Cowichan Valley middle-distance runner Alexa Dow is continuing her rapid rise on the track and field scene.
The 10-year-old runner won two gold medals at the BC Athletics Junior Development Championships in Surrey late last month, and claimed a new provincial record in the process.
Dow set a new British Columbia record of 3:17.53 in the 1000m, taking 6.51 seconds off the old mark of 3:24.04, set in 2015. She also came close to the provincial record in the 600m at a different meet, her time of 1:50.56 just over a second off the B.C. record of 1:49.45.
“She was born to run,” Alexa’s mom, Andrea, said. “She absolutely loves every moment of training and of competing. The effort she puts into her training and racing is really incredible.”
Dow is undefeated this year in the 600m and 1000m at meets on the Island and Mainland, collecting a total of 19 gold medals in running and throwing events. She received the “Outstanding Performance by a Female Athlete” awards at both the Junior Olympics in Surrey and the Vancouver Olympic Club meet.
Last fall, Dow won the Lower Mainland Cross Country Series and took gold in the Provincial Cross Country Championships, and she is gearing up to compete in both of those again this fall. Dow trains year-round with her father and with coaches Dan Armstrong and Karen Hallquist, and practices with the CVAC Jaguars in the spring.