VICTORIA – Madelyn Eybergen added another win to what's been a near-perfect season, taking Victoria's TC10K road race in a time of 32:44 on Sunday. The University of Victoria Vikes standout led a deep field that included Canadian marathon record holder and two-time Olympian Natasha Wodak, elite middle distance runner Kate Ayers, and teammate Colette Reimer, who finished fourth in 34:55.

On its own, the result fits with what Eybergen has done all year; however, the context is what makes it stand out.

This was Eybergen's first true 10-kilometre race. Her only previous attempt at the distance came in a family fun run around six years ago. She came in without a firm target and ran from the front, starting conservatively, looking composed throughout and never giving much back over the final stretch as she cruised to the win.

Two years ago, Eybergen was a high jumper at the University of Windsor. Now she's stacking wins across distances, still sorting out where her ceiling actually is. With the decision to focus her efforts on running, also came the decision to move out west to work with Vikes cross country and track head coach Hilary Stellingwerff.

"I primarily moved here for Hilary, she's amazing, and I wanted to be with the best coach in Canada and the team, so I'm very happy with the decision I've made," Eybergen said in a post-race interview.

"Her performance was incredible given how little she's actually trained for the event and really shows how much potential she has to be world-class," said Stellingwerff. "It now ranks her first in Canada, running faster than several women who have made Olympic teams. It also ranks her top 65 in the world."

Two years removed from her career as a high jumper, Eybergen is still figuring out where she fits best across distances, but the range is already clear. She holds the U SPORTS record in the 3,000 metres (9:01.64), won the U SPORTS national cross country title over eight kilometres, and has been nearly impossible to beat in just about every race she's entered this season.

Her impact with the Vikes has been immediate. Eybergen was named U SPORTS Cross Country Female Athlete of the Year and helped lead the program to its first national team championship since 2001, as well as a Canada West title. She also earned selection to represent Canada at the FISU World University Cross Country Championships.

Next up, Eybergen will race the 5,000 metres for the first time and shell be running with the Vikes Endurance Club this summer and testing things out. "I have yet to do a 5km race (track or road) so I'm looking forward to getting some of those in this summer. I'm still trying to figure out what distance I'm best at and what I like the most.

There's still some uncertainty in how it all fits together long term. The goals are there, though. A national team spot is within reach, and longer term, a place at the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles is on the radar.

For now, Eybergen keeps adding new distances and handling them well, one race at a time.