19.03.2009

McLellan looks to national record

Sally McLellan has tonight posted the fastest qualifying time in the women's 100m heats and warned the national record may fall this weekend at the 87th Australian Athletics Championships.

The big names were out in force on day one of competition, with McLellan, Joshua Ross, Sean Wroe, John Steffensen and Tamsyn Lewis headlining the action at Queensland Sport and Athletics Centre.

The three-day event will double as the selection trials for the world championships in August, with many of Australia's top athletes looking to book their ticket to Berlin this weekend.

McLellan posted a qualifying time of 11.40 (w:0.1) to move through to the semi-finals ahead of young gun Melissa Breen (11.50, w:0.4) and Crystal Attenborough (11.83, w:0.2).

The 22-year-old Gold Coast local and Olympic silver medallist has entered the championships in blistering form and said a personal best time - and new national record - were in her sights.

She will this weekend aim to break Melinda Gainsford-Taylor's longstanding record of 11.12, set in 1994.

“I've been training really well and I've been going so fast, I was really fast out on the warm-up track today and I was a bit surprised that the time tonight was a little slower but you can't ask for too much in a heat,” McLellan said.

“(Coach) Sharon (Hannan) definitely thinks I can break the Australian record this weekend but it's just a matter of me doing it, isn't it.

“I think I am (in shape) too but as I said it's just a matter of me getting out there and getting the right races on the track.”

Four-time national 100m champion Joshua Ross (NSW) posted the fastest qualifying time in the preliminary round of the men's event, advancing in a time of 10.43 ahead of local favourite Patrick Johnson (10.45, w:0.8).

Anthony Alozie (10.55, w:-0.2), Aaron Rouge-Serret (10.45) and Sean Wroe (10.61) also progressed.  

Wroe, who is contesting the 100m, 200m and 400m in Brisbane, will enter tomorrow night's 400m final as fastest qualifier after storming home to win tonight's heat in a time of 46.21.

The one-lap race is set to be a feature of day two, with Wroe to line up against fellow Beijing Olympians John Steffensen (46.29), Kurt Mulcahy (46.61) and Joel Milburn (47.32).

The in-form Victorian said his first aim this weekend was to book his ticket to the Berlin world championships in August.

“Anything can happen tomorrow night, the first thing is to get that automatic qualifying spot which means to win,” he said.

The 400m specialist has not ruled himself out of a sprint relay berth and said his busy schedule this weekend was key to his preparation for all future major championships.

“I'm not counting myself out (of the 100m), if I get in the top six they might get me for a relay spot as well so that's always a plan, I wouldn't mind doing a 4x100m,” he said.

“The thought process behind doing this many events and running this many times and warming up this many times is at the Olympic Games in 2012 and at the world championships there's going to be three rounds where you're running 45-low to 44 seconds, so being able to come up the next day and reproduce that is the key.”

After a strong showing in the heats of the 400m hurdles earlier in the day, Victorian Tamsyn Lewis qualified fastest for tomorrow night's 400m final in a time of 52.39, more than a second ahead of internationals Monique Williams (53.45) of New Zealand and Asami Tanno (53.66) of Japan.   

In the field Dani Samuels (NSW) claimed her third national championship, equalling her personal best distance with a throw of 16.30m in the women's shot put event.

Samuels, who placed third to trans-Tasman rival and Olympic champion Valerie Vili (20.22m) and fellow New Zealander Ana Pouhila (16.94m) in the event, said her sights were now set on bettering her career-best mark.

“I've trained my butt off since the Olympics and I've come out within a metre of my PB the last two times so I think it's time for (a personal best) to happen,” she said.

Victorian Alwyn Jones claimed his third consecutive national triple jump title, setting a new personal best mark of 16.83m (w:0.8) to better his previous best distance by four centimetres and blitz the men's field.

The 24-year-old took home the title ahead of Joshua Lumley (15.84, w:0.1) and Tomas Cholensky (15.67, w:1.1). 

In other highlights:

- Youcef Abdi (NSW) won his second national title in the 3000m steeplechase, going one better than his 2008 result to win the event in a time of 8:38.65 ahead of Peter Nowill (8:40.91) and Matthew Johnsen (9:00.98).

- Tasmania's Melanie Daniels led home a small field in the women's 3000m in 9:34.76 ahead of Lauren McKillop (9:40.99) and Narelle Coady (9:46.85).

- Mark Dickson (NSW) claimed the men's hammer throw title with a heave of 64.71m to place ahead of Tim Driesen (64.63m) and Darren Billett (64.35m).

- John Lane leads the Australians in the men's decathlon event with 3843 points at the midway point of the competition.

- Lauren Foote leads the Australians in the women's heptathlon event with 3421 points after four events.

The following athletes with a disability took out national titles on day one:

- Darren Thrupp (T/F37) won the men's long jump (ambulant) with a leap of 5.30m (w:0.7). 

- Christine Wolf (T/F42) claimed the women's long jump (ambulant) with a leap of 3.64m (w:0.5).

- Lindsay Sutton (T/F20) won the men's discus throw (ambulant) with a distance of 34.91m.

- Katherine Proudfoot (T/F36) claimed the women's discus throw (ambulant) with a distance of 22.48m.

- Damien Bowen (T/F34) and Louise Ellery (T/F32) were the highest-placed male and female athletes in the mixed discus throw (seated) event, with throws of 28.94m and 7.03m respectively.

Tomorrow's action includes finals of the men's pole vault, high jump, discus throw, 400m and 800m, and the women's 100m, 400m, 1500m, 3000m steeplechase, javelin throw and long jump.

For a full list of day one results, click here.