St. Paul Regional High School won the 32nd annual RCMP Challenge Cup Road Race last Tuesday, with about 400 students from schools in the area competing in the senior, junior and open categories of the race.
The relay race started a couple miles west of St. Brides and proceeded on Highway 29 into St. Paul where it ended at the Recreation Centre.
According to Regional track coach, Hank Smid, the high school students comfortably won the senior event and earned enough points to be crowned overall champions. Smid said the athletes ran hard and most of them are in good shape, due to their involvement in other school sports such as badminton and basketball.
Racette School finished first in the junior category and have won the race for over 20 years in a row, said track coach Gilles Gervais.
“The kids here at the school know about the record and they’re a bit scared to be the team to lose, so I think they self-motivate themselves,” he said. “Our core athletes are really strong. If your Grade 9s are strong, then your six, seven and eights look up to them and want to do just as well.”
Despite holding the impressive record, Gervais added the competition from other athletes is getting stronger with schools looking to end the streak.
Bonnyville’s Ecole Des Beau-Lacs won the Open category, which is a non-competitive award that encourages school participation.
The RCMP Challenge Cup was started in the early ‘80s as a way to promote positive relations between the RCMP and youth, a press release said. The RCMP continues to participate in youth programs through initiatives such as DARE, the PARTY program and many others.
