25.01.2007

Enthralling battles to feature in Canberra kick-off

Enthralling duels showcasing six Commonwealth Games champions, two reigning world junior champions, one reigning world youth champion and a stellar cast of world class athletes will be on offer as the Telstra A-Series takes off in Canberra this Saturday.

 

With all-important world championships A-qualifiers up for grabs, athletes including Patrick Johnson, Sally McLellan, Kym Howe, Bronwyn Thompson and Tamsyn Lewis will be looking to stamp their authority as they chase the elusive mark.

 

The race that most athletics fans are anticipating with relish is the women’s 800m. Seven-time national champion Tamsyn Lewis, who has recently made a return to her pet 800m event, tasted a rare defeat at the hands of ACT athlete Lisa Corrigan  in a high quality race in Sydney two weeks ago. Corrigan, the new name on everyone’s lips in middle-distance running, is in outstanding form having dominated the 1500m last weekend at the Australia Cup in Brisbane. The race shapes up as one of the highlights of the meet and 22-year-old Corrigan will have the enthusiastic support of her home crowd behind her.

 

2006 Commonwealth Games champion Kym Howe, 26, has had a dramatic couple of weeks after cutting her foot stepping out of an ice bath. Six stitches later, and she is back in full force ready to be pushed by Queenslander Alana Boyd who set a new personal best of 4.55 metres in Perth early in the New Year. Howe has fond memories of Canberra; last year she set a new Commonwealth, Australian national and allcomers record of 4.61m, erasing Emma George’s name from the outdoor record book in one fell swoop.  Rising star Vicky Parnov who has already planted her signature in the record books after taking out the bronze medal at the World Juniors last year will also be in the mix.

 

The men’s 100m has lost some of its lustre with the news that both Josh Ross and Daniel Batman are unlikely starters for this weekend. However, Australia’s fastest man Patrick Johnson, who set the track on fire in Canberra back in 2003 with a time of 10.13, is in great form following his sizzling 10.23 (+3.5) in Brisbane last weekend. With a warm 30 degrees predicted, stalwarts Adam Miller and Ambrose Ezenwa will also be looking to put on a show on the fast AIS track alongside young guns Aaron Rouge-Serret and Kurt Mulcahy.

 

In the women’s sprints, Queenslander Sally McLellan will be looking to score another treble victory over the 100m, 200m and 100m hurdles. The four-time national champion may be pushed to the line in the flat races by up and coming sprint sensation Olivia Tauro who is dominating in the junior ranks.

 

World number two Bronwyn Thompson, who has recently overcome back and calf strains, will be chasing that elusive A-qualifier in the long jump. Thompson will be endeavouring to regain the form she displayed in 2006 that saw her clinch the Commonwealth Games title and mix it with the world’s best in Europe. Standing in her way will be Lauren Boden, who will be looking to perform in front of her home crowd, and Queenslander Jacinta Boyd.

For the first time in Australian athletics history, the reigning world junior champion and reigning world youth champion will go head-to-head in the same event. Nineteen-year-old Queenslander Chris Noffke, who recorded 7.97m to out-jump the rest of the wotld youth (U/18) field by a massive 44 centimetres in Marrakesh in 2005, will tackle AIS-based Queenslander Robbie Crowther, also 19, who cleared 8m to win the world junior (U/20) title in Beijing last year.  The battle has already been building this summer with Noffke, a member of the Gary Bourne stable, holding the upper hand after producing his longest ever leap of 8.05 metres(+2.9) to defeat Crowther at the Sydney Track Classic two weeks ago. Crowther steps onto the runway looking for revenge this Saturday in what promises to be one of the highlights of the meet.

The men’s 400m will feature Mark Ormrod from the AIS, young Victorian Sean Wroe, and WA’s Chris Troode, whilst dual national champion Nick Bromley will be prominent in the 800 metres.

The 20km walk which starts at the Carillion on Lake Burley Griffin at 7:00am on Sunday morning will showcase the talents of two-time Commonwealth Games champion Jane Saville, and Commonwealth Games silver medalists Natalie Saville and Luke Adams.

Telstra A-Series - Canberra

Date:              Saturday, 27 January 2007

Start Time:     Local events from 1:00pm, main program commences 3.00pm

Venue:           AIS Athletics Track, Bruce ACT

Tickets:          Tickets available at the gate

Adults $12.00

Child (12-16), pensioner, student $5.00

Child under 12 Free

Web:               Live commentary and results on athletics.com.au from 2.45pm

TV:                  Highlights show on SBS, Sunday 4 February at 4.00pm

 

 

In exciting news, SBS will continue their commitment to Australian athletics with extended coverage of the 2007 Telstra A-Series. SBS will televise a 90 minute highlights program from each of the Telstra A-Series events programs, which will also be repeated later in the week, delivering twelve hours of the Telstra A-Series to Australian audiences this summer. Each program goes to air the Sunday following each Telstra A-Series event from 4.00pm.

 

In a first for Athletics Australia, an audio webstream of the stadium commentary will be broadcast on athletics.com.au.  Commencing at the beginning of the main program at each event (2.45pm in Canberra this Saturday), log on to the Athletics Australia website to hear all the race commentary, results and athlete interviews.