A young teen from Blenheim is returning home as a national track and field gold medal champ.
Emma Negri won two gold medals and broke two meet records at the Canadian Indoor Track and Field Championships, which wrapped up on Sunday in Saint John, New Brunswick.
"It feels kind of crazy," said Negri. "People from all over Canada were there to compete in this one competition and I got to compete against them. I feel honoured to compete under the same roof as some of these people."
Negri won the under-16 girls' shot put with a record 11.32-metre toss on Saturday. The old mark was 11. 20 metres.
"I didn't even realize I had broken the record," said Negri. "I broke it twice, I broke it the first throw and then ended up throwing it even further in another round."
On Sunday, Negri won the under-16 girls' weight throw with an 18.60-metre toss, beating her own record from the last year of 17.01 metres.
"I found out a day before the competition that I had held the record and I ended up breaking that record three times," said Negri. "It feels great to know I am the only one who has thrown that far."
Negri is a Grade 9 student at Ursuline College Chatham. She trains with the University of Windsor Athletics Club.
According to Negri, this past weekend was her second time competing in the Canadian Indoor Track and Field Championships.
Negri has her sight set on competing again in 2024.