Jamie-Lee Hoebergen (© Athletics Australia)
Australia will send a strong team of 30 athletes to the 3rd IAAF World Youth (U18) Championships to be held on July 10-13, in Sherbrooke, two hours drive from the Canadian city of Montreal.
A record 179 countries have already confirmed their participation in Sherbrooke, making it a truly global teenage competition. The 1999 championship was the international starting point for Australia’s current World No. 1 hurdler, Jana Pittman who won the 400m hurdles. The 2001 team placed an outstanding sixth, claiming seven medals and defeating other leading track and field nations Great Britain, France, China, Japan, Spain and Canada.
The team is fully representative of every corner of the vast nation of Australia and includes a significant number of non-city based athletes including Discus thrower Julie Bennell, from Bohle near Townsville, sprinter Jacqueline Davies from Westbrook (near Toowoomba), Sunshine Coast jumper Jacinta Boyd, Gold Coast hammer thrower Simon Wardhaugh, javelin thrower Jonathan Wynn from Laurieton (NSW North Coast), Central Coast sprinter Keatyn Windley, Sydney race walker Adam Rutter, Blue Mountain’s multi-event athlete Jennifer Coogan, Wollongong sprinter Jaimee-Lee Hoebergen, Southern Highlands high jumper Sophia Begg, Canberra triple jumper Liz Dalton, Deniliquin javelin thrower Annabel Thomson, Broadford thrower Ronnie Buckley, Tallangatta Valley discus thrower Calista Lyon, Melbourne distance runner Hayley Tomlinson, Geelong high jumper David Baskin, Adelaide’s Jamie Scroop and Perth high jumper Ellen Pettit.
Two athletes Julie Bennell in Townsville and Perth’s Ellen Pettit, live nearly 6,000 km apart, a journey that would take over three and a half days to drive by road.
Gold Coast hurdler/sprinter, Sally McLellan is a strong top-5 hope in the 100m hurdles and 200m. After she competes in Sherbrooke, she will travel to Paris, where she will become the youngest Australian athlete to compete at the World Championships, when she lines up in the Australian 4x100m relay team.
Wollongong’s Jamiee-Lee Hoebergen, will be a strong competitor in the 400m. She clocked her best of 53.91 in Melbourne in March in the Telstra Melbourne Track Classic/IAAF GP II meet, placing a close second to reigning Olympic champion, Cathy Freeman.
Hoebergen and McLellan will spearhead a strong medley relay that will face tough opposition from Jamaica and the US. Also on the Australian team will be jumper/sprinter, Jacinta Boyd, who was a long jump finalist at the 2002 IAAF World Juniors and is the daughter of Olympians Denise and Ray Boyd, who between them competed at five Olympics and won 22 national titles.
The Australian team will assemble on Australia’s Gold Coast in late June for a preparation camp, which will include two warmup meets.
The Australian Team is:
(in brackets are the athlete’s state and personal best)
MEN
400m Joel Milburn (NSW, 48.14)
110m Hurdles Mitchel Webber (WA, 14.23)
10,000m Walk Adam Rutter (NSW, 44:20.0), Michael McCagh (WA, 44:52.6)
High Jump David Baskin (Vic, 2.10m)
Shot Ryan Phillips (Qld, 18.38m)
Discus Ronnie Buckley (Vic, 59.69m)
Javelin Jonathan Wynn (NSW, 69.15m)
Hammer Simon Wardhaugh (Qld, 70.43m)
WOMEN
200m Sally McLellan (Qld, 24.08), Keatyn Windley (NSW, 24.49)
400m Jamiee-Lee Hoebergen (NSW, 53.91)
800m Brooke Simpson (NSW, 2:06.56)
1500m Emily Johnson (NSW, 4:29.25), Hayley Tomlinson (Vic, 4:26.5)
100m Hurdles McLellan (13.42)
5000m Walk Becky Lee (NSW, 25:10.2), Susan Knapton (NSW, 24:11.8)
Medley Relay Boyd, Jacqueline Davies (QLD, 12.25/24.92/55.76), Hoebergen, McLellan, Windley
High Jump Ellen Pettit (WA, 1.78m), Sophia Begg (NSW, 1.79m)
Pole Vault Charmaine Lucock (Qld, 3.85m), Jamie Scroop (SA, 3.70m)
Long Jump Jacinta Boyd (Qld, 6.25m)
Triple jump Liz Dalton (ACT, 12.57m)
Shot Dani Samuels (NSW, 13.93m), Sharmane Motuliki (NSW, 13.53m)
Discus Julie Bennell (Qld, 48.70m), Calista Lyon (Vic, 46.52m)
Javelin Annabel Thomson (NSW, 48.97m)
Heptathlon Jennifer Coogan (NSW, 5009p) [14.81, 1.61m, 11.94m, 25.44, 5.42m, 38.26m, 2:24.81]
Manager Marg Koenen (ACT)
Head Coach John Sessarago (Qld)
Coaches Gary Cairns (QLD)
Penny Gillies (NSW)
Aaron Holt (WA)
Denis Knowles (NSW)
Marilyn Pearson (NSW)
Physiotherapist Liz Molloy (Vic)
Profiles of all the Australian athletes are on the Athletics Australia website (www.athletics.org.au)
