Bears, Golden – California Golden Bears Athletics

Justin Pretre spreads his arms in jubilation as he crosses the finish line to win his first Canadian U20 title.

T&F6/29/2024 9:15 PM | By: Cal Athletics

Pretre, Purchase, Savva Claim National Titles To Headline Large Group Of Cal Competitors

In California track & field’s busiest post-NCAA Championships slate of competition yet, seven Golden Bears appeared in a total of six national championships across the globe on Saturday in search of glory and potential Olympic bids. Throughout the day, all seven of them shone – three Bears earned gold medals, while two others earned silver and the final two advanced to their respective event finals.
 
The first of Saturday’s Bears to win a national title was incoming freshman Valentina Savva, competing in the women’s hammer at GSP Stadium in Nicosia, Cyprus. Savva, who came into the meet as the reigning champion, earned her second career gold with a toss of 67.00m (219-9) on her second throw and surpassed the eventual second-place mark by nearly 16 feet. She will now advance to her third World U20 Championships, hosted this year in Lima, Peru, on Aug. 27-31; in both of her previous appearances at Worlds, Savva has placed within the top eight.
 
Cal’s next national title of the day went to another hammer specialist in alumna Anna Purchase, competing at Manchester Regional Arena in Manchester, England. Purchase was primed for a big day at the UK Championships after being the only British woman to make the hammer final at the European Championships; she delivered on Saturday with a winning mark of 68.79m (225-8) on her second attempt, defeating 2023 British Champion Charlotte Payne by nearly five feet for the first British gold of her career. Currently, Purchase sits at 16th in the overall World Rankings Quota.
 
At the Bell Canadian U20 Championships in Montreal, rising sophomore Justin Pretre punched his ticket to the World U20 Championships with a winning time of 3:53.89 in the 1500m, far surpassing his 3:58.35 from Friday’s preliminary race. Battling rainy conditions at Complexe Sportlife Claude-Robillard, Pretre – clad in his “Golden Bears” uniform – saved his fastest 400m for last, running the final lap in just over 54 seconds to move to the head of the pack.
 
“It’s just been excellent to see how I’ve grown as a runner,”…