Ross Proudfoot removed from Pan Am Games team

The Guelph runner is out and university teammate Aaron Hendrikx is in; Natasha Labeaud moved from the marathon to 5,000m

In an about-face by Canada’s track and field governing body, Athletics Canada, has removed 5,000m runner Ross Proudfoot from the team which will compete in the Pan Am Games this summer in Toronto.

In place of Proudfoot, Lucas Bruchet has been selected to race the 5,000m. Bruchet was initially selected to race the 10,000m. Aaron Hendrikx has been selected to fill the space Bruchet leaves open.

Proudfoot had first planned to compete at FISU, the international competition for university student-athletes, which will be held later this summer in Gwangju, South Korea. But the Guelph University stand-out was later named to the Pan Am Games team, though selection criteria noted an athlete who decided to compete with the FISU could not compete on the Pan Am Games or world championship teams (a clause which meant some athletes simply decided not to declare for the FISU team).

“At the time of the [original selection meeting], the National Team Committee was focused on creating the best team possible within the context of the criteria,” Athletics Canada published in a statement. “In doing so, the Committee missed the restrictions imposed by section 1.3 of the FISU criteria and selected an athlete who had previously accepted a FISU team position.”

Bruchet is the sixth-ranked 5,000m runner in Canada while Proudfoot is ranked fifth. Bruchet is ranked third in the 10,000m. Hendrikx is ranked fourth in the 10,000m. The selection criteria, intended to help present the best possible team, has, through various restrictions and clauses, produced a team which, based purely on performances, is less competitive on paper.

Natasha Labeaud, a dual citizen who lives and trains in San Diego, Calif., was also moved from the marathon to the 5,000m. Currently, there is only one female representing Canada in the marathon, Rachel Hannah.