Ostertag makes rapid rise to star status in heptathlon
 |
| Nicole Ostertag set to throw a javelin. |
Despite the fact both her parents competed in the sport at an elite level, Ostertag initially wanted to take part in a team sport. She didn’t take up track and field under her Grade 12 year at Holy Cross High School in the 2017-18 school year after her basketball season wrapped up with the Holy Cross High School Crusaders Senior Girls’ Team.
“I didn’t really like it (track and field) at the start,” said Ostertag. “I thought it was kind of boring.
“I wanted to play a team sport. Now that I have kind of dove a little deeper into track I love it. It was a definitely a good decision.”
Before she entered her Grade 12 year, Ostertag wasn’t focused on pursuing anything in the sports world. Her passion was ballet dancing. During her Grade 11 year, Ostertag was at The Rock School for Dance Education in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Over a period of about four years leading to the start of her Grade 12 school year at Holy Cross in September of 2017, she attended ballet schools in Calgary, Toronto, New York and Philadelphia. She ultimately decided to return home after losing her passion to do ballet and was trying to figure out what direction she wanted to go in next.
Her older brothers Evan and Daniel played for the University of Saskatchewan Huskies Men’s Basketball Team in the early 2010s, so Nicole tried basketball first.
Her father, Dave, was a member of the U of S Huskies Men’s Track and Field team in the early and mid 1980s along with playing for the U of S Huskies Football Team in 1985, and her mother, Lesia (Pillipow) Ostertag, was a member of the U of S Huskies Women’s Track and Field Team in the middle of the 1980s.
 |
| Nicole Ostertag recently set a personal best in shot put. |
Ostertag caught the eye Jason Reindl, who is the head coach of both U of S Huskies Track and Field Teams, and was recruited to follow in her parents’ footsteps. Her meetings with Reindl went so well that she decided to join the U of S Huskies Women’s Track and Field Team.
“I had been living away from home throughout high school, and I wanted to be at home for a while,” said Ostertag, who stands 5-foot-8. “It set up really well when Jason (Reindl) recruited me, because I knew I wanted to go to the U of S.
“When I first started, it was kind of just for fun and something to do. I started working at it a little more and had some success early on and just kind of built from there.”
Ostertag quickly found success in the U Sports ranks. During her rookie season with the Huskies in 2018-19, Ostertag finished third in the Canada West Conference in the women’s pentathlon, which includes the 60-metre hurdles, the 800-metre run, high jump, long jump and shot put.
Besides earning a bronze medal in the pentathlon, Ostertag helped the Huskies win the Canada West Conference women’s title for a second straight year.
At the U Sports Track and Field Championships that season, Ostertag against finished third in the women’s pentathlon.
 |
| Nicole Ostertag lands in the long jump sandpit. |
At the U Sports Track and Field Championships that season, Ostertag claimed second in the women’s pentathlon.
“It was almost meant to be,” said Ostertag. “It was an interesting transition going from like full on ballet into track.
“Some things transferred well, and there were definitely some skills from ballet that helped me out. There were definitely some habits I had to break as well. There were some challenges.”
While she takes part in her events as an individual, Ostertag enjoyed the team environment and the positive vibe the Huskies Track and Field teams have.
“There is the team aspect, but at the same time, you’re also competing against your teammates,” said Ostertag. “It is a little bit of a weird dynamic that way.“Having the Huskie community is really helpful, but the outdoors it is much more individually focused. We work hard, but we have fun and we keep it light. That is kind of what you have to do to keep doing this for a long time.
“If you aren’t enjoying it and you are super serious all the time, you’re not going to last in this sport.”
 |
| Nicole Ostertag builds speed on her long jump approach. |
During the fall and winter terms of 2021-22, she continued to excel in the classroom posting a 95 per cent average.
Following the 2020 U Sports Track and Field Championships, the world came under the grips of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic causing shutdowns to occur in North America starting on March 11, 2020.
The 2020-21 Canada West Conference season and the U Sports Championships for that campaign were cancelled. Ostertag spent her time focusing on her training, while she continued her university studies.
A lower leg injury sidelined her for the 2021-22 U Sports season. She got back more into the swing of things with training and attending competitions this past April.
When Ostertag competes outdoors when she is not representing the Huskies in U Sports competitions, the 22-year-old takes part in the heptathlon. The women’s heptathlon includes the 200-metre race, the 800-metre race, the 100-metre hurdles, high jump, long jump, shot put and javelin throw.
“I’ve always kind of been like an all-around athlete,” said Ostertag. “I’ve kind of been OK at a lot of things.
“My dad did the decathlon, so it was just kind of a natural fit. I started out hurdling, and then I tried a bit of the jumps too. Those are kind of the main events that you need to be solid in to succeed in the combined events.
“The throws took a little longer to develop, because I had never thrown anything. I didn’t play ball growing up or anything like that. We didn’t use our arms in that way in ballet, so the throws were an adjustment.”
 |
| Nicole Ostertag gets airborne in the long jump. |
At the NACAC Combined Events Championship, Osterag placed second in the women’s heptathlon setting personal bests in the 200-metre race, the 800-metre race, the 100-metre hurdles, high jump, long jump and javelin throw.
She proceeded to take part in the Canadian Track and Field Championships, which ran June 22 to 26 in Langley, B.C.
Unfortunately, Ostertag had to pull out part way through the women’s heptathlon due to a hamstring injury. Before getting injured, Ostertag completed the 200-metre race, the 100-metre hurdles, high jump and shot put.
She set personal bests in the 100-metre hurdles and shot put topping the women’s heptathlon field in those two disciplines.
Now, Ostertag has her sights set on competing at the Canada Games that will run August 6, to 21 in Niagara, Ont., before returning to the U of S to rejoin the Huskies and continue her academic studies in kinesiology. She has three years of U Sports eligibility remaining.
Ostertag plans to remain in track and field for a longer term, and enjoys training with U of S Huskies alumna Michelle Harrison. Harrison repeated as Canada’s women’s 100-metre hurdles champion at the Canadian Track and Field Championships, and she will represent Canada at the World Athletics Championships that run July 15 to 24 in Eugene, Oregon.
The two athletes train under Reindl’s coaching guidance, and Reindl has a number of different coaching roles with Athletics Canada. Ostertag hopes they all can keep representing Canada internationally in track and field for some time to come.
 |
| Nicole Ostertag wants to keep representing Canada in track and field. |
“It is an accomplishment to represent Canada for sure.”
If you have any comments you would like to pass along about this post, feel free to email them to stankssports@gmail.com.
-------
If you like what you see here, you might want to donate to the cause to keep independent media like this blog going. Should you choose to help out, feel free to click on the DONATE button in the upper right corner. Thank you for stopping in.
