Calendar confirmed for the 2023 Australian Summer of Athletics
Published Thu 06 Oct 2022
Athletics Australia is pleased to confirm the competition calendar for the 2022/2023 Chemist Warehouse Australian Summer of Athletics, which is set to culminate with the 100th edition of the Australian Track and Field Championships in Brisbane, Queensland.
Beginning just days after the official start of Summer, the season will commence on December 4 with the 2022 Australian 35km Race Walk Championships in Melbourne, before our burgeoning talent make their presence known at the Chemist Warehouse Australian All Schools Track and Field Championships in Adelaide.
Early in the season will be the famous Zatopek:10 which features the Australian 10,000m Championships, whilst mid-January delivers the selection trials for the World Athletics Cross Country Championships (set down for Bathurst on 18 February), before the World Tour Challenger meets and State Championships begin.
Australia will play host to the World Athletics Continental Tour, with the Brisbane Track Classic a silver level meet, helping Australia’s athletes continue amassing crucial world ranking points to compete on the world stage. Also on the World Athletics Continental Tour will be the Adelaide Invitational and the Sydney Track Classic, and further plans are being developed for the iconic Melbourne Track Classic in February, with details to come.
Also featuring in an historical year for Australian athletics will be the 100th edition of the Australian Track and Field Championships (30 March – 2 April) and the Australian Junior (under 14 to Under 18) Track and Field Championships (13-17 April), proudly supported by the Queensland Government, through Tourism and Events Queensland and Brisbane City Council, through Brisbane Economic Development Agency. Together, these two championships will determine the country’s best athletes in more than 300 events.
Acting as the selection trial for both the 2023 World Athletics Championships in Budapest and the World Para Athletics Championships in Paris, the 2023 Australian Track and Field Championships will attract the nation’s top talent on their quest for world glory as they lay down a season of work at Queensland Sports and Athletics Centre.
Both championship events, which were due to take place in Perth, have relocated to Queensland following a scheduling clash with a number of sporting events in Western Australia over the summer period, with Tourism WA now agreeing to host both the 2025 and 2028 editions of the Championships.
“After an incredible year for our athletes at the World Athletics Championships, World Under 20 Championships and Commonwealth Games, we’re extremely excited about what’s coming up this season,” Athletics Australia CEO Peter Bromley said.
“This summer promises to showcase Australia’s top track and field talent, with opportunities galore for each of them to put their best foot forward on the track as they aim to qualify for the 2023 major championships. For our pathway athletes and participants coming up the ranks, this summer is also an opportunity to put their hard work to the test in their chosen disciplines.”
Bromley said he was thrilled to be taking the two Australian Championships events north to Brisbane, after the past two years taking place in Sydney.
“Excitingly this year, we also head to Brisbane for the Australian Junior Track and Field Championships and the Australian Track and Field Championships, which double up as selection trials for the two major championships taking place next year,” he said.
“I’d like to encourage all friends, families and fans of our Australian athletics community to lock these dates in your diaries, and and support our domestic season. With the Paris Olympics and Paralympics on the following year, this summer is the time to start getting to know our athletes and cheering them home.”
Dates for the 2022/2023 Australian Summer of Athletics are as follows:
2023 Chemist Warehouse Australian Summer of Athletics
4 December 2022: Australian 35km Race Walk Championships, Fawkner Park
9-11 December 2022: Australian All Schools Track and Field, Adelaide
12 December 2022: National Schools Challenge, Adelaide
15 December 2022: Zatopek:10 and the Australian 10,000m Championships, Melbourne
6 January 2023: World Athletics Race Walking Tour Silver: Race Supernova #1, Canberra
15 January 2023: Australian Cross Country Selection Trials, Canberra
20-22 January 2023: Australian Open Wheelchair 200m/800m/1500m/5000m Championships, Canberra (in conjunction with Wheelchair Sports NSW’s Summer Down Under Series)
2 February 2023: World Athletics Race Walking Tour Silver: Race Supernova #2, Canberra
11 February 2023: Adelaide Invitational (World Tour Challenger), Adelaide
11 or 12 February 2023: Australian 20km Race Walk Championships, Fawkner Park
18 February 2023: World Athletics Cross Country Championships, Bathurst
23 February 2023: Melbourne Track Classic (World Athletics Continental Tour Silver), Melbourne
10-13 March 2023: Australian Masters Track & Field Championships, Sydney
11 March 2023: Sydney Track Classic (World Tour Challenger), Sydney
25 March 2023: Brisbane Track Classic (World Athletics Continental Tour Silver), Brisbane
30 March - 2 April 2023: Australian U20 and Open Track and Field Championships, Brisbane
7-10 April 2023: Stawell Easter Carnival – Stawell AC
13-16 April 2023: Australian Junior (Under 14 to Under 18) Track and Field Championships, Brisbane
19-21 April 2023: UniSport Nationals Track and Field, Runaway Bay
By Sascha Ryner, Athletics Australia
Posted: 6/10/2022
