Preview New Zealand Secondary Schools Track & Field Champs

World junior shot put champion Jacko Gill should highlight the New Zealand secondary schools track and field championships in Hastings this coming weekend.

 Gill won the gold medal in the shot put at the world junior championships in Canada in July and at the inaugural Youth Olympic Games in Singapore in August was second with 22.60m extending his world record for 15 and 16 year olds. Krzysztof Brzozowski of Poland won in Singapore with 23.23m for a world record for a 17 year old. It is this record that Gill is after in Hastings which will then give him a clean sweep of world records for 14, 15, 16 and 17 year olds with the 5kg shot.

Fresh from her 61.32m record breaking throw with the hammer on Saturday Julia Ratcliffe will be keen to erase Valerie Adams 2001 senior record of 54.15m.

Defending senior boys 200m champion Joseph Millar will be seeking to retain his title as well as claim the 100m crown. Millar also has his eye on breaking the schools records in these two events. He will be up against defending 100m champion Scott Walker, Blair Grant and Yarride Rosario in the 100m and Joshua Hawkins in the 200m. Hawkins is also down to compete in the senior 110m hurdles. Dalton Coppins should dominate the junior boys 200m.

A close finish is expected in the senior boys 400m between Tyler Collings and Andrew Whyte. Brad Mathas should have the senior boys 800m to himself while Mohamed Ali and Kieron McDonald should go head to head in the 1500m and Ali will also have a race on his hands against Matt Baxter in the 3000m.

The boys pole vault will be an interesting and drawn out affair with recent national M16 record holder Nicholas Southgate up against the rapidly improving Pascal Kethers who is nudging closer to a world youth championships qualifying height. Also Paul Gibbons record of 4.50m set in 1989 is under threat.
Girls record holder Kerry Charlesworth, Lydia Taylor and Lucy McGall are entered in the girls open pole vault.

Solomone Vaka and Hayden Hall head the senior discus throw competitors, while the triple jump will feature Scott Thomson and Christopher Wiremu. Wiremu will join Brendon Barnett in the long jump. Jesse Bryant will be defending his junior boys long jump title. He will also compete in the shot put, discus throw and high jump. The senior boys high jump has brought together Ross Walker-Smart, Ben Harrison, Jordan Peters and Joseph Reynolds. Keeley O’Hagan the junior and senior high jump champion from last year will be defending the senior title.  

Junior girls 200m champion last year Kathryn Stuart returns for the senior 200m. Also in the senior 200m are Lauren Wilson, Louise Hodge and Brooke Cull. Megan Lee has entered the junior girls 100m and 200m. Madison Gipson is down for the junior girls 200m and 80m hurdles. Interest in the junior girls 400m will centre on Talia Horgan. Hazel Bowering-Scott is one of the leading runners in the senior 400m.

Anna Kean and Annika Pfitzinger are down for the senior 800m, while Pfitzinger will also compete in the 1500m against leading Otago runner Rebekah Greene and Margot Gibson. Greene will also compete in the 3000m against Georgie Grgec.
Leesa Lealaisalanoa and Siositina Hakeai should dominate the senior girls shot put and discus throw while Merewarihi Vaka is one of the leading competitors in the junior girls shot and discus. She is also entered in the 100m.

Matthew Holcroft is the leading boys race walker while Courtney Ruske and Lucinda Shaw should battle out the girls 2000m race walk.

 The championships will be the first major event to be held at the new Regional Sports Park in Hastings. Action begins on Saturday at 9.00am and concludes at 7.15pm. On Sunday the Road Races begin at Hawkes Bay Showgrounds at 8.00am, while action at the track starts at 9.00am. The championships conclude at 5.10pm.