PERTH: Outdoors Begins

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5.91 clearances for Hooker, Burgess in Perth

Sunday 7 January 2007

Steve Hooker and Paul Burgess, the world’s No. 1 and No. 2 ranked pole vaulters, continued their fine jumping into the new year at the Drug Free Track and Field Classic in Perth on Sunday (7).

The pair each topped 5.91, a height that only three vaulters – including the Australian pair – successfully negotiated in 2006.

Paul Burgess of Australia wins the men’s Pole Vault in Rome Golden League - 2006
(Getty Images)

With a $30,000 AUD (23,347 USD) bonus on offer for a new Australian record, the pair had the bar raised to 6.06, a height that only World record holder Sergey Bubka had ever cleared. Neither was successful, with Hooker ultimately winning the competition on the countback.

Italy’s Giuseppe Gibilisco, the 2003 World champion and 2004 Olympic bronze medallist, was third with a 5.51 best effort.

There were other notable efforts in this as well in this, the first meeting of the Australian domestic season.

Boyd improves to 4.55

Alana Boyd added 15cm to her career best to win the women’s Pole Vault with a 4.55 leap, the fourth best leap ever by an Australian woman. Boyd too attacked the Australian, Oceania and Commonwealth record of 4.62 set by Kym Howe last year, with three solid attempts at 4.63.

Boyd, 22, is the daughter of Olympians Ray and Denise Boyd. Her father was a 12-time national champion in the Pole Vault, and her mother was a former national record holder in the 200m with a 22.32 personal best. Both were also Commonwealth Games champions.

Howe, the reigning Commonwealth champion, was slated to compete as well, but was forced to the sidelines after cutting her foot in an ice bath the day before.

Vicky Parnov, the World junior bronze medallist, was second with a 4.20 clearance.

Joshua Ross, a three-time national champion in the 100m, won his specialty with a wind-assisted 10.09 (+2.6), well ahead of Sydney-based Nigerian Anthony Alozie (10.15) and Steven Tucker (10.22). Ross clocked 10.21 (+1.8) in the heats, the fastest peformance in the qualifying round.

Elsewhere, Commonwealth Games finalist Sally McLellan raced to double victory in the 100m (11.36 / +2.5) and 100m Hurdles (13.20 - +4.2) and Kylie Wheeler won the Long Jump with a leap of 6.45m (+4.9).

Athletics Australia’s national series now moves to Sydney next Saturday (13 January) before meets in Brisbane (20 January), and Hobart (9 February). The Telstra A-Series meets will be held in Canberra (27 January), Sydney (17 February) and Melbourne (2 March) ahead of the Telstra Australian Championships in Brisbane (9-11 March).

Bob Ramsak and Athletics Australia for the IAAF

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Aths Aust website report
07.01.2007
Boyd and Ross set qualifiers in Perth
Queensland pole vaulter Alana Boyd and Sydney sprinter Joshua Ross added their names to the list of Australian athletes who have reached the qualifying standard for this August’s world championships in Osaka, Japan, with impressive performances at the Drug Free Track and Field Classic at Perry Lakes Stadium in Perth tonight.

Boyd and Ross, along with pole vault duo Steve Hooker and Paul Burgess, who also reached the A-qualifying standard, were the standout performers in the opening event of the 2007 domestic athletics season.

Alana Boyd just missed selection for the Commonwealth Games and has obviously used the disappointment as motivation over winter, as the 22-year-old had already leapt a personal best of 4.40m in Brisbane this summer.

Tonight in Perth she added 15cm to her lifetime best, setting a new personal best of 4.55m, a world championship A-qualifier and the fourth best leap by an Australian woman. Boyd had three close attempts at a new Australian, Oceania and Commonwealth record of 4.63m, 1cm better than Kym Howe’s existing mark; however that height will have to wait for another occasion. Howe tonight’s missed the competition due to injury after cutting her foot in an ice bath yesterday, world junior championships bronze medallist Vicky Parnov finished second with 4.20m

Boyd is the daughter of Olympians Ray and Denise Boyd. Denise held the Australian record over 200m with her personal best of 22.32 – a time bettered only by Melinda Gainsford Taylor and Cathy Freeman. She was 7th in the final of the 200m in both the 1976 and 1980 Olympics. Ray won 12 Australian pole vault titles and had a personal best of 5.30m. Both are Commonwealth Games gold medallists, with Ray winning the pole vault in 1982 and Denise winning the 200m in 1978. Sister Jacinta is a talented long jumper and world junior championships finalist, who is recovering from a broken leg which forced her out of the domestic season last year.

Three-time national 100m champion Joshua Ross made the most of the ideal conditions in his heat, to scamper down the stretch in a world championships A-qualifying time of 10.21 (+1.8) – the second fastest time of his career. In the process he defeated Commonwealth Games teammate Ambrose Ezenwa (10.28) and Stawell Gift winner Adrian Mott (10.58) in the only one of the three heats to have a legal tail wind.

With the A-standard under his belt. Ross charged to victory in the final in a super-slick 10.09; however an illegal tailwind of +2.6 negated a personal best. Sydney-based Nigerian Anthony Alozie finished second (10.15), followed by rising West Australian Steven Tucker (10.22), Ambrose Ezenwa (10.26), Daniel Batman (10.30) and world junior championship semi-finalist Aaron Rouge-Serrett (10.35).

The event lost some of its lustre following the withdrawals of Patrick Johnson, Adam Miller and Matt Shirvington, who will all now look to the Telstra A-Series opener in Canberra for their first head-to-head clash with Ross.

After successful clearances at 5.91m, the world’s top two pole vaulters set the bar to a new Australian, Commonwealth and Oceania record height of 6.06m, a height that only world record holder Sergey Bubka has cleared in competition.

With a bonus of $30,000 on the line for the first man to clear the height, neither was able to achieve the record breaking jump, with Burgess winning on a count back after first time clearances at both 5.71m and 5.91m. 2003 world champion and Athens Olympic bronze medallist Giuseppe Gibilisco from Italy, finished third with a best of 5.51m.

In other events Commonwealth Games finalist Sally McLellan raced to victory in both the 100m (11.36 - +2.5) and 100m hurdles (13.20 - +4.2); Kylie Wheeler won the long jump with a leap of 6.45m (+4.9); Chris Troode took out the 400m in 46.16; Greg Eyears won the 110m hurdles in 14.02 (+2.5); Robbie Crowther collected the long jump win with a best of 7.91m (+3.9); Ellen Pettit won the high jump with 1.86m and Kim Mickle won the javelin with 57.82m.

Athletics Australia’s national series now moves to Sydney next Saturday (13 January) before meets in Brisbane (20 January), and Hobart (9 February). The Telstra A-Series meets will be held in Canberra (27 January), Sydney (17 February) and Melbourne (2 March) ahead of the Telstra Australian Championships in Brisbane (9-11 March).

Complete results follow in the Race Results section of the CF forum.