Canada’s Brandon Mcbride right, crosses the finish line to win the men’s 800-metre semi-final in London’s Olympic Stadium on Sunday.Martin Meissner/The Associated Press
Down two of its biggest stars, and now battling a stomach bug.
Through three days of the world track and field championships, luck hasn't been on the beleaguered Canadian team's side.
But when it seemed as if Canada couldn't take any more bad news, Brandon McBride and Shawn Barber offered some hope on Sunday, laying down solid performances to clinch spots in their respective finals.
McBride, a 23-year-old from Windsor, Ont., led wire-to-wire to win his 800-metre semi-final before a loud crowd of about 60,000 at London Stadium, crossing in 1 minute 45.53 seconds, the third-fastest time on the night.
"I just wanted to get out and control the pace. I wanted to run it like a final, just to get out and shake the field a bit," McBride said. "Anything is possible."
Barber is the defending world champion, but he's been anything but consistent since his 10th-place finish at the Rio Olympics. The 23-year-old from Toronto was one of eight jumpers who cleared 5.70 metres in the opening round.
"I feel good, the run feels fine, the jump feels fine, it's the first time we're really putting things together all at once," Barber said. "It's a little raw, but I expect in two days things will come together better than today."
Alysha Newman of London, Ont., finished seventh in the pole vault on Sunday night for Canada's top result so far in London. The 23-year-old cleared 4.65 metres and thought she had a medal in her sights before missing on her three attempts at 4.75.
"I'm pretty pleased. It was my first time I've qualified for the finals at an international meet. Definitely if I'd cleared that .75, [a medal would have been possible]," said Newman, who ran through the pit on her first attempt that 4.75.
"Ugh, I wish I didn't run through on my first one. But there was a little bit of a headwind, I didn't have any control over that."
Despite the bad luck that's befallen the Canadians in London, head coach Glenroy Gilbert hasn't sensed any negative vibe creeping into the team.
"We haven't been looking back and saying 'Oh, if Andre [De Grasse] was here,' 'If [high-jumper] Derek [Drouin] was here.' They're not.… It's not like they're sitting around going, 'Oh well, woe is us.' They're trying to advance [to finals] themselves. In the absence of two of our key guys right now, they're trying to do the best job they can," Gilroy said.
Two other Canadians made finals on Sunday. Matt Hughes of Oshawa, Ont., clinched a spot in the 3,000-metre steeplechase. The 28-year-old was racing just his second steeplechase of the season after a collision with a fire hydrant while out on a run derailed his training for several weeks. He finished in 8:24.79, 13th-fastest on the day.
Liz Gleadle of Vancouver threw 62.97 metres to qualify for the women's javelin final, the 10th-best throw on the night.