Watson poised to reclaim national gold

“It was upsetting to miss that,” said the 25-year-old native of Medicine Hat. “I’m looking forward to racing for the first time in a few years in Canada, so it’ll be a lot of fun.”

She’ll take the start line in Montreal’s Complexe sportif Claude-Robillard on Saturday in the 400 meter hurdles semi-finals — her first race on Canadian soil since striking national gold in 2017.

Although it’s all business once she ties up her runners, she says she’s looking forward to seeing some familiar faces of the Canadian track scene.

“It’s definitely more special that I’m back in Canada racing, even just for a race” she continued. “I get to see a lot of my old teammates, a lot of my old training partners, people I grew up with, so that’s always a lot of fun.”

Watson is the boni-fide favorite to win the event. She captured a season-best time of 55.32 in London last week, qualifying her for Canadian Olympic Trials next spring.

In four IAAF events, the Hat High graduate has placed inside the top five twice, but she says her best is yet to come.

“Right now I feel like I’m just getting into the swing of things,” she said, noting her season’s been pushed back due to an fall-based World Championships. “Running a season’s best last weekend was nice to do. I feel much fitter than the time I ran, so I’m looking forward to getting more opportunities to show where I’m at and hopefully continue to run faster.”

She’ll get plenty of those opportunities over the next week. Following a planned two races in Montreal, Watson will fly out to Peru on Monday to compete in the World Pan-American Games in Lima.

She says it can be difficult to maintain her world-caliber ability while travelling through multiple time-zones. With a full year of professional competition under her, she says she’s learned how to adjust.

“It’s all about how you prepare for it,” she added. “I know everything I need to do and to bring. As long as I’m preparing for each meet and making sure I get my workouts in and eating properly and staying hydrated, that comes all into play. Even making sure that my travel times are limited, so picking shorter flights that work better for my schedule, it just makes it that much easier.”

Following her trip to Peru, more travel may be on the horizon for Watson. Should she reclaim her gold at nationals, she’ll also book a ticket to the IAAF World Track and Field Championships in Qatar in October.

Watson’s best major international finish of her career came at the 2017 World Championships in sixth.

If all goes according to plan, she’ll return to the world stage, complete with some golden Canadian hardware around her neck.

by Mitch Bach

Watson poised to reclaim national gold

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