Whanganui High School's junior mixed 4 x 100m relay team (from left) Olive Coombs, Hannah Cameron, Charlie McBride and Alex Payne won gold at the NZ Secondary Schools Athletics Championships.
Whanganui High School's junior mixed 4 x 100m relay team (from left) Olive Coombs, Hannah Cameron, Charlie McBride and Alex Payne won gold at the NZ Secondary Schools Athletics Championships.
While Whanganui athletes returned from the annual New Zealand Secondary Schools Championships with only four individual medals (one gold and three bronze) and five relay medals (two gold), there were a whole raft of excellent performances, including 50 or more personal bests.
I missedWhanganui High School’s winning mixed junior 4 x 100 metre gold medal in last week’s report, making High School’s tally three relay medals (two silver and a gold), adding to Whanganui Collegiate School’s two (gold and bronze) and Cullinane College’s one bronze.
Mixed relays are relatively new (4 x 400m in its third year) and mixed 4 x 100m in its inaugural year, drawing fewer entries than the traditional male and female relays. Mixed sport is taking off internationally and suits our smaller co-educational schools, which can form competitive mixed teams in a grade that is not open to single sex schools.
Whanganui fully grasped the opportunity provided by mixed teams winning both junior events. The Whanganui High School team of Charlie McBride, Alex Payne, Hannah Cameron and Olive Coombs took the inaugural 4 x 100m title (50.02s). Whanganui Collegiate School (Max Candish, Sophie Dunlop, Noah Orlowski and Harlynn Faalili) took the 4 x 400m, with Cullinane College (Lincoln Beamsley, Harper Ruby, Miles Donald and Grace O’Leary) third. Whanganui High School won silver in both the junior boys 4 x 100m and 4 x 400m and bronze in the junior girls 4 x 100m.
Athletics Whanganui includes hurdles and relays every week in the club programme and it is pleasing to see so many positive results in these disciplines at national level.
As reported last week, Bruce McGregor (WHS) won the junior 300m and 100m hurdles, setting personal bests in both and adding a further personal best in the heats of the junior 400m.
Other Whanganui athletes to reach hurdle finals were Grace Fannin (Whanganui Girls College) sixth in the senior girls 300m, James McGregor (WHS) seventh in the senior boys 300m hurdles and Hannah Cameron (WHS) eighth in the junior girls 300m. Year 9 athlete Alrese Maree (WGC) set bests in both the 80m and 300m hurdles, Tilly Darke (WCS) in the senior 300m, Olive Coombs (WHS) in the junior 300m and Charlie McBride (WHS) in the junior 100m.
I have long advocated relays as being an essential part of a good school athletic programme, giving athletes a team element and a second opportunity at major meets.
Whanganui Collegiate School's gold medal-winning junior mixed 4 x 400m relay team (from left) Max Candish, Noah Orlowski, Harlynn Faalili and Sophie Dunlop.
Whanganui schools grasped this opportunity. A group of sprinters who may not have advanced far in their individual events have another chance in a relay combination, increasing their likelihood of remaining in the sport.
Whanganui successes included a number who, over the weekend, produced a whole raft of personal bests, none more than Ethan Wells (WHS), who finished sixth in the junior 200m and set five personal bests in sprints. He also returned home with two relay silvers. Max Candish (WCS) set a personal best in all three rounds of the junior 400m to finish sixth in the final (52.36s) and was further rewarded with a relay gold medal. Whanganui High School had nine athletes return with a medal to add to Bruce McGregor’s two individual medals and his relay medal.
Whanganui Collegiate had seven athletes return with medals to add to Juliet McKinlay’s two bronze medals, while Cullinane College had four athletes return with unexpected medals. All benefited from relays and it puzzles me that more schools do not put more emphasis on relays.
It was pleasing to see Nga Tawa (Marton) take a large team to Hastings and, as well as several personal bests, gained team medals in the Year 9 girls (silver 6 to score and bronze in 3 to score) and silver medals in both in the junior grade. This ensured that 12 of their team took a medal home after the hot weekend in Hastings.
St Peter’s School Cambridge, which had the equal largest team (51 athletes), returned to Cambridge with nine gold medals, six silver medals and four bronze medals, a truly outstanding team effort. Relay and team results featured strongly in this return and, although some may have finished near the back in distance events on the track, played a solid role for their successful teams on the road. Director of sport Ange Russek, their coaches and support team are to be congratulated.
Hopefully, the value of a team approach will be seen by more schools in the future.
I will be back in the New Year and wish all readers the compliments of the season.
