EDMONTON - Cruising to victory in the first home event of 2024, the Golden Bears Track & Field team earned a GBO title on Saturday, winning the 51st event by 53 points. 

In total, the Golden Bears and Pandas earned 10 podium finishes, while also breaking one GBO record. The Pandas placed third, behind the Saskatchewan Huskies and Calgary Dinos, with the Bears topping Manitoba and Calgary on the men's side. 

51st Annual GBO Highlights

• The Golden Bears 4x200m relay team raced to gold with a time of 1:26.68, setting a new Golden Bears Open record. The combination of Evan Essapa, Josh Li, Justin Rose and Jake Sawatzky are currently the top-ranked 4x200m team in U SPORTS. 
• Rose also captured gold in the men's 60m hurdles with a time of 8.24 seconds, with his qualifying time of 8.19 seconds the second fastest in program history. Essapa also placed third in the men's 60m dash with a time of 6.87 seconds. 
• The Alberta men also earned gold in the 4x400m relay, narrowly beating the Regina Cougars with a time of 3:22.55. 
• Two Pandas won their respective events; Rachel Grenke in Pole Vault, and Larrisa Bishop in the triple jump. Grenke won the women's PV by 75 centimeters, and once again came up just short in her attempt for a program record. 
• Bishop's jump of 11.83m was the fourth longest in school history. 
• 2023 Bakewell Trophy winner Olivia Cooper placed second in the 1000m, three seconds behind her own program record in the event. 
• Ron MacLean placed second in the 1500m, just three seconds off program record pace (3:51.52). MacLean currently ranks third in U SPORTS in the 1500m. 
• Keon Nurse also added a bronze in the men's high jump, finishing at 1.99m, while sophomore Tegra Jan-King earned a bronze in the triple jump at 14.68m.
• Adding another medal for the Bears on Day 1 of the 51st Annual GBO was Brownson Njoh, who placed second in the 800m. 

MEN'S TEAM STANDINGS

Pos.	Team	Points
1	Alberta	130
2	Manitoba	77
3	Calgary	76
4	Saskatchewan	72
5	Regina	62.5
6	Trinity Western	51.5
7	Victoria	40
8	Lethbridge	30

WOMEN'S TEAM STANDINGS

Pos.	Team	Points
1	Saskatchewan	151
2	Calgary	108
3	Alberta	86
4	Lethbridge	31
5	Manitoba	20
6	Dalhousie	19
6	Victoria	19
8	Regina	18
9	Trinity Western	17