20.01.2007
Victoria the premier athletics state
Victoria has claimed the bragging rights as Australia’s premier athletics state, with impressive 80m javelin efforts by Jarrod Bannister and Joshua Robinson, a sprint double to Patrick Johnson, a fast 100m from Sally McLellan and a superb solo 1500m personal best to Lisa Corrigan the highlights of the inaugural Australian Athletics Cup in Brisbane today (Saturday).
In the state versus state format, Victoria demonstrated they are number one, recording a narrow win over Queensland in the teams points score. With every result counting towards the final point score the strength in depth of the Victorian team gave it the edge, taking out the Australian Athletics Cup and $5000 prizemoney. It came down to the last jump of the last event, the women’s long jump, to decide which team took the title – Queensland’s Jacinta Boyd fouled and the Victorian’s went home happy.
With just one week to the opening of the Telstra A-Series in Canberra, Jarrod Bannister and Joshua Robinson produced the highlights of the meet with some world class javelin throwing, becoming the 5th and 6th best javelin throwers in Australian history.
Twenty two-year-old Bannister was the most impressive, producing a world championship A-qualifying of 82.17m – an improvement on the 78.06m personal best he achieved in finishing 6th at the 2006 Commonwealth Games.
Not to be denied, Robinson, 21, also produced an 80m+ effort, throwing a world championship B-qualifying of 80.73m, an 81cm improvement on his previous best.
The pair are both from Queensland, born a year and a day apart and both have previously finished 4th at the world junior championships – Bannister in 2004, Robinson in 2002. Robinson is a former left-arm fast bowler and Under 17 Queensland cricket representative, whilst banister has moved from Queensland to Victoria with coach Gary Calvert.
The 100m sprint is always the focus of attention and today was no different. Australia’s fastest man, Patrick Johnson (AIS), tuned up for his clash with Joshua Ross over 100m in Canberra next week with a sizzling 10.23 in the 100m with an illegal 3.5m/second tailwind. He also won the 200m in a wind assisted 20.60 (+2.6), ahead of Ambrose Ezenwa (NSW) in 20.68, to complete a very impressive double.
A new name is on everyone’s lips in women’s middle-distance running in Australia. Lisa Corrigan, who inflicted a rare defeat on Tamsyn Lewis in the 800m last week, dominated the 1500m today. The ACT 22-year-old was in hot form, clocking a personal best of 4.08.72, just two seconds outside an A-qualifier for World Championships. She raced to the front from the start and was never headed, eventually winning by almost 20 seconds.
Her rematch with Lewis over 800m in Canberra shapes as one of the events of the meet.
In the women’s sprint event, Sally McLellan (Qld) maintained her unbeaten record this season with a slick win in 11.45 (+1.5), just ahead of the fast-improving Crystal Attenborough from Darwin who recorded a new personal best of 11.54.
Crystal Attenborough returned to win the 200m in 23.45 (+2.5) to snare another personal best, with her Commonwealth Games relay bronze medal teammate, Melanie Kleeberg of Queensland second in 23.74.
Scott Martin, the 130kg Victorian was in a class of his own in the absence of the recovering national record holder Justin Anlezark, Martin heaved the 7.26kg ball 19.26m, disappointing by his own standards but over two metres ahead of second-placed Stuart Gyngell (NSW).
The pole vault is fast becoming Australian athletics’ strongest event, with the success of our women, Emma George, Tatiana Grigorieva and Kym Howe over the past decade. The newest star, Alana Boyd of Queensland, whose parents, Ray and Denise, were both multiple national champions, was upset today by Charmaine Lucock of the Gold Coast, competing for the Pacific All stars. Lucock cleared a PB 4.20m and won on a countback.
The men’s 400m was a close affair, with Sean Wroe of Victoria holding off Kurt Mulcahy (NSW) and Mark Ormrod (SA) to win in 45.87s. The 17 year old Mulcahy is a tremendous talent, producing a huge personal best and just missing Paul Greene’s long-standing Australian Under 18 record of 45.96 set in 1989.
[MULCAHY ran 46.03, at 17, He’s the real story of this meet. Ormrod a member of the Aust Olympic silver 4x4 team in Athens. KK]
Finals
1 Wroe, Sean Victoria 45.87 8
2 Mulcahy, Kurt New South Wales 46.03 7
3 Ormrod, Mark Tas/ SA 46.97 6
4 Innes, Cory New Zealand 47.38 5
5 Offereins, Ben WA / NT 47.96 4
6 Boino, Mowen Pacific All Stars 48.50 3
The Women’s 400m also had the crowd roaring, as local star, Commonwealth Games 4x400m gold medallist Caitlin Willis was pipped on the line by New Zealander, Monique Williams in 53.93.
Gareth Hyett of New Zealand won a see-sawing 1500m battle from Jeff Risely (VIC) and Philo Saunders (ACT) in 3.44.27s.
With Bronwyn Thomson, the Commonwealth Games gold medallist, nursing a sore back, the women’s long Jump was wide open. Lauren Boden (ACT) won the event with her sixth and final jump, surpassing Jessica Penney of NZ by just 2cm. The winning jump was 6.28m. Jacinta Boyd, Alana’s sister, had the chance to win the competition and the Cup, plus the $5000 prizemoney, for her state - but overstepped the mark on her final leap.
It just wasn’t the Boyd family’s day.
The athletics action now moves to Canberra next Saturday afternoon for the opening event in the 2007 Telstra A-Series.
Report by Peter Meares in Brisbane and David Culbert for Athletics Australia Media