West Virginia track's Ceili McCabe sets new Canadian national record, secures 2024 Olympic standard time
By Joseph Smith
West Virginia senior Ceili McCabe already owns a significant place in the WVU program record book. In 2022, she earned her first WVU program record in the 3000-meter steeplechase, followed by setting the program record for both the 3,000 meter run in 2023 and the 1 Mile run during 2024.
Now, she has earned her way into a much more significant record book than the one at WVU -- and simultaneously hit the mark required to compete on the grandest stage of track and field this summer.
McCabe paced the field with a victory in the 3,000-meter steeplechase race at the prestigious Los Angeles Grand Prix on Friday with a mark of 9 minutes, 20.58 seconds, a good enough time to shatter the standing Canadian national record in the event by over 1.80 seconds. The previous Canadian record was 9 minutes, 22.40 seconds, set by Geneviève Lalonde at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. Amongst the competitors McCabe outdid in the race was 2022 world champion Norah Jeruto of Kazakhstan and multi-time German national champion Lea Meyer.
McCabe also surpassed the Olympic standard in the event, meaning that she has officially earned a potential opportunity to travel to Paris for the 2024 Olympic Games. McCabe has competed as a member of Team Canada at the past two World Athletics Championships, but this will mark her first trip to the Olympic Games if she competes for Canada.