea where this is going to go but sometimes it has been extremely successful and kind of laughable.”

Over the years, Gieni has cherished the friendships she has made through track and field. Last year, she did regular training sessions in the morning with the elite group on the Track and Field Track on the Gordie Howe Sports Complex grounds that includes Michelle Harrison, Nicole Ostertag, Savannah Sutherland and Madisson Lawrence.

For one morning session last year, Gieni brought a camera to get photos of herself going through her events. She decided to get a photo of herself together with Harrison, Ostertag, Sutherland and Lawrence for a keepsake.

“My relationship with the other athletes is just the joy I carry around with me,” said Gieni. “I’m taking a picture, because this is who I am out here training with.

“They like me, but I like them way more. I love these kids. They treat me really, really well.”

Muriel Gieni picked up shot put to enter pentathlons and heptathlons.

With the track and field track being her happy place, Gieni plans to competing in the sport for as long as possible. Due to the fact masters records are classified via five year age groups, Gieni has a new set of records to go after the older she gets. At the moment, she his just at the beginning of going after the records in the women’s 65-69 age group.

While she enjoys pursuing Canadian records, Gieni stays in track and field, because she flat out loves it.

“It is absolutely my thing,” said Gieni.“I don’t do it to inspire others, but I do it to charge myself up, and my family loves it.

“They get a big kick out of it. It brings happiness all around. Fitness brings happiness. You got this where you are feeling good everyday.”

Country work ethic propels Steen in track

By Darren Steinke
Gordie Howe Sports Complex

Callie Steen runs the 3,000-metre race at SHSAA provincials.

A good old country work ethic helped Callie Steen excel quickly in track and field.

Going into her Grade 11 year at Hanley Composite School in the fall of 2021, Steen hadn’t been a regular in track and field or cross country running. She was a highly skilled water skier who had made trips to nationals in summer and a figure skater in winter months.

Around the time Steen was starting Grade 11, she was talked by a friend in Elizabeth Wright about getting into track and field and cross country running at the club level by joining the Riversdale Athletics Club based in Saskatoon. The Riversdale Athletics Club is one of a number of Saskatoon and area track clubs that does the bulk of its outdoor training at the Track and Field Track at the Gordie Howe Sports Complex.

Steen remembered that her initial results in cross country competitions weren’t anything that would light the world on fire, but she enjoyed running. Growing up on a family farm by Blackstrap Lake, Steen was always involved with helping out with farming activities. She wanted to see what would happen if she applied the work ethic she learned with her farm life to a new main sporting joy she discovered.

“I was getting like 42^nd in cross-country provincials,” said Steen. “I was just an average runner, but I really enjoy the work ethic involved in running.

“I grew up in agriculture, and I do 4-H. The lessons that have been taught through 4-H have helped me succeed in running just that everyday work ethic and drive. When I started running, I worked really hard at it.”

Within in a year, Steen was finding herself on or at the top of the podium in a lot of the events she competed in. She attended Athletes Canada’s Indoor U16-U18-U20 Championships in late March of 2022 in Sherbrooke, Que., and finished fourth in the under-18 female 1,500-metre run and 3,000-metre run.

Competing for Hanley Composition School at the Saskatchewan High Schools Athletic Association (SHSAA) Track and Field Provincials held in Regina in June of 2022, Steen, who was 17-years-old at that time, won gold in the senior girls’ 1,500-metre race in a time of four minutes and 49.56 seconds. She claimed another gold in the senior girls’ 3,000-metre race in a time of 10:41.40.

In August of 2022, Steen competed at the Legion National Youth Track and Field Championships in Sherbrooke, Que., which is the track and field nationals for athletes in the under-16 and under-18 age categories. In December of 2022, Steen signed on to join the University of North Dakota Fighting Hawks Women’s Track and Field team, which competes in the NCAA Division I ranks.

Callie Steen signs with UND. (Photo courtesy Callie Steen)

The opportunity to join the Fighting Hawks came about due to work put in by Steen, who had always wanted to go to a university in the United States. After receiving some positive feedback from Riversdale Athletics Club head coach RossAnn Edwards about her track and field future, Steen set to work to ensure she was noticed by universities in the United States.

“Last August, my coach said I had a lot of potential, so I contacted pretty every single Division I school in the States,” said Steen, who stands 5-foot-7. “I sent out 50 emails, and I just gave them my times and a little bit about myself and what I believe in.

“I got lots of coaches feedback. It was probably the coolest thing I’ve ever done. I chose North Dakota.

“I got to go on an official visit there. The coaching staff believes in me, and I believe in their program. I’m so excited to move in August.”

Steen said her parents in father, Dan, and mother, Erin, were the biggest influences on her work ethic. Along with her brother, Lane, Steen raised steers and took part in showing off those steers at 4-H competitions since she was eight years old. She said she learned about responsibility from those types of activities pretty quickly.

“I believe I got my work ethic from 4-H and the constant thing that the cows need to be fed before you get to eat,” said Steen. “You’re always working with them and putting them first.

“From a young age, that is what my parents have instilled in me is a harder work ethic will always beat every talent and everything else.”

When it comes to the world of track and field, Steen said Edwards has been her biggest mentor in showing her the way.

“RossAnn Edwards is the main reason I’m here today,” said Steen. “I love her so much.

Callie Steen runs the 1,500-metre race at SHSAA provincials.

“She has done everything for me, and I wouldn’t be here without her. She is the head coach of all of Riversdale. She loves us athletes like we are her children, and she does like anything for us.”

Steen said the workouts Edwards has the athletes at Riversdale do makes everyone at the club improve.

“I really believe in consistency,” said Steen, who turned 18-years-old this past January. “I don’t ever miss an off-day run or anything like that.

“I work really, really hard. I do strength training twice a week. My coach gives us these really hard workouts, but they are super beneficial.

“My teammates and I are always PBing (posting personal bests) because of those hard workouts.”

Steen wrapped up her high school track and field career at the SHSAA Track and Field Provincials held on June 2 and 3 at the Track and Field Track as she entered the final month of her Grade 12 school year closing in on graduation. She once again claimed gold in the senior girls’ 1,500-metre race with a time of 4:52.66 and took silver in the senior girls’ 3,000-metre race with a time of 10:44.91.

Steen said it was special to close out her high school career on what has become her home outdoor track at the Complex.

“It was a huge advantage when I found out that provincials were going to be here this year,” said Steen. “We’re here three times a week.

“It is the perfect track. I believe it is one of the best tracks in Saskatchewan. The facilities are great.

“To have like world class facilities right here in Saskatoon is huge.”

She added she did feel bittersweet knowing she had raced in her final high school competition. At the moment, she isn’t expecting to run another 1,500-metre race until she joins the Fighting Hawks in the fall. Knowing that tidbit, she was pleased to win gold in the 1,500-metre race at the SHSAA provincials.

Callie Steen plans to chase down big track and field dreams.

“It definitely put a smile on my face,” said Steen. “I’ve had some ups and downs this season.

“To finally see all my work start to pay off in the outdoor season is the most rewarding thing ever.”

Looking to the future, Steen said she has dreams about running in the Olympics one day. She knows there is a process to getting there, but she is willing to put in the work to make the steps to get to that point.

“Of course, it is always in the dreams in the back of my mind,” said Steen. “Right now, I would love to attend junior worlds.

“That would be my top goal right now is working towards being on that team.”