Preview - 2009 UTAS Australian All Schools and Youth Athletics Championships
03 Dec 2009
Featuring a number of our most talented young athletes, the 2009 UTAS Australian All Schools and Youth Athletics Championships will be held this coming weekend (4-7 December 2009) in Hobart.
More than 1400 athletes will descend on the Domain Athletics Centre in the Tasmanian capital for four days of exciting competition.
The largest athletics event held in Australia, the UTAS Australian All Schools Championships, which features more than one hundred finals, has been the start of many athletes' careers. Steve Hooker, Dani Samuels, Tristan Thomas, Sally McLellan and many of their Flame team mates started their fast track to athletics success at these championships.
The 2009 event is expected to deliver strong results and show the depth in most event areas which is exciting for National Youth High Performance Manager Sara Mulkearns.
"I'm really looking forward to seeing the next level of athletes coming through and showing them that there is a pathway for them in athletics," she said.
"Obviously last year's World Youth representatives will be strong contenders in the older age groups but we are just really looking forward to seeing the talent on show and good competition."
Some of the highlights of the program are:
Two prominent Tasmanians, Huw Peacock and Danni McConnell sit atop the hammer throw for their respective age groups. 17 year old Peacock secured fifth place with a personal best throw of 70.66m at the World Youth Championships and is the Tasmanian state champion, and McConnell, who is also coached by Peacock's father Evan, set a new state record of 51.76m in recent weeks.
World Youth Championship silver medallist, Amy Pejkovic of New South Wales will once again be looking to assert her dominance in the high jump. A finalist in the Youth Performer of the Year category at the 2009 Sports Performer Awards, Pejkovic's best leap of 1.86m will make her the one to beat. 15 year old Tasmanian, Kaitlin Morgan, who will look to improve on her silver medal at last year's Pacific School Games, will have to jump well above her 1.80m personal best to take the gold in the under 17 category, but with her home state behind her will be in with a chance.
In the sprints, Caitlin Sargent and Matthew Turk are ones to watch. Sargent of Queensland will be competing in both the women's under 18 200m and 400m and has personal best times of 24.14 and 55.03. In the under 18 boy's events, 17 year old Turk will be looking to secure victory in his signature event the 100m sprint and to improve on his current best time of 10.74.
Brooke Stratton of Victoria and Tara Whitehead of Queensland will duel in both the long jump and the triple jump. After injury forced her out of the World Youth Championships, 17 year old Whitehead will be keen to shore up her place on the Australian team for the World Junior Championships in Moncton, Canada next July. Stratton will be looking to emulate her form from last year's Pacific School Games where she won five gold medals and was recognised with selection in the Athletics Australia Under 17 Development Squad.
After a strong World Youth Championships campaign, the men's under 18 1500m will be a great battle between Victorians Jordan Williamsz and Kane Grimster. With a personal best time of 3:47 over 1500m, 17 year old Grimster will also compete in the 3000m event and Willamsz will step down a distance to the 800m event.
Walker Dane Bird-Smith will be looking to go back to back in the 5km event after taking the title last year. The 17 year old from Queensland has a personal best time of 43:47 over a 10km distance and is one of Australia's most promising junior athletes.
In the pole vault, Victorian under 16 record holder Brodie Cross looks to be the form athlete with his personal best height of 4.70m. In the female division it will be fellow Victorian Paris McCathrion, who recently leapt a personal best of 3.75m and will be looking to better her own state record, leading the field.
Canberran hurdler Chloe Jamieson, from the Matt Beckenham stable, will contest the three hurdles distances in the under 16 age group. Jamieson, who has a best time of 60.11 over the 400m hurdles is ranked fifth nationally and will be hard to beat.
The Australian All Schools Championships is the pinnacle of school athletics. With almost all Australian schools running a school athletics carnival and the best performers progressing to regional and state championships, more than 100,000 school students have competed in this program around Australia.
Tickets are available at the gate - adults $10, concession $5, under 12 free. Four day passes are available.
The event kicks off with the under 15 boy's hammer throw final at 11.00am this Friday (4 December 2009) at the Domain Athletics Centre.