By PAUL YANDALL
A teacher says the 15-year-old schoolgirl hit in the neck by a javelin knew she was entering a danger zone when she decided to take a short cut across a competition throwing area.
Elizabeth McIlwain was struck after wandering into the javelin throwing zone at a secondary schools
athletics competition at Sovereign Stadium on the North Shore on Thursday.
The Westlake Girls' sixth form student, from Torbay, was hit in the back of the neck just as an announcer was warning people to stay out of the area.
She is reported to be in a satisfactory condition at North Shore Hospital and is not expected to suffer long-term damage.
Kristin School physical education teacher Dennis Brown, who organised Thursday's event, said Elizabeth's parents told him that she knew she was entering the javelin throwing area but decided to take a short-cut across it anyway.
"She knew what she was doing and where she was going," he said.
"She does compete at the athletic club so she knew and she heard the announcement, but she just went in there deliberately."
He said Elizabeth was a member of the North Harbour athletics club based at the stadium and knew where the stadium's throwing zones were.
Rob Boston, head of College Sport, the agency responsible for overseeing the competitions, said he had investigated the incident and was satisfied with safety standards at the event.
He said the throwing zone was not cordoned off by tape and he would recommend that it was done before the next event at the stadium. "There's nothing in the rules that says it has to be [cordoned off] but it's something we have to do for safety's sake."
A similar incident five years ago when a boy was struck in the shoulder after wandering into a javelin throwing area led to a review of safety standards then.
Steps had been taken to reduce the number of competitors on the field and increase the monitoring of throwing events.
Mr Boston said marshals were watching Thursday's javelin competition and the throwing zone was clearly marked.
"But you can put up as many barriers as you like, the kids will walk over them if they think it will be a short-cut."
He said cases of people walking through throwing zones generally happened only during the relay events where running competitors started and ended their races at different parts of the track.
"There will be fairly strong messages going out over the loudspeakers now just to tell kids not to go across [the throwing zones]."
By PAUL YANDALL
A teacher says the 15-year-old schoolgirl hit in the neck by a javelin knew she was entering a danger zone when she decided to take a short cut across a competition throwing area.
Elizabeth McIlwain was struck after wandering into the javelin throwing zone at a secondary schools
AdvertisementAdvertise with NZME.