Young NZ athletes facing double disadvantage

PASS IT ON: Christian Conder hands the baton to Tom Matthews at the Collegiate Inter-House Match at the weekend. Both athletes compete for Manawatu/Wanganui Centre in the NZ Championships at the weekend in Dunedin.PHOTO/SUPPLIED

There has been considerable research on how date of birth can affect success at school and in sport depending where in the year the age groups are taken for a particular activity.

In the teenage years boys and girls mature rapidly and a few months can make a significant difference. This can be more dramatic in sport where a few months can mean much and where the cut-off date for entry to a particular competition can have a major influence. Age group representative teams with a January 1 as a cut-off date have been shown to have a high proportion of the team having birth dates in the early part of the year. One great athletic coach once said that "If you wanted to be a great discus thrower choose your parents carefully". Perhaps choosing when you are born should be added to this advice.

New Zealand is often at a disadvantage in age group world athletic events. Not only do we have to compete out of season but our athletes need to qualify by the end of our southern season opposed to northern rivals who can qualify almost three months later. At this growth stage these months can be significant.

A few years ago Athletics New Zealand adopted IAAF age groups whereby December 31 in the year of competition is the cut-off date. In the past younger New Zealand athletes stayed in the same grade through our competition season (October to April). This means for some a change of grade mid-season which does not only mean competing against older athletes but in some cases moving to different weight implements and changed hurdle specifications. These changes do affect what athletes choose to go to this week's national Championships in distant Dunedin. Some athletes who have just come into the under-20 age groups this calendar year have decided they are not ready yet for the changes and will make the North Island Schools their major focus.

The old saying that if "you are good enough you're old enough" does hold some truth but it is also important not to expose too much competition too soon to the young, however talented they might be.

At the action-packed Wanganui Collegiate School Inter House event on Saturday evening a number of year 9 athletes excelled. Genna Maples, not 13 until April , shattered her own under-16 200m record with a truly national class time of 25.61 seconds backed up with a swift 100m in 12.85 seconds. Training partner Tayla Brunger got very close to the Maples' under-16 300m record with a personal best 42.94. Brunger lost the 800m by .03 second to Emma Osborne (2:22.22 and 2:22.25 respectively) and both are probably the fastest ever Wanganui Collegiate Year 9 athletes over the two-lap event. However, all three are good enough but I believe their own under 14 North Island Championship is the right competition goal for this term.

Christian Conder benefited by his youth last year when, unlike his school peers, he was still young enough to run under-18 (youth), in Wellington last year. He grasped this opportunity finishing second in the 1500m. He also benefitted by being under 19 next December and thus qualifying for the ISF World Schools Cross Country in April. Conder ran a personal best sub-two minute 800m on Saturday (1:59.55) which is great preparation for his debut 1500m at the Junior NZ Championship at the weekend.

World schools international team-mate Jane Lennox rounded off a great fortnight at the Collegiate Inter House. She ran her third sub-five minutes 1500m in a fortnight that included securing the WCS under-16 record from former NZ Junior steeplechaser Caroline Mellsop (4:48.88). Lennox ran well in the 4 x 400m relay and finished 4th across the line against boys in the Steeplechase at the weekend to set a personal best that moved her to number two in the WCS all-time steeplechase list behind Mellsop. Lennox will not go to Dunedin in the weekend as she has Hungary as the main goal of this term.

The Grey House 4 x 100m team excelled breaking the house record with a slick 44.10 seconds, a time that would have taken fourth against school combinations at NZSS last December. The team was anchored by Harry Symes who has been out injured since the Porritt Classic.

Symes moves up to under-20 in Dunedin but has the credentials and experience to do well. On Tuesday night he confirmed his good form by running the 100m in 11.14 seconds.

The Inter-House Meet produced a plethora of personal bests with half the 20-strong field in the girls 1500m achieving this milestone. The list of bests included young Olivia Seymour (200m and 100m) who will travel to her first NZ Championships and Grace Godfrey (200m) who still has another year in the Youth grade and will start in the 400m.

Next week I will look back at the New Zealand Championships.