Alexandre Genest (born June 30, 1986) is a Canadian middle- and long-distance runner. He qualified for the

2012 London Olympics The 2012 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012) was an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...

in the 3000 metre steeplechase with an A standard time and a first-place finish at the 2012 Canadian Olympics field & track trials in Calgary.

Personal life

Genest was born on June 30, 1986, in Shawinigan,

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

. Genest and partner Marie-Christine had a son on July 1, 2011, named Arno, just three weeks prior to Genest running a time that would qualify him for the

2011 World Championships in Athletics The 13th IAAF World Championships in Athletics () was an international athletics competition that was held in Daegu, South Korea. It started on 27 August 2011 and finished on 4 September 2011. The United States topped the medal standings in th ...

Career

Alex started to run in 1997, at the age of 12, for Paul Lejeune High School. Genest says he "climbed step by step from regional competitions to provincial competitions." His taste for challenge and overcoming led him to international competition in 2003 when he represented Canada at the

World Youth Championships in Athletics The IAAF U18 Championships in Athletics (until 2015 known as IAAF World Youth Championships in Athletics) was a global athletics event comprising track and field events for competitors who were 17 or younger (youth = Under-18). The event was orga ...

, held in nearby

Sherbrooke Sherbrooke ( ; ) is a city in southern Quebec, Canada. It is at the confluence of the Saint-François and Magog rivers in the heart of the Estrie administrative region. Sherbrooke is also the name of a territory equivalent to a regional cou ...

. He finished 6th at the event while teammate Chris Winter captured bronze. Genest studied

kinesiology Kinesiology () is the scientific study of human body movement. Kinesiology addresses physiological, anatomical, biomechanical, pathological, neuropsychological principles and mechanisms of movement. Applications of kinesiology to human healt ...

at the

Université de Sherbrooke The University of Sherbrooke (French: Université de Sherbrooke) (UdS) is a large public French-language university in Quebec, Canada with campuses located in Sherbrooke and Longueuil, a suburb of Montreal approximately west of Sherbrooke. It i ...

until transferring to

University of Guelph , mottoeng = "to learn the reasons of realities" , established = May 8, 1964 ()As constituents: OAC: (1874) Macdonald Institute: (1903) OVC: (1922) , type = Public university , chancellor ...

in order to bring his running to the next level by training at Speed River Track Club, known to be the best distance training centre in the country.Canadian Running Magazine: Alex Genest: 3000m steeplechase
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Competition record

Career highlights

* 1st, 2012 National Championships, Calgary, Alberta, Canada (Olympic "A" Standard). * 3rd, 2013 National Championships, Moncton, New Brunswick, Canada (IAAF World Championships "A" Standard). * Personal Best: 3000 metres steeplechase: 8:19.33, Barcelona, 22/07/2011

References

External links

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archive
* * * 1986 births Living people Canadian male long-distance runners Canadian male steeplechase runners Olympic track and field athletes for Canada Athletes (track and field) at the 2012 Summer Olympics Sportspeople from Shawinigan Athletes (track and field) at the 2015 Pan American Games Pan American Games silver medalists for Canada World Athletics Championships athletes for Canada Pan American Games medalists in athletics (track and field) Medalists at the 2015 Pan American Games 21st-century Canadian people {{Canada-athletics-bio-stub