The McGill Men’s and Women’s Track and Field teams co-hosted the McGill Open this weekend. Among the athletes that turned out for the annual event was Canadian 100m sprint Champion and Laval native Nicholas Macrozonaris. The two-time Olympian finished first Saturday in the Men’s 60m dash in a time of 6.78. He also took the time to talk with the Tribune about his past and his future.
Why did you choose to attend this event?
First of all, I’ve been inactive for quite a long time now with injuries and so I wanted to kick off my season very early this year just because I was fresh throughout last season. Second, I think, as always, it’s a pleasure to come here and compete at McGill because it’s a well-organized event. I like [McGill Track and Field Coach] Dennis Barrett a lot.
Plus there’s an electronic scoreboard now, so you can get your results instantly and accurately, which is very nice.
How did you feel physically, coming off the injuries?
I felt great. I had a rough season last year, it was emotional for me just because I was injured and my own federation turned their back on me [Macrozonaris received no financial assistance while injured and took Sport Canada to court as a result]. But then I came back and was able to win nationals and become the Canadian champion. Coming back from that, I’m just very excited to run and to compete.
What are your goals for this year?
I’m going to be running much faster then I did today. You have to take into account that we’re real early in the season. The real times should be dropped in January or February so I have a lot of time in front of me to work on my speed and get where I want to be. Also, I’m running the 4 x 200m relay with the St. Laurent club. We’re trying to set a new provincial record. This is just the first attempt, next week will be the second attempt and it’s going to be back here but for now we’re just trying to get our passes crisp.
-compiled by Charlie Blore