Wednesday, August 9, 2017
by Simon Fraser Athletic Communications

LONDON – Two years removed from winning two NCAA national titles, former Simon Fraser University middle distance runner Lindsey Butterworth is set to make her debut Thursday at the IAAF World Championships in London.
 
Butterworth, who capped her senior season at SFU by winning NCAA national titles in the 800 meters both indoors and outdoors in 2015, will be among 55 competitors in the 800 meters at London.
 
“I’m so excited for #London2017 to start tomorrow! This stadium is unreal,” Butterworth posted on Instagram.
 
Butterworth finished third at the Canadian Championships earlier this summer behind Olympian and Canadian record-holder Melissa Bishop. Butterworth posted her personal best of 2:02.13 at a meet in Ninove, Belgium, a few weeks ago. She continues to train on campus with Clan track & field head coach Brit Townsend and alongside Clan alumna and Canadian Olympian Jessica Smith.
 
Butterworth will run in heat four of six preliminary races. The race is schedule to start at 7:52 p.m. in London, 11:52 a.m. Pacific. Three Canadians are entered in the preliminary races.
 
Butterworth won the NCAA 800-meter outdoor title in a near-record time of 2:02.88 in 2015.  She missed the 25-year old championship meet record by just four-tenths of a second.  Her time was just 78-hundredths of a second off the Great Northwest Athletic Conference record of 2:02:10 set by SFU's Helen Crofts in 2013.
 
Former SFU track star and Canadian Olympian Natasha Wodak, who competed for the Clan when the track program competed in the NAIA, placed 16th in the world in the 10,000m.