EVENT RECAP | 2023 AUS LITTLE ATHLETICS CHAMPIONSHIPS

38 of WA’s best Little Athletes represented the state at the Coles Australian Little Athletics Championships held at Lakeside Stadium Melbourne from 22 to 23 April. The revised format saw a large team head to the east coast to take on the best in Australia dawning Black and Gold.

Headlined by some incredible performances, Wyatt Hill (Gosnells) led with a win in the Under 15 Combined Events. The Gosnells athlete scored 4,694 points to claim the gold medal and Little Athletics Australia title, before backing it up with an impressive performance in the Under 15 Mixed Relay. Hill was joined by Ruby Manov (Kingsway), Taylor Smith (Margaret River) and Deacon Eva (Dale) to cross the line in 47.53 to claim silver.

Travarn Ackerman (Ridgewood) had an unforgettable weekend and left Melbourne with three medals after a collection of dominant performances. Ackerman claimed gold in the Under 13 Boys 200m Hurdles with a time of 27.84, Under 13 Boys 80m Hurdles in 12.33 and silver in the Under 13 Boys Long Jump with a leap of 5.50m.

Defending his 2022 Under 13 Little Athletics title, Tristan Wilson (Belmont) was able to reconfirm his ability as one of WA’s most promising throwers in the newly created Under 14 category. Wilson battled it out with Tasmania’s Lachlan Job but got the best of him and the field with a final throw of 50.22m, the Belmont athlete claimed gold by 1.77m.

Brooklyn Bennet (Port Hedland) had an outstanding collection of track performances over the weekend in black and gold. Bennet claimed silver in the Boys Under 13 400m finals with a time of 54.93 and two bronze medals in the Boys Under 13 200m and 100m in 24.97 and 12.25 respectively.

Leah Allen (Kingsway) also made her mark on the weekend collecting two medals. Allen claimed silver in the Under 14 Girls 800m in a time of 2:17.82 and bronze in the Girls Under 14 1500m in 4:47.16.

Out in the Under 13 field events, Imoh Etim (Kingsway) claimed bronze in the Boys Under 13 Triple Jump with a best leap of 11.08m, while Rocco Parlongo (Hamersley) secured WA's first medal of the weekend in the Boys Javelin, throwing 39.15m to claim silver. 

WA’s growing javelin depth was on display with an impressive double podium in the Under 13 Girls Javelin. Chelsea Natta (Southern Districts) received silver with a throw of 38.39m and Chilli Broughton (Joondalup) claimed bronze with a throw of 34.31m. Alyssa Hart (UWA) received a bronze medal for her performance in the Under 13 Girls Shot Put with a throw of 11.50m.

UWA's Millie Driscoll (UWA) ran a solid race in the Girls Under 13 200m final to cross the line in a time of 26.54 to secure bronze for WA. 

Leon Boonzaier (Joondalup) faced a high level of competition in the Under 14 Boys 90m Hurdles but was able to come out with bronze with a time of 12.79.

The weekend also saw some fantastic performances from WA’s relay teams. In addition, to the Under 15 Mixed Relay, the Under 13 Girls Medley Relay team comprising Molly Brayshaw (Kingsway), Millie Driscoll, Lily Smith and Anna Afriyie Asante-Nimake (Ridgewood) cross the line in 2:27.14 to clinch silver. The Under 13 Girls back up their silver medal with another impressive run in the 4x100m relay with Driscoll, Smith and Asante-Nimako joining Chelsea Natta to secure bronze in a time of 51.59.

An overall solid effort by Team WA saw the state place 5th in the Under 14 and Under 15 age groups and 4th in the Under 13 category. 

Athletics West would also like to acknowledge the team personnel for their commitment and support of our WA Team and contribution to a successful Championships:

• Matthew Vine – Team Manager/Coordinator
• Danni Dix - Team Manager/Coordinator
• Phill Langley – Team Manager/Coach
• Rachel Trent – Team Manager/Coach
• Dan Morrison - Team Manager/Coach
• Nathan Cunningham - Team Photographer

Congratulations to all the Athletes, Officials, Coaches and Parents who took part in the 2023 Coles Australian Little Athletics Championships.

You can follow all the athletics action for the 2023 Athletics Winter Season via Athletics West’s Facebook and Instagram pages.

For more information on how you can get involved in athletics or how to get started for the Winter Season, contact Athletics West on 08 6272 0480 or email admin@athleticswest.com.au.

By Paolo Dailo, Athletics West

Photo Credit: Nathan Cunningham