Dundas speedskating sisters enjoy competition and community

Hayley and Sarah Murray became competitive short track speedskaters quite naturally as their father Mike has nearly 40 years experience as a national level competitor and coach.

By the time the Dundas girls were six years old they were members of the Hamilton Speed Skating Club — co-founded by their father — and frequently hanging around on the ice because he was there. They were soon making friends there with some kids their age and learned to skate on the specialized long blades.

Competition, a drive to improve their times, and a special sense of community have kept Hayley, 14, and Sarah, 13, on speed skates. Both girls have set new personal standards this season and are looking forward to more.

The sisters compete in a competitive provincial racing series — comparable to rep or travel hockey — that skaters have to qualify for. Hayley and Sarah both picked up several first, second and third place finishes in provincial series events this past season.

They both raced at the Ontario Winter Games for the first time earlier this month, each finishing within the top 10 overall of their respective age groups. Sarah finished second in the 400-metre final for 12 and 13-year-olds. Hayley finished fourth in the 500-metre final and fifth in the 1,500-metre final for 14 and 15-year-olds. Both of Hayley's times were personal bests.

Hayley heads to the Canada East Championships in Quebec at the end of March, where she'll represent Ontario against other skaters from this province, Quebec and the Maritimes, after winning both the 400 and 200-metres, and finishing second in the 1,500-metres, at the provincial championships in Newmarket last month. She took first place overall in her age group.

"I've been trying to get my 500-metre time down and I did that. I'm hoping at the Canada East Championship I can get it down lower," Hayley said.

Sarah said she enjoyed skating with her friends from the Hamilton club at the winter games and hopes to keep improving her times. She prefers the longer races like the 1,500 metres.

"I find that I've had a lot of endurance and get better times than some of my friends, and they have had better times in other distances," Sarah said.

Sarah had two third place finishes and one second at the provincial championships, taking eighth place overall in her age group and earned the opportunity to be an alternate at the Canada East Championship.

She's participated in a lot of different sports, but speedskating remains a focus even after close to 10-years. She and her sister were naturally drawn to the sport because of their father but as they get older, they are staying because they want to.

"It's different than most sports," Sarah said. "A lot of people don't know about it and I think that's cool."

That special sense of community with a hint of individualism is attractive to her sister too.

"It's hard not to know everyone in your age group, because you're constantly with them," Hayley said. "It is really close knit. I really love that aspect."