INUVIK - The NWT Track and Field Championships in Hay River were kind once again to the crew from Samuel Hearne Secondary School.

Matthew Miller of Samuel Hearne Secondary School follows through with his throw during the senior men’s javelin at the NWT Track and Field Championships in Hay River on June 3.

The 23-member team finished in 14th place once all was said and done on June 3, amassing a total of 121.58 points from the team's competing events. Of all the athletes who hit the track, Dave Halpine was perhaps the star of the show for the school, winning the 400- and 800-metre events in the senior men’s division, while adding second-place finishes in the 200-metre and long jump events. His efforts were good enough to nail down second place overall in the senior men’s division.

The conditions for much of the meet weren’t ideal as there was plenty of wind and even some snow on the second day, but Halpine said he was able to put that behind him and put on a good show.

“I guess in the morning, I was charged,” he said. “I was still warm from my bed and just ran my heart out.”

The snow, mixed with rain, helped to soften the track a bit, which made for more ideal conditions and there was a mighty breeze on the track and that helped the runners gain some time on the backstretch of the track.

Halpine said he didn’t know if the wind assistance was a factor, but the track itself was in wonderful shape, wet or dry.

“In Inuvik we don’t have a track yet, but it’s certainly a thrill to be able to run on a track,” he said. “I just had my running shoes and they treated me fine in the conditions.”

In other results, Chloe Larocque had another fine showing in high jump. Larocque just missed out on a record in the bantam girls high jump one year ago and followed up her win last year with second place in the midget girls division this year.

There were also third-place finishes for Karly-King Simpson in the midget girls 400-metre and Sydney Dunlop in the juvenile girls javelin, respectively.

Halpine, who also served as one of the team’s coaches, said his team were a bunch of champions regardless of the final results.

“They’re championship people, championship students and they’re representing us all well, both on and off the track,” he said. “I couldn’t be prouder of the group we brought down.”

We welcome your opinions. Click here to e-mail a letter to the editor.