WA’S YOUNGEST ATHLETES SHINE BRIGHT IN SINGAPORE

Western Australia has shone brightly at the 28th International Athletics Championships, claiming a total of 48 medals over two days of competition in Singapore.

WA produced impressive field performances across the competition, with Sophie Williams (Ridgewood), Harry Gordon (Cockburn), Lauren Kelly (Southern Districts), and Wyatt Hill (Gosnells) being named the Athletes of the Meet for WA. 

Sophie Williams claimed an astounding five gold medals. The young star claimed two medals on the first day, with her first coming during the Under 14’s Triple Jump where she cleared 11.46m, nearly 1.50m further than her closest competition. Her next medal came during the 3kg Shot Put, where she once again dominated to claim the top spot and finished the first day of competition on a very positive note.

The second and final day of competition was even more prolific for Williams, claiming gold medals in the Under 14 High Jump,  200m and Long Jump.  

Lauren Kelly won two gold and a bronze medal during her time in Singapore, with her first gold medal in the 1kg Discus setting a new Meet Record. Kelly threw an impressive 40.23m, eclipsing the previous record of 39.36m which was set by Colleen Palmer in 1986. Her other gold medal came in the 3kg Shot Put, where she threw 13.57m, dominating the competition with her nearest opponent being 2m behind her. Lauren won her bronze medal during the javelin, placing just behind fellow WA teammates Gemma Buckle (Collie/Bunbury) and Ella Harbison (Kingsway) but still earning a well-deserved medal.

Wyatt Hill starred for WA claiming a total of five medals in what turned out to be an extremely busy meet. He claimed his first medal in the High Jump, falling just behind fellow WA competitor Sean Cregan (Inglewood) but still managing to win an impressive bronze. He would go on to add more bronze medals to his tally in the 100m Hurdles, 100m and Long Jump before finally getting the chance to claim silver in the 200m Hurdles.

Harry Gordon impressed during the Singapore Meet, claiming three bronze medals throughout the tournament in the 100m and 200m Hurdles, as well as in the 400m. The young athlete was unlucky to miss out on placing higher in the Hurdles events, placing 0.28 and 0.88 seconds behind second place in the 100 and 200m respectively.

The WA Team claimed a quartet of clean sweeps in the Girls Under 15 200m and 100m Hurdles, Shot Put and Javelin. Rosie Booth (Inglewood) would claim gold medals in both the 200m and 100me Hurdles, whilst Lauren Kelly would take the gold in the Shot Put and Gemma Buckle would win gold in the Javelin.

Tristian Wilson (Belmont), Mischa Tomlin (Belmont), and Sebastian Lyttle (UWA) also all contributed to WA’s gold medal tally, with each claiming two gold medals in the events they competed in. Leon Boonzaaier (Joondalup), Evie Hilditch (Rockingham), and Kaytee Bogaers (Rockingham) all also claimed singular gold medals to add to WA’s impressive tally.

Other results on the track include James Artemis (West Track) and Jesstine Morales (Gosnells), who both claimed two silver medals, as well as Asha Freeman (Inglewood) who claimed two bronze medals and Zoe Addis (UWA), Ashley Kroll (Dale) and Katica Borsic (Gosnells) who all finished the competition with a bronze medal.

Out in the field Sean Cregan, Fujiko Mackay (Inglewood), Annabelle Thompson (Broome), and Isabelle Curtis (Ridgewood) all claimed a silver medal, with Curtis also claiming an additional silver and a bronze.

WA wrapped up a spectacular team performance at the Singaporean Meet with the Under 14’s Female Relay Team 1 claiming the only silver medal in the relay races, completing their run in 4:35.73. While the Under 15 Girls, Under 14 Boys and 15 Boys claimed bronze medals.

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By Dylan Gane, Athletics West

Posted 11 July 2023