03.04.2009

Time is now for young talent

Twenty-one future stars of track and field have today been named in Athletics Australia’s Under 19 Talent Squad.

The athletes, selected from all over Australia and representing a range of athletics disciplines, will for the next 12 months receive support from Athletics Australia across all aspects of their sporting development.

The 21 athletes, many of whom will compete at the Under 20/23 Australian Athletics Championships in Adelaide this weekend, will be officially welcomed to the squad when they converge at the Australian Institute of Sport later this month for the first of two training and development camps.  

Selectors were again faced with a tough assignment in determining the athletes named to this year’s squad.

“It was a really hard selection process, the standards were really high,” said Sara Mulkearns, National Youth Performance Manager at Athletics Australia.

Mulkearns will spend the next 12 months working in close association with all athletes selected to the program, with the aim of easing their transition to the senior ranks.

“Our goals are to get to know the athletes, help educate them and have some influence on their futures going forward,” she said.

“The focus of the program is assisting these young athletes in their transition to senior athletics.

“For the athletes it’s all about learning. It’s about trying to be a sponge and take in as much as they can around the high performance environment; learning the little one-percenters that can make a difference in competition.

“In a sport that’s measured in centimetres and hundredths of seconds, that bit of learning they get might be enough to get them to a final or onto a podium.

“It’s important that we build relationships now because the firmer these relationships are, when you’re on the international stage and things might crumble, you know you’re surrounded by people who care about you and who can assist you.”

Now in its third year, the Under 19 program is fundamental to ensuring the future of athletics in Australia.

“For the athletes it’s acknowledgement of where they are in the sport,” Mulkearns said.

“In years gone by we haven’t identified young athletes and celebrated how well they’re going and put them on a pathway but now, and for the last two years, we have done that and sometimes that pat on the back is all the boost they need.”

Throughout the 12-month program athletes will be offered:

• Mentoring from past Commonwealth and Olympic Games representatives from a range of athletics disciplines. Facilitated by Athletics International, mentors of the calibre of Rohan Robinson, Peter Burke, Erica Hooker, Adam Steinhardt, Bruce Frayne, Gabriel Blythe, Terri Cater and Jim O’Sullivan have all been involved in the mentoring program.

• Participation in two elite training camps, utilising the state-of-the-art indoor training and testing facilities at the Australian Institute of Sport.

• Tutelage from the national youth event coaches headed by coaching co-ordinator and Olympic gold medallist Glynis Nunn-Cearns.

• Medical screening conducted at the AIS by Athletics Australia medical staff, with continued monitoring in their home states.

• Educational sessions focusing on subjects such as preparation for international competition, recovery strategies and the pathway from the elite junior to elite senior ranks.

In addition to the opportunities provided to athletes, coaches of all squad members are also invited to attend innovative and informative workshops to further enhance their skills and knowledge base.

Graduates of the squad have included sprint sensation Melissa Breen and 2008/09 Emerging Athlete of the Year Ryan Gregson.

Athletics Australia congratulates the following athletes selected to the 2009 Under 19 Talent Squad:

Sasha Alexeenko QLD – 400m hurdles
Luanga Andria QLD – Javelin throw
Sam Baines VIC – 110m hurdles
Alex Beck QLD – 400m
Dane Bird-Smith QLD - Walks
Matthew Cowie WA – Shot put
Sean Fitzsimmons WA - Walks
Jake Hammond NSW – 200m
Selma Kajan NSW – Middle distance
Regan Lamble VIC - Walks
Kim Mulhall VIC – Discus / Shot put
Lara Neilsen QLD – Hammer throw
Lauren O’Sullivan QLD – 100m / 200m
Cameron Page NSW – Middle distance
Huw Peacock TAS - Hammer throw
Melissa Prior NSW - Hammer throw
Brett Robinson ACT – Middle distance
Liam Speers NSW - Discus
Ben Talakai NSW – Discus
Todd Wakefield NSW – Middle distance
Tara Whitehead QLD – Long jump / Triple jump