March 1, 2011 - Grande Prairie Regional College cross-country runner Fiona Benson has earned a silver medal in the individual junior women’s race at the North American, Central American and Caribbean Cross Country Championships in Port of Spain, Trinidad.

Benson competed at the NACAC Cross Country Championship as a member of the Canadian Junior team on Saturday, February 19. She finished the 4km junior women’s race with a time of 13:59.4. Her performance resulted in a gold medal for the Canadian junior women’s team and a women’s individual silver medal.

The team will now travel to Punta Umbria, Spain for the 2011 International Association of Athletics Federation World Cross Country Championships on March 20.

“Fiona has run many kilometers this winter, and all of her hard work has allowed her to continually improve,” said Rick Scott, head coach of the GPRC Wolves cross-country running team. “We are all proud to see one of our GPRC Wolves compete for Canada and wish her success at the World XC Junior Championships.”

Benson finished first in the women’s individual race at the CCAA Cross-Country Running Championships in Fredericton, N.B on November 13, 2010. She competed in the Canadian National Championships on November 27, where she finished seventh overall to earn her spot on the team.

Benson is not only a talented athlete, but a strong academic as well. “Fiona achieved a 4.0 GPA,” said GPRC athletic director Francois Fournier. “She’s a wonderful person and we are proud of her achievements.”