Thomas to Take on 200m
20 Feb 2013
Tasmania’s number one athlete, Tristan Thomas, is set to make a rare appearance over 200m at this Saturday’s Briggs Athletics Classic.
It will be his first race of 2013 and brings back memories of 2009, when he used the meet to kick start his amazing year.
In 2009 he defeated the world champion Bershawn Jackson and went on to become the Athletics Australia athlete of the season and later that year won a bronze medal at the world championships.
Four years later, we find ourselves in a similar place again, a year after the Olympics, with Thomas out to take on the world.
“The year after the Olympics is always interesting. Many of the athletes are hungry from not achieving their goals the year before, so they come out and really perform,” Thomas explained.
Thomas is a multiple Australian champion and has made the semi finals at the Olympics, World Championships and Commonwealth Games in the 400m hurdles.
Having lived in Canberra since he finished school, in the athlete paradise that is the Australian Institute of Sport, Thomas has grown to be one of the states best athletic exports.
This Saturday night he will make a rare appearance over 200m.
“It will be great to get some competitive juices flowing and I want to do well in front of a home crowd. It’s not often I get to run in Tasmania, but I’m keen to support Tasmanian meets whenever I can.
“I’ve seen some great results from the upcoming sprinters in Tasmania at the moment, so hopefully people will come out and watch us,” Thomas added, whose father Damon is Mayor of Hobart.
The 26 year old Architecture student says his focus for 2009 will still be the 400m hurdles, but he also comes with a solid 200m resume.
With a personal best of 21.3 seconds for the journey, Thomas previous won the Under 20 national title and Stawell Gift titles over 200m.
“I’m looking forward to racing over 200m, but my focus will be over 400m hurdles as we approach the rest of the domestic season,” Thomas added.
In April at the Australian Athletics Championships, Thomas will look to make his third straight IAAF World Championships in Athletics, as part of the Australian team in Moscow from August 11-18.
What: Briggs Athletics Classic
When: Saturday February 23. 5pm-8pm
Where: Domain Athletics Centre
Who: 200 of the best athletes from eight different countries, around the world and Tasmania
Tickets: Available from Centretainment, Athletics Tasmania, Athletics Tasmania Clubs or at the gate.
