STANDOUT: Rising star Sarah Matthews is one to watch over the longer cross-country journeys. PHOTO/SUPPLIED
THERE are many challenges facing selectors of teams from all codes. Track and Field and Cross-country selections generally have considerable objectivity because of the nature of the sport so I have special admiration for selectors of teams where there is not the same objective data available.
I have great respect for the selectors of the All Blacks. For weeks there is speculation about the team and a whole host of journalists select their probable team. On top of that the armchair critics and those propping up pub bars have their own opinion with huge pressure on those that are tasked with selection.
Over the last week I have been involved in two very different selection panels. The first was the selection of the Whanganui School 5 x 2km relay teams to run in Rotorua in the new Regional Relay on Sunday June 19.
The other one was to select one male and one female half marathon or marathon runner to receive Oceania funding to run at the Gold Coast Marathon. These might appear fairly simple tasks. The latter had a small pool of applicants but the snag was the candidates could opt for either the marathon or the half marathon. The last time my panel had this task this led to long debate. Thankfully this year the major qualifying competition, the Christchurch marathon, provided all the answers we needed.
The Regional Relay was not quite so straightforward. Our main qualifying competition was the Whanganui Schools a fortnight ago at the Collegiate Golf Course. The distances were longer than the two kilometres of the Regional Relay but as one of the instigators of this initiative I was aware that the intention was to provide a weekend of running and the relay would come after the actual Cross-country Championships. In the younger grades where the athletes competed in our championship over 3km there was always going to be a higher correlation between athletes over 2km and 3km. The senior girls and Under 16 boys were racing over 4km and the senior boys over 5km, providing greater problems for selectors.
In all grades our policy was to take the first three at the Whanganui Schools Championships and add two more viewing other races and also accepting nominations from athletes who for good reasons missed our championships. The selectors left final selection until after Friday's Collegiate Cross-country if Collegiate athletes were in contention for selection.
The races at Collegiate enabled confirmation of the Year 9 and Under 16 grades as results confirmed the selector's deliberations. However, in the senior grades the races on Friday and three nominations for athletes not competing at Whanganuii last week complicated the selection and the panel will reconvene on Thursday to consider further documentation before the final team is announced.
Friday's Collegiate Cross-country was held over the Golf Course circuit on a slightly different course to the Whanganui Schools and was the one used for NZSS in 2005. The individual races confirmed what we had seen a week earlier. Christian Conder retained his title with a smooth front-running performance, winning by over a minute in a smidgeon under 19 minutes for the 6km race. In fact, only six athletes, including the leaders in the 2005 championships, have gone under that mark. Conder was fresh enough to win the prestigious Hughes Memorial the following day in Hawera.
Jane Lennox and Caitlyn Alabaster were solid and convincing winners in the respective senior and junior girls. Jack Gay won the junior boys, taking the Secondary Schools and Collegiate double over eight days. Oliver O'Leary (the Collegiate Junior 800m record holder and third in the senior boys last week won the Intermediate race, all have key roles in the Whanganui relay teams. Grey House retained the House Championship.
There were many standout performances at the championships, none more than young Sarah Matthews who only turned 13 in mid-April. Last week she won the Year 9 race at Whanganui Schools, this week she finished second to the very talented Caitlyn Alabaster in the junior race. Matthews has an exciting future, watch this space.