Brittany Crew led from start to finish in the shot put competition at the 29th International University Sports Federation (FISU) Summer Universiade games in Taipei. Crew won the gold medal in the event, her first major international championship win.
Brittany Crew at the 2017 Universiade in Taipei. Photo: Mathieu Belanger
Crew, a former York University Lions track and field standout and current York U student, registered a 17.74-metre throw on her first attempt to take an early lead. On her third try, she reached the 18-metre mark and, with the gold medal locked up before her final throw, she bettered her score with a throw of 18.34 metres.
“I knew that I had a really good chance winning this event and I knew that I had to get a really good throw out in the beginning [and] kind of shut down some girls,” said Crew. “This is my biggest medal I’ve got on the world stage so far. I’m super proud of myself and I’m really happy my coach got to be here to experience it with me. I can’t express the feelings I’m having right now.”
Crew is now a two-time Universiade medallist after winning the bronze medal in 2015 in Gwangju.
The result caps off a tremendous few weeks of competition for Crew, who recently finished sixth at the world championships in London for Canada’s best-ever result in the event.
Crew spent three seasons with the Lions and remains the track and field team’s record holder in both the shot put and weight throw. In her last two years competing in U SPORTS, she swept the throwing events at the OUA and U SPORTS championships and was named the field events performer of the year in both seasons. She is also a four-time U SPORTS first-team all-Canadian and twice earned York University’s female athlete of the year award.