Athletics: Field events set damp meeting alight

By TERRY MADDAFORD

It was women's night in Wanganui on Saturday, as former world discus champion Beatrice Faumuina and world youth shot-put gold medallist Valerie Adams confirmed their good early-season form with emphatic victories.

On a night of terrible weather, the Cooks Garden Classic needed good performances in the field events to retain interest once the field for the featured men's mile fell apart with Steve Willis' late switch to the 800m.

Seventeen-year-old Adams outclassed the shot-put field with her winning 17.06m - again well over the 16.30m Commonwealth Games standard.

Adams later shrugged off the incessant rain to finish second behind Faumuina in the discus and third in the hammer.

Faumuina had real satisfaction with her winning throw of 63.69m (her third attempt). It was easily her best of the season - more than 2m further than she had managed - and 6m ahead of the 57.50m Games standard.

The throw reflects encouraging progress as she gets back to form after injury.

The hammer, with the big field hampered by a slippery circle, produced one of the best contests of the busy programme.

Australian 21-year-old Bronwyn Eagles, third at last year's world championships, easily led the field with a winning throw of 65.83m.

In a highly consistent series, Eagles showed again why she is the Games favourite.

New Zealand hope Tasha Williams was a distant second with 60.49m - down on her season's best of 60.95m.

Long jumper Chantal Brunner continued her improvement with a winning 6.58m. Although better than the 6.50m Games standard, a following wind of 3.26m a second ruled it out as a qualifier.

But she did have a legitimate 6.37m - her best of the season.

Glenn Howard had the worst of the conditions for the high jump, but still managed a respectable 2.15m - down slightly on his season-best 2.20m. The 2.24m Games qualifier is well within his sights.

On the track, walker Craig Barrett raced away with the 3000m, his winning time of 11m 40.25s an impressive effort in the windy conditions.

April Brough, fifth in last year's world youth championships, ran a smart 24.07s to beat the 200m standard of 24.24s for a place at July's world junior champs in Jamaica.

Hayden Townsend, a youth championships semifinalist, sneaked under the junior 200m target of 21.54s with a 21.51s run in bad conditions.

Willis and his younger brother Nick completed the middle-distance double.

Steve Willis sat behind Ben Ruthe through the first 400m (54s), before powering into the lead 110m out and racing clear to win in 1m 50.43s from Gareth Hyett and Ruthe.

Willis was outside his season-best 1m 50.20s and still some way off a Games-qualifying 1m 47.0s.

The mile, run in the best conditions of the night, was won in a slow 4m 07.87s by Nick Willis after his Valleys United clubmate, Neil Sampson, had steered the field through the first lap in just over 60s and the half-mile in 2m 04s (with Willis a couple of seconds back).

Willis took the field through the three-quarter mile in 3m 08s before running a sub-60s last quarter.

He said the time was about what he had expected at this stage of the season. He is expected to run the 1500m in Hastings next Saturday as he continues his build-up to the junior world championship.