EVENT PREVIEW | WA ALL SCHOOLS CHAMPIONSHIPS 2022
Published Fri 28 Oct 2022
The 2022 WA All Schools Championships powered by Go For 2&5 are back, with a record number of entries set to go head-to-head this weekend. More than 560 athletes will take part in the Championships and fight out for the top school title in WA.
The record size field means 145 WA Schools will be represented at the Championships. The four-day Championship will deliver more than 250 events as WA’s top High School students battle for school pride and selection in the WA Team bound for Adelaide in December.
Headlining the competition will be WA’s 2022 Australian Junior National Champions. Arguably one of Australia’s breakout athletes from the 2021-22 season, Olivia Dodds impressed last year when she set multiple World Junior Championship qualifiers across the season at just 15. The young John Wollaston athlete will be one to watch when she takes on the 100m and 200m double and attempts to consolidate her up-and-coming status.
Fellow sprinter Leah O’Brien will be looking to extend her dominance in the sprints after the Perth College student also collected the 100m-200m Gold in Sydney earlier in the year. Over the longer distance Aquinas student, Declan Somers will lead the Steeplechase events, with the likes of Christ Church’s Jonah Hanikeri and Fremantle Christian College’s Bob Abdelrahim looking to dominate the middle distance.
WA’s Javelin throwers will look to make the most of their national domination from earlier in the year. St Hilda’s Zara O’Dea, Kalamunda Senior High School’s Tristian Wilson, Collie Senior High School’s Gemma Buckle, Belridge Secondary College’s Olivia Williams and Butler College’s Brayden Philips all won gold in Sydney and will look for a solid hit out at Ern Clark before taking on the nation in December.
While out in the jumps, young gun Sophie Williams and Leila Barker will lead the way. John 23rd Student Leila Barker collected both National and Oceania Pole Vault medals at the beginning of the year and will be looking to prepare for her next National title.
Athletes will not only be competing for some new silverware but also to confirm their selection in the WA Team for the Australian All Schools Championships. The Australian All Schools Championships, organised by Athletics Australia, is the National Track and Field Championships for school sports.
The 2022 WA All Schools Championships powered by Go For 2&5 also see the introduction of the WA Schools Cup competition. This will be the qualification event for Athletics West to nominate teams to the 2022 National Schools Challenge, set to be contested in Adelaide on Monday 12 December, following the Australian All Schools Championships on 9-11 December. The WA Schools Cup replaces the Nitro Schools Challenge and former Schools Knockout formats, in line with the new National Schools Challenge event.
The 2022 WA All Schools Championships powered by Go For 2&5 will be held from Thursday 27 to Sunday 30 October with the Athletics competitions to be held across Ern Clark Athletics Centre, McGillivray Oval and the WA Institute of Sport.
For more information and to follow all the upcoming athletics action or to find out how you can get involved, head to Athletics West’s Facebook & Instagram pages, or contact Athletics West at 08 6272 0480.
By David Smith, Athletics West
Posted on 28 October 2022
