Athletics Insight: Whanganui students show good early season form

Whanganui student Damian Hodgson has clearly established himself this year as an athlete with an exciting future.

Injuries and a long list of unavailable athletes meant Whanganui was represented by a very small group at the opening round of the Regional League in Hastings at the weekend.

Unsurprisingly, the small, inexperienced team ended at the foot of the men’s table and mid-table fourth in the females.

The in-form Jonathan Maples headed the injury list, missing the opening round as a precautionary measure following a slight training injury six days earlier. Maples was sadly missed in the three sprint races he was scheduled to compete in.

Unlike the heavy rain on this side of the island, the athletes competed in very warm and sunny, if windy, conditions in Hawke’s Bay. The wind rose during the middle period of the programme which mainly affected middle distance runners in the 800m and 1500m, who battled strong winds during that period. Sprinters competed in more favourable conditions with helpful tailwinds.

Juliet McKinlay, a boarder in Year 11 at Whanganui Collegiate School, had a highly successful day. McKinlay does much of her training at Cooks Gardens but is a member of the Palmerston North Club, making a major contribution to her club’s winning performance. McKinlay won three events; long jump (4.36m), triple jump (10.39m) and 100m hurdles (15.45s), was second in the javelin (33.55m) and contributed to wins in the 4 x 100m and 4 x 400m relays. All were with performances not short of the New Zealand junior international representative’s best – a major confidence boost for the season ahead.

Hannah Byam finished second in the 2000m steeplechase with an encouraging 7m 42.33s run and added a third in the 300m hurdles. Grace Fannin was second to McKinlay over 100m hurdles and second in the 300m hurdles in which she was troubled by the strong headwind over the first half of the race. Fannin and Byam produced the best Whanganui performances.

Whanganui High School Year 13 sprinter and hurdler Damian Hodgson was sadly one of the unavailable athletes at the weekend. Hodgson has over this year clearly established himself as an athlete with an exciting future. Hodgson made his first appearance at an Athletics New Zealand Championships in the under 20 grade in the 400m hurdles. Not only was it a step up in grade but also a step up in distance from the New Zealand School’s 300m hurdles. Just before the championships, he took the 100m/200m sprint double at the Whanganui Secondary Schools Championships, opting not to run his favoured 400m to save himself for the New Zealand Championships two days later. On return from the championships, he took the Whanganui 300m hurdles at the Club Night two days later.

Success at the Whanganui Schools earned selection for the Whanganui Secondary School Team to the North Island Secondary Schools Championships in Palmerston North. At the championships, Hodgson clearly highlighted his potential by making the podium for the first time, finishing second in the 300m hurdles and the 400m. The latter may have been in a relatively slow time but the double, along with running in the third-placed 4 x 400m team and the fifth-placed 4 x 100m team, highlighted his potential. Hodgson bettered his North Island Schools time in the second Club Night of the season a fortnight ago.

Hodgson has high goals and is showing dedication to reach them. Over winter he played for the Whanganui High School football team. In previous years, he had also played club football but felt he needed to dedicate more time to specific athletics conditioning. Among his longer-term goals is winning a track scholarship to a United States university, following in the footsteps of former High School teammates Flynn Johnston and Maggie Jones, both in their second year Stateside.

The final two Regional Meetings, in Palmerston North at the weekend and in Wellington a fortnight later, will be vital in Hodgson’s preparation for the New Zealand Secondary Schools Championships in Timaru in early December. American colleges keep a close watch on New Zealand rankings and performances in major championships such as the New Zealand Secondary Schools Championships.

Currently in the United States, as well as Jones and Johnson, are former Whanganui Collegiate School athletes Andres Hernandes, Liam Back, Tayla Brunger, Daniel Sinclair and his brother William, who at the weekend distinguished himself with a win and record at the Missouri Valley Cross Country Conference with a smart 23m 8s for 8km on the Pleasant Ridge Golf Course at Cedar Falls. Former Whanganui athlete Lexi Maples has just completed her master’s degree in the United States and is now teaching in Los Angeles.

Former Whanganui athletes continue to shine on distant shores.