The most successful cross country program in the conference over the last half decade is heading across Georgia Strait this weekend for the 2025 Canada West Championships, hosted by the University of Victoria.

The UBC Thunderbirds have shown exceptionally well in the short season with the blue and gold looking to build on what's been an unparalleled level of success at the conference meet, the men's team having won four consecutive banners, the women claiming five of the last six.

"Realistically, the expectations team wise are to earn a medal for both the men and the women and then bigger picture, like I always preach, this is our dress rehearsal for U SPORTS," said UBC lead endurance coach, Steve Weiler. "We don't have a lot of opportunities, this is one of our preparatory competitions before the national championships."



The T-Birds women's team returns a number of experienced athletes who have several Canada West and U SPORTS races under their belts. Fifth-years Mackenzie Campbell, Elysse Fleming and Amelia Pfohl are all coming off back-to-back top-ten individual finishes at the Western Canadian Cross Country Challenge and last weekend's B.C. Championship race.

UBC's men's side has been thus far dominated by a remarkable season from third-year Maximilien Filion who has notched podium finishes in each of his three competitions. With the graduation of several veteran athletes following last year, much of the rest of the T-Birds' entries in Victoria will be either first or second years, a cohort that has itself impressed and shown remarkably quick progress.

"Our first and second years are one of the most talented groups in U SPORTS and that's quite exciting," added Weiler. "A number of them ran well this past weekend. Steven Brittain, who didn't race last fall, was bringing zero experience and he has been bang on every race and running with almost an unexpected amount of confidence."



Given the results overall from both genders so far in 2025, there's an expectation the T-Birds are peaking at the right time with the U SPORTS National Championship meet just two weeks away in Sherbrooke, Quebec.

"An athlete's fitness doesn't necessarily advance significantly across a two to three week stretch, but their preparedness and confidence in being able to execute a game plan can really progress across the final two weeks of the season."

Taking place on the grounds of Royal Roads University, the championship course features a two kilometre loop which both the men and women will run four times over for the grueling eight kilometre race. The women's event gets underway at 12:00 p.m. Saturday with the men to follow at 1:00 p.m.