South Canterbury Amateur Athletics Club

Timaru Boys High School walker Daniel Lord is looking to create his own slice of history at the New Zealand Secondary Schools Athletic Championships in Timaru over the weekend.

Lord is the defending open 3000m track walk champion and is going for an unprecedented third crown in front of a home crowd at the Aorangi All-weather Track.

The 18-year-old also has his sights set on Andrew Causer’s (Burnside High School) record of 12m 40.90s set in 1990.

Lord is confident he has the ability to go under the long-standing mark but will have to improve his season’s best so far by 9s.

“I walked 2000m and was inside the time I needed, so I’ve got a chance.”

The talented walker said it was hard to gauge how good his opposition was but he was looking forward to having “home” track advantage and plenty of support.

“I’ve always performed well here so I hope I can again.”

He will start as favourite in the seven-strong field.

The New Zealand Secondary Schools Athletic Championships are the hardest place to grab a title, and with over 1400 athletes entered it is also the biggest meet in the country.

Some of the competitors do not consider athletics their number one summer sport but are more than capable of being among the medals.

Several other South Canterbury athletes could be among the medals.

Roncalli’s Lucinda Shaw, a defending champion in girls open walk over 2km, will face 11 other walkers in her bid to retain the title.

Timaru Boys High School’s Tom Walsh also goes into the event a defending champion, with the shotput title.

Craighead’s Nicola Mackle is a contender in the high jump and possibly the long jump.

Roncalli’s Lauren Nicol will also be chasing the medals in the sprints.

SC Amateur Athletics Club new junior club captains Bradley Land, Leanna Ryan & Tom Cooper with the Rose Shield and Arthur Cup which they helped win in the annual team events against Temuka, Geraldine and Ashburton.

Highfield’s Brittany Cannell took out the 100m and 200m senior girls’ sprints at the South Canterbury Primary Schools Athletics Championships and anchored the relay team for third as well as winning the over 11 shotput.

Under 16 competitors led the local charge at the Canterbury interclub athletics meeting at the all-weather track in Timaru on Saturday.

Lauren Nicol won the 100m in a slick 12.91sec and later won the 400m. Leanne McKenzie won the high jump (1.60m) and Lucinda Shaw was impressive in winning the 3000m track walk (16:28.83).

Tyler Collings won the boys’ 100m in a personal best of 11.56sec and Brett Clifford impressed in taking out the 1500m (4:30.60).

In the under-19 grade Daniel Lord won the 3000m track walk (12:49.45) and the javelin (41.75m).

Nicola Mackle won the high jump (1.55m) and Simon Small took out the men’s event (1.80m).

Other winners were Rebecca Hodgson in the women’s 16 hammer (40.71m), Michael Dewar the men’s 16 hammer (29.88m) and Wayne Doyle the masters men’s hammer, discus and pole vault. Herald correspondent

Other results:

Women’s 16: R Rolleston, 80m hurdles (15.48sec) 2; L Hefford, shot put (8.99m) 2; R Hodgson, shot put (8.10m) 3, discus (23.71m) 3; L McKenzie 100m hurdles (18.51sec) 3.

Men’s 16: J Lord, 3000m walk (18:19.58) 3; T Collings, 400m (55.97sec) 2.

Men’s 19: S Small, 110m hurdles (15.84s) 3; J Finikin, 100m (11.51sec) 3, 200m (24.30sec) 3; K Robinson, high jump (1.75m) 2.

South Canterbury athletes set one record and two personal bests at the Athletic Canterbury track and field meeting at QEII stadium in Christchurch.

Rebecca Hodgson set the Canterbury record when winning the women’s 16 hammer with a throw of 43.25m.

She also finished fourth in the discus with a throw of 23.63m.

The personal bests were in the walking events where Daniel Lord won the men’s 19, 2000m track walk, in 8m 29.74s and Lucinda Shaw finished third in the women’s 19, 2000m track walk, in 10m 10.59s, 8.5s better than her previous best.

Daniel Laws won both the senior men’s 110m hurdles in 18.29s and 400m hurdles 63.06s.

Jay Finikin took out the men’s 19 long jump with a leap of 5.50m.

In the sprints, Tyler Collings took out the men’s 16, 100m in 12.26s and the 400m in 54.12s.

Lauren Nicol won the double with the women’s 16 100m and 200m.

Other results:

Senior men’s 800m, Brett Clifford 6, 2m 06.99s; men’s 16 400m, 3, 56.63s; men’s 19 javelin, D Lord 2, 29.75m; 100m J Finikin 3, 11.99s; women’s 16 100m hurdles, L McKenzie 2, 17.76s; high jump, 2, 1.55m.

Four South Canterbury athletes performed well at the World Masters Games held at Sydney’s Olympic Park last week. Mandy Shirtcliffe, Richelle Cannell, Ron Munro and Wayne Doyle all performed with distinction in their events, picking up two medals.

 The competition attracted over 1000 athletes from all over the world and included past Olympians and many age-group world record holders.

Mandy Shirtcliffe, competing in the 45-49 age group, won a bronze medal in the javelin and was also placed fifth in the 400-metre final.

Wayne Doyle showed his class against an international field by winning a silver medal in the 45-49 pole vault with a height of 3.1 metres.

Doyle also had four top six finishes after being placed fourth in the triple jump, fifth in the discus (35.56m), sixth in shot put (11m) and also sixth in the javelin (44.4m).

Richelle Cannell, competing in the 40-45 year old category, also performed above expectations to make the finals of the 100m and 200m.

Cannell ran personal bests in both finals, recording 13.85s in the 100m final to finish eighth, and stopped the clock in 28.7s in the 200m for sixth place.

It was a great effort, particularly considering the depth of experience in the field and the fact she had just recovered from a hip injury.

She said it was amazing being in a final against the world’s best.

In the 70-74 age group, veteran athlete Ron Munro competed well in the 100 and 200 metres.

Munro finished fourth in both sprints and was happy with his times.

`It’s an incredible feeling knowing that four athletes from a small place like Timaru are amongst the best in the world,” Doyle said.

Two Timaru sprinters are hoping to excel at the seventh World Masters Games in Sydney.

Richelle Cannell and Mandy Shirtcliff go to Sydney next month to tackle the best athletes in their age groups.

Competition will be tough with the pair facing competitors from the Russian Federation, Europe, South Africa and the United States.

Cannell is set to run the 100m- 200m double while Shirtcliff will run in the 200m, 400m and will also compete in the javelin.

Both returned to the track in May in Shirtcliff’s case after several years away from the sport under the watchful eyes of sprint coach Don Garland.

It has not been easy for the pair, with each suffering from niggling injuries, but they are confident they will be at their best in Sydney.

Garland himself was a contender for a start as well but suffered an injury that put his comeback on hold.

Cannell said part of their motivation was the fact the World Games were so close.

“Last time they were in Canada, so Sydney seemed achievable and when we went back training we needed a goal.”

The 40-year-old got back on the track for the first time since secondary school for the South Island Masters and enjoyed the competition and the company.

“It will also be fun running in the Olympic Stadium and supporting each other,” she said. Likewise, Shirtcliff has returned after an impressive career in her youth when she represented Canterbury at national level.

The World Masters Games have been held every four years since they began in Toronto in 1985. It is the world’s largest multisport event, attracting up to 25,000 competitors, twice as many competitors as the Olympics. There will be 28 sports hosted at 70 venues throughout Sydney. Timaru has representatives in other sports including swimming and netball.

Tom Walsh of Timaru was sixth in the final of the shot put with a personal best of 19.60m (x 19.06m 19.08m 19.60m 19.08m 18.89m). That put bettered his previous best mark by more than a metre. Now he can’t wait for his next chance to compete against the world’s best. Prior to the Games, Tom spent three months at Winchester College playing cricket after receiving the Mark Parker Memorial Scholarship.