Since the Australian 08/09 season has long started, figured a thread covering results, news and gossip from downunder wouldn't be out of place.
Sally McLellan - reasonable season opener a couple of week ago with a winning 60/60H/200H treble in Queensland. Wil; be interesting to see how she goes in the US indoor series which is apparently a preparation for World Indoor Championships in 2010.
Steve Hooker - also competing in the US indoor season. Training partner and rival Paul Burgess opened his 2009 season with a 5.70 clearance last week.
Petrina Price - WJ medallist behind Vlasic half a dozen years ago - who's been on ''walkabout" since - recently came back with 1.91m and hopes of improvement to at least 1.95 this year.
You all know about the recent early selections for this year's World Championships - with Jana Rawlinson probably the only one who could (being defending World Champ) possibly complain. Jana was due to run in a professional (grass) 400m handicap in Tasmania a week or two ago but pulled out due to ''family commitments".
Athletics Australia is still without a major sponsor and some meets (eg the Canberra AIS meet usually held around Australia Day 26 January) have bitten the dust.
A few links to recent news stories about Aussie athletes:
NSW Victoria Queensland [url=https://www.clubsonline.com.au/customdata/index.cfm?fuseaction=display_image_listing&CategoryID=4126&itemLayout=1&headerselector=3&OrgID=185&cfid=26384406&cftoken=58965881&dts=151200941653[]SA[/url] WA Tasmania ACT
Add your own Aussie news/results/gossip for 2009 below.
ETA - now that it's 2010 and ppl still using this thread, thought I should change the title..
ETA - ditto for 2011
Last edited by Vault-emort on Sat Feb 19, 2011 5:41 pm, edited 2 times in total.
Great opener for 400mh Tristan Thomas at Canberra interclub tonight 50.11. Was quite blustery conditions. Thomas ran 46.01 in similar conditions last week over the flat so he is in good shape. If he stays injury free look for him to go 49 low this domestic season.
paddyb wrote:Great opener for 400mh Tristan Thomas at Canberra interclub tonight 50.11. Was quite blustery conditions. Thomas ran 46.01 in similar conditions last week over the flat so he is in good shape. If he stays injury free look for him to go 49 low this domestic season.
If he's already at 46 for the flat (under less than ideal conditions), I would expect at least mid-48 for the hurdles by the end of your season!
paddyb wrote:Great opener for 400mh Tristan Thomas at Canberra interclub tonight 50.11. Was quite blustery conditions. Thomas ran 46.01 in similar conditions last week over the flat so he is in good shape. If he stays injury free look for him to go 49 low this domestic season.
Yeah Thomas' 46.0 last week was a good run. 50.1 in windy 34 degrees heat with no real competition isn't so bad either (93 farenheit for our American friends).
So, paddyb, does that mean Thomas' 800m career has been shelved? (ran 1:47.83 PR at Zatopek in December to win by 1.5s).
Can't find a all-time list for the (very) rarely run women's 200mH... how does McLellan's 26.96 stack up.
Also huge improvement from 32 yo Nigerian 400m runner Bolaji Lawal to run 10.29 in Melbourne last weekend (I can't find a 100 PR for him, but his 400m is 45.84). Lawal beat 10.36 man Rouge-Serret by 0.23...
THE English husband of dual world champion Jana Rawlinson has been cleared to run for Australia at the world titles, if selected. Chris Rawlinson, the 2002 Commonwealth Games gold medallist, will be granted full citizenship on Monday week.
But Rawlinson's immediate focus is on a comeback to the track and the 400m hurdles beginning at Melbourne's Olympic Park on March 5. Wife Jana intends making her return to racing in Sydney a week earlier.
Yet Aussie football is such a waste, as is league. At least if he played Union, Oz would reap the benfits
Huh, he's talking Rugby League, not Aussie Football (which I take to mean Australian Rules Football - a whole lot more interesting and athletic game than League (or Union for that matter)).
My point is that as far as national pride and rooting for Oz, league and footie are a waste of time. If Luanga had played Union or athletics, then the nation would have a rooting interest. In fact Union is likely to be in the Olympics in 2016, not to mention the WC, Tri Nations, IRB sevens, the fall tours etc.
kamikaze7 wrote:My point is that as far as national pride and rooting for Oz, league and footie are a waste of time. If Luanga had played Union or athletics, then the nation would have a rooting interest. In fact Union is likely to be in the Olympics in 2016, not to mention the WC, Tri Nations, IRB sevens, the fall tours etc.
Ehh...you been swallowing the same stuff that gets our football players (of all codes) into trouble??????
RU belongs in the Olympics just as soon as they have made room for golf, darts, PS2 and dwarf-tossing...
kamikaze7 wrote:Yet Aussie football is such a waste, as is league. At least if he played Union, Oz would reap the benfits
Benfits??? U wouldn't be a Kiwi wouldya?
AS is right about AFL being more interesting downunder as crowd figures each week compared to either rugby code seem to prove.
Anyway....
Dunno if it's just a slow news day in Melbourne (shouldn't be with Grand Slam tennis in the air) but lotsa talk about Olympics and Comm Games in "Australia's sporting capital":
PS - noted that Joel Milburn won a 21.20 200m in Sydney yesterday but that young Olivia Tauro failed to finish the 400m. Hopefully nothing too serious.
Not sure these are posted to Aths Australia site yet (and I can't get in there at all for some reason right now), but here's a page with links to 2009 Aussie performance lists:
http://www.athsvic.org.au/viewPage.php?webPageID=43
Hooker will warm up for the short domestic season with a stint at indoor competitions in the US and Europe, beginning in New York this Friday where his Olympic success makes him one of the headline acts.
Also on the bill in New York will be Sally McLellan, the young gun who streaked to a silver medal in the 100m hurdles in Beijing.
McLellan believes the 60m indoor track will suit her because she is renowned as a fast starter.
After a short glance on the results the 49,61 by Thomas seemt to be the most noteworthy.
Maybe along with 10,29 by Anthony Alozie in the 100m.
19 (in june) year old Ray Williams also preformed well with a 21,16 on the 200m. Equalled PB.
IFK_Vaxjo wrote:After a short glance on the results the 49,61 by Thomas seemt to be the most noteworthy.
Especially since he clobbered the last hurdle hard.
Interesting to see that Steve Hooker followed up his OR in Beijing with a USI record in the PV and a near WIR in Millrose.
Especially since I was just watching him on local TV yesterday in a (pre-recorded) "Australia's Greatest Athlete" competition (think "Superstars") yesterday (his only "comp" between Beijing and NY.
The first contest saw them competing in golf and cricket events... Hopefully when they compete in some REAL sports, Hooker's speed and athleticism will give him an edge. Although the athletics event is likely to be a sprint, I'd like to see some of the motorsports, cricketers, rugby players and golfers vaulting.....
Vault-emort wrote:Hooker's speed and athleticism will give him an edge.
Does he have any T&F marks besides the PV? Speed like Bubka's apocryphal 10.2h? I would think you'd need 26' LJ credentials to vault 20'.
He's run 21.1 hand and 21.78 (-1.3) for 200m and from memory his LJ best was around 7m. He hasn't competed in any of these events for a few years though.
His Mum (Olympic Pentathlon 72/LJ 6.58m in 1978) and Dad (400/400H/800 1-45.36 in 73) were both versatile athletes. I always thought Steve had great potential as a decathlete, but why bother I guess when you might just end up with a WR and Olympic Gold in the vault.
Summary of Hooker effort from Aths Australia site:
"Returning to competition for the first time since that remarkable night at the Bird’s Nest in August, Hooker’s winning clearance of 6.01m was the equal sixth highest jump of all time, the highest ever indoors in the United States and the best indoors in the world for seven years. The leap is also a new Australian indoor record,"
The site also mentions that
"Olympic silver medallist Sally McLellan clocked 7.96 seconds in the 60m hurdles on her indoor debut,"
What they don't mention is that McLellan's time is also an Australian indoor record, thumping the previous records (by an Olympic champion no less) by 0.24 sseconds...
On the road, Scott Westcoot put in another good performance in Japan on Weekend:
BEPPU–OITA MARATHON
Westcott (Aus) 2:12:56 for 4th
He has ran 2:13:36 in 2008 and his PR, 2:11:36 in 2005
And more confirmed visitors to Australia:
Asafa Powell
Melaine Walker
Nesta Carter
Michael Frater
Ainsley Waugh
Andrew Hines
Wilan Louis (BAR - 45.91 400m PR)
Brigitte Foster-Hylton
Nadia Cunningham (Jam - 52.09 400m PR)
