On Saturday in Madison, Wisc., Vancouver’s Ceili McCabe looks to achieve something only two Canadian-born women have ever done: winning an NCAA Division I Women’s Cross Country Championship. This will be the final shot at the NCAA XC title for the 24-year-old, who is in her last year of collegiate eligibility with West Virginia University.
Coming into the season just a month after her first Olympic Games, McCabe has strung together a series of strong performances, winning her last two races decisively to qualify for the NCAA Championships. She is one of the favourites to win on Saturday, racing on a course she knows well, having won the Nuttycombe Invitational on the same course in 2021.
The only other Canadian women to win an individual NCAA cross country title are Sheila Reid, who won with Villanova University in 2010 and 2011, and Angela Chalmers, who won with Northern Arizona University in 1986.
McCabe says her preparation for Saturday’s race has gone well. “This has been the smoothest fall training build I’ve had in a while—it’s the best I’ve felt,” McCabe says on her fitness. “There haven’t been any setbacks where I’ve had to re-adjust, which I’ve had to do in the past.”
She left the Paris Olympics with a chip on her shoulder after missing out on the women’s 3,000m steeplechase final by just two spots, despite setting a new Canadian record just months earlier. “I felt so prepared to do well [in Paris],” McCabe told Canadian Running. “I wanted to be in the final, and I know I’m right there.”
McCabe not only has a shot at winning individually, but could also help the West Virginia women’s team achieve their highest finish in school history. They are ranked fourth in the country heading into the championships; the team’s best-ever finish was fourth at the 2004 NCAA Championships. “If we could come in the top five, it would be amazing,” McCabe says of her team’s potential. “All I can do is just be my best.”
McCabe isn’t the only Canadian runner on the WVU team. Emily Bryce of Paisley, Ont., has been an instrumental part of the team’s success and is one of several Canadian female runners making a name for themselves in the NCAA this year. Calgary’s Sadie Sigfstead, Florence Caron of La Malbaie, Que. and Chloe Thomas of Hamilton, have also been standout performers who all have a shot at cracking the top 10.
“It’s really cool to see so many Canadians running well,” McCabe says. “Chloe Thomas has been putting up great finish after great finish, and I wouldn’t count her out as a contender for the national title.”
Regardless of the outcome, McCabe says she’s motivated to make the most of her final year in the NCAA. In September, she became the first Canadian to sign a Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) deal with On. “It is a difficult process as an international athlete, but it’s been a great way to get my feet wet with the possibility of running professionally post-collegiately.”
McCabe insists that she isn’t in a hurry to decide on the direction she’ll go after college, but she knows there’s more opportunity to train in the U.S. and try to find the best fit. “I want to get through cross country first before I start thinking about running pro,” she laughs.
