Team Manitoba got off to a strong start on day one of athletics at the 2017 Canada Games, with thrower Brooke-Lynn Boyd capturing bronze in javelin. It’s the second medal overall for Manitoba, after Kyla Roy finished third in the triathlon earlier in the day.

Boyd’s third place finish after a throw of 43.32 metres was a pleasant surprise, as she’d been fighting through some nagging injuries that kept her from competing at nationals this year.

“I didn’t get to practice that much this summer because I’ve had arm and shoulder problems, so I’ve been working on shot put a little bit more and trying to stay healthy to make sure I could compete at the games,” Boyd said.

The current Manitoba Bison athlete stated that along with shot put, she also combined lifting as well as medicine ball exercises into her regimen in order to be ready to go for competition this week.

“The shot put went really well with the lifting and the medicine ball really helps with shoulder flexibility,” Boyd said.

The added bonus of being on home soil for the games was also a huge positive as her friends and family were on hand to watch her win bronze.

“It’s actually awesome,” Boyd said of the hometown support. “Usually throwers don’t get too much support, but I heard everyone cheering for me, it’s really nice.”

Boyd is back in action tomorrow, as she’ll attempt to qualify for the finals of shot put, starting at 6 p.m. at University Stadium on the University of Manitoba campus.