2025 COUNTRY CHAMPIONSHIPS | RECAP

It was raining records at the Bunbury Regional Athletics Arena earlier this month, with over 500 athletes from across WA’s Country Regions taking to the red track for the 2025 Country Athletics Championships.  

Over three action-packed days, the state’s top country athletes competed fiercely for medals and the opportunity to qualify for the State Junior Track and Field Championships. Junior competitors raised the bar this year, breaking numerous Country Records across various disciplines, showcasing the exceptional talent within our regional clubs and centres. 

Leading the charge on day one was Albany Little Athletics athlete, Ginger Gleeson who delivered standout performances across all three days of competition. Gleeson opened her Country Championships campaign with a solid run in the Under 15 Girl’s 400m final, producing a time of 59.32 to claim gold and her first Country Record of the weekend.  

Backing it up on day two, Gleeson impressed in the Under 15 Girl’s 1500m final, shaving almost 20 seconds off the previous Country Record with a time of 4:54.04 and defeating the rest of the field to claim a second gold medal in Bunbury. With plenty more to give, Gleeson rounded out the championships with another record-breaking performance in the Under 15 Girl’s 800m final, crossing the line in 2:17.93 to add a third gold medal to her collection.  

Ziggy Freemantle (Bunbury & Districts LAC) continued the record run on day one, breaking a 20-year-old record in the Under 17 Boy’s 400m final. Freemantle crossed the line in 51.89 to pick up his first gold of the championships, before going on to break the Under 17 Boy’s 800m record on day three with a time of 2:00.64.  

Eastern Goldfields Little Athletics Centre athlete, Marcus Rodan delivered slew of impressive performances across the weekend, but it was the Under 16 Boy’s Shot Put and Discus events that ultimately etched his name in the Country Record books. Rodan kicked off his country campaign on day one with a huge throw of 10.92m in the shot put before backing it up on day two with another huge throw of 29.42m in the Discus, surpassing both previous Country Records by almost 1.5m. 

Day two delivered a staggering 15 new Country Records with Bunbury and Eastern Goldfields dominating the day. Layla Scott (Bunbury & Districts LAC) and Taya Campbell (Bunbury & Districts LAC) showed their versatility across both track and field events, with the two Bunbury athletes rewriting history in the record books.

On the track Scott delivered a speedy time of 13.67 in the Under 15 Girl’s 90m Hurdles, shaving 0.4 seconds off the 29-year-old record set by S.McGurk in 1996, while also taking out gold and a third Country Record in the Under 15 Girl’s 300m Hurdles with a time of 45.86. Meanwhile Campbell’s 13.24 effort in the heats of the Under 13 Girl’s 80m Hurdles defeated E.Scafidi's 10-year-old record of 13.45, before Amelia Heinrich (Geraldton LAC), bettered Campbell's time in the final to claim gold and set the new record at 12.97.  

On the field the Bunbury duo jumped their way into the books, with Scott increasing the Under 15 Girl’s High Jump record by 0.01m from 1.58m to 1.59m, while Campbell leapt to an impressive 10.65m in the Under 13 Girl’s Triple Jump to break L. McLerie’s record of 10.48m set just under half a century ago, in 1984.  

Lily Smith (Bunbury & Districts LAC) defeated a 26-year-old record in the Under 15 Girl's 200m on day two, blitzing the straight to shave 0.3 seconds off C.Cragan's time of 26.57. Smith delivered a solid performance of 26.27 in the final to claim gold and a new Country Record. 

The record haul continued into day three of the championships, with Caleb Benson (Albany LAC) finishing the Under 16 Boy’s 800m final in a record time of 2:01.16, while Madison Giblett (Bunbury & Districts LAC) etched her name into the record books with a 2:28.79 in the Under 14 Girl’s 800m final. 

Host Centre Bunbury & Districts Little Athletics Centre dominated the field to wrap up the weekend, with Doreen Bayiri setting the new Under 10 Girl’s Shot Put record to 8.22m and Devon Larkworthy-Darke increasing the record distance in the Under 14 Boy’s Javelin by 0.29m with a big throw of 34.21m. 

The three day competition saw the fall of over 20 Country Records, with the following standout performances further highlighting the extent of talent in regional Western Australia. 

Under 10 Girl's Race 1100m Race Walk - Kayley Henderson-Mason (Eastern Goldfields LAC) with a time of 6:21.71
Under 10 Girl's 70m - Tia Bunce (Northam & Districts LAC) with a time of 10.83
Under 16 Boy's Hurdles - Rueban Champman (Geraldton LAC) with a time of 15.68
Under 13 Boys 80m Hurdles - Wyatt Bonner (Bunbury & Districts LAC) with a time of 13.05
Under 15 Girl's Javelin - Kaesha Campbell (Bunbury & Districts LAC) with a throw of 38.87m
Under 17 Girl's Javelin - Gemma Buckle (Collie LAC) with a throw of 36.45m 
Under 10 Boy's Discus - Hudson Agot (Eastern Goldfields LAC) with a throw of 29.26m
Under 12 Boy's 80m Hurdles - Tanaka Mutunga (Eastern Goldfields LAC) with a time of 13.58
Under 17 Girl's Discus - Annabella Thompson (Broome LAC) with a throw of 33.40m
Under 16 Boy's Triple Jump - Mason Watkins (Albany LAC) with a jump of 13.63m ~unverified~

To find complete results from the 2025 Country Championships, click HERE.  

Athletics West proudly delivered the 2025 Country Championships with Bunbury & Districts Little Athletics Centre, City of Bunbury, Healthway and their Fuel to Go & Play message, the Department of Local Government, Sport and Cultural Industries, Kumon, Keep on Running, Ascend Physiotherapy and the Bibbulmun Fund powered by Fremantle Foundation.  

You can follow all the athletics action from the 2024-25 Athletics West Summer Season powered by Go For 2&5 via Athletics West’s Facebook & Instagram pages. 

For any queries, please contact Athletics West at admin@athleticswest.com.au or 08 6272 0480. 

By Imogen McDonald, Athletics West
Photography by Aussies in Action

Published 22 January 2025 

Updated 23 January 2025