Contributed Photo / Megan Jacklin
Laurier Athletics’ headshot for Jonas Dewar.

Student athletes should always give it their all in their last season of competition, and Jonas Dewar made sure of that.  

Dewar recently competed in his last OCAA race at the Provincial Championships in Cambridge hosted by Conestoga College. He placed 79th in the race, with a memorable ending.  

“I was very tired at the end of the race, but I knew I should try to end the race hard and give it my all,” said Dewar, who is a fourth-year criminology student athlete at Wilfrid Laurier University in Brantford. “I noticed someone behind me throughout the last couple hundred meters and I knew that I didn’t want him to pass me, so I slowly picked up the pace and gained the momentum to sprint the entire last hundred to two hundred meters of the race.” 

Dewar suffered different injuries throughout his time with the cross-country team, preventing him from being able to fully compete. 

“Learning to persevere through injury-related difficulties was a significant experience throughout my time on the team,” said Dewar. “This year, I started every race without being held back by my injuries from the previous years.” 

Teammate and fourth-year digital media and journalism student Jackson Rice describes the moment as an “insane finish to Jonas’ race” and said it was a highlight of the race.  

“The energy was so high when we all saw Jonas gunning it at the end,” said Rice.  

Head coach Cory Currie told Laurier Brantford Athletics, “His humble presence on the team is what every coach looks for in a student athlete.” 

“I didn’t really know how close my opponent was or how great of a finish I had until after it happened,” said Dewar. “I didn’t really hear my team shouting to run faster.” 

Dewar did not come to Laurier with the intention of competing as an athlete. He spontaneously tried out for the cross-country team in his second year and decided to run for the rest of his three years at Laurier Brantford.  

“Finishing my last season defiantly feels weird, I do not want my time on the team to end,” said Dewar about competing in his final year at Laurier Brantford.  

Dewar hopes to work in policing after graduating in spring 2024. 

This article was originally published in print Volume 23, Issue 4 on Thursday, Dec. 7.