Athletics: Bay pupils shine at nationals

NBHS pupil Guy Harrison (green shirt) won three golds at the nationals as a para athlete. PHOTO/FILE

Hawke's Bay individuals and teams have returned with five gold medals following the New Zealand Secondarys Schools Athletics Championship in Auckland last weekend.

The Bay contingent also bagged 10 silver medals and two bronzes during three-day champs at the Trust Stadium in Waitakere.

Para athlete Guy Harrison, who has ambitions to compete at the Paralympics in Tokyo in 2020, claimed three golds in the 400m race, discus and 3km road race.

The 15-year-old from Napier Boys' High School (NBHS) was diagnosed with cerebral palsy at 3.

The record holder of New Zealand men's open para 800m and 1500m events was named the capped off his weekend with winning the People's Choice Award of the annual Attitude Awards during aceremony in Auckland.

Napier Girls' High School pupil Brianna Lee clinched gold in the junior girls' 800m race while senior girls' school mates Emily Dunn, Claudia Layton and Polly Cavanagh emulated her feat in the three-person team road race.

HBSS sportsperson of the year Georgia Hulls collected three senior girls' silver medals in the 100m, 200m sprints as well as a member of the 4 x 100m Havelock North High School relay team with Emily Young, Georgia Rathbone and Sophia Peterson, who agnonisingly missed out on gold by 0.02s.

She also had the distinction of having her name included in the NZSS paper team.

For NBHS, Oliver Marshall's silver medal in the year 9 3km road race stood out, considering all but three of the top 10 place getters from the NZ crosscountry championship were in the field.

"Oliver ran an amazing time of 9:18 for the 3k race. This would have placed him in the top five in the under-16 grade 3000m on the track [ this grade includes year 10 and young year 11 pupils]," says NBHS deputy hedmaster Bruce Smith. "So this was a fantastic time and result."

Marshall combined with Max Taylor and Adam Barron for another silver in the three-person team event for the road race.

"The boys beat the huge schoolboys of Auckland Grammar, Wellington College and Hamilton Boys' High to get this result," says Smith.

The NBHS senior boys claimed bronze in the 6000m road race three-person team event.
Bradley Christison led the team with his sixth placing. The other teammates were David Rawnsley and Jacob Barber.

The senior boys' six-person road race team of Kane Elms, Liam O'Rorke, Ethan Kerins, Richard Russell, Blake Sullivan-Hill, Jaden Moffitt claimed silver.

HBPB PERFORMERS

■ JG 800m: Brianna Lee (NGHS) gold.

■ JG 1500m: Briana Irving (Gisborne GHS) silver.

■ SG 100m: Georgia Hulls (HNHS) silver.

■ SG 200m: Georgia Hulls (HNHS) silver.

■ SG 300m hurdles: Ruby Hansen (Woodford House) silver.

■ SG 4x100m relay: Emily Young, Georgia Rathbone, Sophia Peterson, Georgia Hulls (HNHS) silver.

■ JB 2000m steeple: Mark Day (St John's College) silver.

■ JB javelin: Samuel Porter-Samuels (Lindisfarne College) silver.

■ JB para athlete CP 400m: Guy Harrison (NBHS) gold.

■ JB PA CP discus: Guy Harrison (NBHS) gold.

■ Y9G 3k road race: Briana Irving (GGHS) bronze.

■ Y9B 3k RR: Oliver Marshall (NBHS) silver.

■ JB PA CP 3km RR: Guy Harrison (NBHS) gold.

■ Y9B 3-person RR: Oliver Marshall Max Taylor Adam Barron (NBHS) silver.

■ SG 3-person RR: Emily Dunn Claudia Layton Polly Cavanagh (NGHS) gold.

■ SB 3-person RR: Bradley Christison David Rawnsley Jacob Barber (NBHS) bronze.

■ SB 6-person RR: Kane Elms Liam O'Rorke Ethan Kerins Richard Russell Blake Sullivan-Hill Jaden Moffitt (SJHS) silver.

■ NZSS paper team: Georgis Hulls (HNHS).

■ Near misses:

Javelin: Johanna Nieuwenhuis (Central HB College) 4th.

■ SG 2000m steeple: Ginny Gibbs Wood 4th.

■ SB hammer: Nick Palmer (Karamau HS) 4th.