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World junior titles just a discus throw away
The 13th IAAF world junior championships are all but a discus throw away, with each of the five Australian throwers selected to the team eagerly awaiting the opportunity to compete alongside some of the world's best junior athletes in Moncton, Canada, from July 19-25.
Joining a previously-introduced 19 sprinters and hurdlers ( click here for more), Australia’s throwers form another piece of the team puzzle departing Australia for its pre-championships preparation in Vancouver (CAN) on July 8.
Leading the charge from the throwers' cage is 18-year-old discus specialist Julian Wruck. Currently attending Texas Tech University in Lubbock, Texas (USA), on an athletics scholarship, Wruck will this year compete at both the world junior championships and the Commonwealth Games in New Delhi, India, in October.
Discretionally selected to join the world junior championships team without competing at the Australian Junior Championships in March, Wruck returned to Australia in April to secure a bronze medal in the men’s discus throw at the Go for 2&5 88th Australian Athletics Championships. Earlier this month Wruck was crowned NCAA Division One discus throw champion, heaving 58.70m to secure the title for Texas Tech University.
Showing good form in 2010, Wruck improved his open age personal best to 61.02m at the Texas Tech Invitational in March, having previously increased his best mark with the lighter 1.75kg disc to 61.69m at a Brisbane all-comers meet in early January.
In the girls' discus throw event, Taryn Gollshewsky and Kim Mulhall will fly the flag for Australia.
A member of the Australian team at last year’s world youth championships in Bressanone (ITA), Gollshewsky placed third in the Under 20 discus throw at the Australian Junior Athletics Championships in March with a 47.37m heave. Improving her personal best to 47.73m at the Brisbane Athletics Classic in February, the Queenslander headed to the Sydney Track Classic and again hit a new career-best mark, sending the disc 48.24m.
Hailing from Victoria, Mulhall was crowned national Under 20 discus throw champion at the Australian Junior Athletics Championships in Sydney earlier this year. After improving her lifetime best to 56.85m at the Athletics Victoria Throwers Meet in early April, Mulhall headed to the Go for 2&5 88th Australian Athletics Championships in Perth, where she took home bronze with a gallant 52.51m throw.
The only athlete competing in two individual events at the championships, Mulhall will also compete in the shot put. The silver medallist at the Australian Junior Athletics Championships with a best effort of 14.97m, Mulhall went on to throw 15.08m, a mere 9cm from her personal best, at the Perth-hosted national championships to place second.
Donning the green and gold in the boys' shot put is Matt Cowie. A graduate of the Athletics Australia Under 17 Development Squad and the Under 19 Talent Squad, Cowie took silver at the Australian Junior Athletics Championships in March with a throw of 17.84m throw. Competing at an open age level, Cowie became the Western Australian state champion with a 15.34m throw before placing sixth at the Australian Athletics Championships in April.
Also featured on the hammer throw start list is Lara Nielsen. A member of the Athletics Australia Under 19 Talent Squad, Nielsen won gold at both the Australian All School Championships in December and the Australian Junior Athletics Championships in March, her best throw of 56.04m at the Sydney-hosted championships becoming her new personal best.
The Queenslander will first come together with the Australian team at a competition education camp to be held in Brisbane from June 25 to 27, which will feature a two-day all-comers meet.
For more information on the all-comers meet and how to compete, please click here.
13th IAAF world junior
championships
Moncton, Canada
July 19-25, 2010
Boys (21)
100m: Patrick Fakiye (NSW)
200m: Jake Hammond (NSW), Mathew Turk (Vic)
800m: Kuey Diew (Qld), Adrian Plummer (Qld)
1500m: Brett Robinson (ACT), Todd Wakefield
(NSW)
5000m: Kevin Batt (NSW)
110m hurdles: Sam Baines (Vic), Mitchell Tysoe
(NSW)
400m hurdles: Sasha Alexeenko (Qld)
Shot put: Matt Cowie (WA)
Discus throw: Julian Wruck (Qld)
10,000m walk: Dane Bird-Smith (Qld), Rhydian
Cowley (Vic)
4x100m relay: Patrick Fakiye (NSW), Tom Gamble
(Qld), Jake Hammond (NSW), Mathew Turk (Vic)
4x400m relay: Alex Beck (Qld), Joel Bee (Vic),
Grant Billingham (ACT), Kuey Diew (Qld), Johnny Rayner (Vic),
Steven Solomon (NSW)
Girls (16)
100m: Caitlin Sargent (Qld)
200m: Karlie Morton (NSW), Ella Nelson (NSW)
400m: Anneliese Rubie (NSW)
100m hurdles: Rosie Lawson (Qld)
High jump: Emily Crutcher (NSW), Amy Pejkovic
(NSW)
Pole vault: Amanda Bartrim (NSW)
Long jump: Brooke Stratton (Vic)
Shot put: Kim Mulhall (Vic)
Discus throw: Taryn Gollshewsky (Qld), Kim Mulhall
(Vic)
Hammer throw: Lara Nielsen (Qld)
10,000m walk: Paige Hooper (SA), Regan Lamble
(ACT)
4x400m relay: Louise Maybury (Qld), Anneliese
Rubie (NSW), Caitlin Sargent (Qld), Shannon Smith (Qld)
For more information on the 13th IAAF world junior championships, please visit the local organising committee website by clicking here.
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