Bright days are ahead for a Brooks Secondary School athlete who is leaving the Sunshine Coast to study and run track on the sunny shores of Hawaii.
Multi-sport athlete Calli-Ann Abbott, 17, recently signed on with the University of Hawaii System’s women’s track and field team for next season with a 95 per cent scholarship.
“It is hot there,” said Abbott. “It will be hard to train at first, but hopefully I’ll get used to it.”
Currently in grade 12 at Brooks, Abbott placed fourth at the Canadian Youth Championships this past summer. She also finished second in the 100-metre hurdles, third in heptathlon and fifth in long jump at the 2014 BC Outdoor Provincial Championships.
“The coach at the University of Hawaii watched me compete in the 2014 championships in Langley,” said Abbott. “After that she kept calling.”
Abbott said she will be attending University of Hawaii System Manoa Campus on the Island of Oahu in the city of Honolulu.
“They flew me and my dad out in October,” said Abbott. “It’s beautiful and they really put student-athletes first.”
With the majority of her schooling covered by scholarship, Abbott said she plans to study teaching, with the hope of eventually becoming a secondary school teacher.
Besides track and field, Abbott is also an affiliate hockey player for the Vancouver Island Seals.
“They do have a nice arena out there [in Hawaii]; I was surprised,” said Abbott. “I might skate, but I really love track and field.”
Abbott said she plans on travelling to the Hawaiian university in August.
“This will be my first time away from home for more than five days,” she said. “Lots of people have said that my parents will have a good excuse to come visit me.”
