Survive and Advance | WA Cali Day 1
Published Tue 02 Aug 2022
Heat wins came for Claudia Hollingsworth and Tayleb Willis on Day 1 of the World Athletics Under 20 Championships in Cali as eight Australians advanced to the next round, but it wasn’t without casualty as Australia’s brightest young stars got their first taste of the highs and lows of major championship athletics.
The Australian 800m women were clinical in their first round encounters, with Claudia Hollingsworth (Craig Mottram) building upon her Eugene experience to stroll to victory in Heat 5 in a time of 2:08.21, following in the footsteps of Hayley Kitching (Tim Kitching) who threw down the gauntlet in Heat 3 when finishing third in 2:05.48.
A high profile athlete in Cali as one of a select few to represent their country at both senior and junior World Athletics Championships in 2022, Hollingsworth was pleased to restore confidence in her ability.
“I felt really comfortable and relaxed at the front, I knew what I was doing. The whole pre-race experience I was so much more relaxed after Eugene, when I walked out onto the track I felt like I could actually get into my zone,” Hollingsworth said.
“Nerves got the better of me in Eugene, it gave me the fire in the belly to hit this one hard. I don’t want to put it in the past because I learned a lot from it, but I have to use that energy for this one.”
Kitching toyed with the field before after a fast start before cruising to automatic qualification in the home straight.
“I went out a bit quick but I’m not messing around. It’s so awesome racing here, I’m treating every round like a final. I’m feeling really good and confident and I know I can mix it with these girls,” Kitching said.
They are normally rivals but today they were teammates, as Tayleb Willis (Peter Benifer) and Mitchell Lightfoot (Andy Burton) made their way over the sticks and into a semi-final berth. Willis could not resist the win in Heat 7 when coasting to 13.67 (+0.5), while Lightfoot made light work of his first-round encounter in 13.89 (-0.3) to finish second in Heat 6.
They may have contrasting hurdling styles but it’s a similar mindset that drives the Australian duo:
“I’m not surprised by the performance but I also know there are some good guys out in the field and they are going to give me a good run, I’m very keen for the next race. The first race is always the most daunting, so now that’s out of the way I can stick to the plan,” Lightfoot said.
“It was always the plan, I wanted the confidence. It was nowhere near perfect, I hit too many hurdles and backed off a bit when I hit them – it’s time to go harder now,” Willis said.
The results will suggest that Archie Noakes (Charlotte Wilson) was a long way off the mark in the Men’s 5000m, but a brave effort in the first half of the race saw the 17-year-old pay the price in the closing stages against a world class field.
“I just wanted to go hard and hang on, that’s normally my strength but it wasn’t to be. It’s a bit disappointing because I have done so much hard work to run quick today, and I just couldn’t hang on,” Noakes said.
“It was pretty slow at the start so I thought I could just hold on, it was pedestrian. I still have the steeple so hopefully I can redeem myself.”
A tough day at the office still witnessed Mackenzie Mielczarek (Steve Cain) advance to tomorrow’s Women’s Javelin final with an effort of 50.16m in the first round to finish in 11th place, narrowly making the quota of 12.
Mielczarek managed efforts of 50.16m, 48.40m and 50.07m in qualifying, but will be eager to close in on her career best of 54.91m in the final – a throw that would place her in the deep end at her first major championship experience.
“I really just couldn’t get it to connect. Technically it wasn’t all there but hopefully I have saved it for tomorrow, I’m glad that I got one decent one out there. Tomorrow I just need to keep my technique, go out there and send it,” Mielczarek said.
“It’s a pretty strong field so it will obviously be close, but if I can get a big one out then I can be a contender.”
South Australia’s Marley Raikiwasa (Steve Larsson) progressed through to the Final of the Women’s Discus with an attempt of 50.51m. The 16-year-old Qualified third in her Group and fifth overall, while Laylani Va’ai threw 45.23m, which wasn’t enough to progress through to the Final on Day 3.
With only athlete throwing an automatic Qualifier with 54.51m, the final looms as a wide open affair. Compatriot Laylani Va’ai (Michael Moore) threw 45.23m to finish in 11th place of Group B.
Her poles have been accumulating frequent flyer points across the globe due to logistical issues, but Cassidy Bradshaw (Chris Bradshaw) had no troubles when being reacquainted with them to qualify for the Women’s Pole Vault final with a 4.05m clearance.
Utilising all three attempts at 3.95m, Bradshaw was forced to lift as the qualification reached its climax - delivering with a first-attempt clearance at 4.05m to book her ticket to Wednesday’s final.
“That was the goal today, so I am very relieved. I was confident I could jump 4.05m but I wasn’t sure if that would get me into the final, I just knew that if I jumped my best I would have a good shot. The pressure is off, I’m just going to go out there and have fun,” Bradshaw said.
It was a tale of two fortunes in the Men’s 100m heats, with Connor Bond (Mick Zisti) torching his way to 10.43 (-1.2) in lane one to finish third in Heat 5, safely advancing to the final on time. National Under 20 champion Jai Gordon (Jaqueline Gallagher) was less fortunate when his world junior campaign unraveled in the closing metres of Heat 1 after sustaining a calf injury, finishing fifth in 10.59 (+0.2).
“Nothing in the race felt weak, I really enjoyed that. Everyone else seemed so nervous but I was just smiling the whole time, it’s so fun being here and I’m just lapping up the atmosphere,” Bond said.
The Mixed 4x400m team of Gus Simpfendorfer (Steve Cain), Annie Pfeiffer (Lyn Foreman), Brodie Hicks (Steven Gaffney) and Txai Anglin (Travis Venema) were good enough for fifth place in Heat 2 with a 3:27.08 performance – the ninth fastest time of the day.
A brutal introduction to championship racing awaited the Men’s 1500m duo of Peyton Craig (Brendan Mallyon) and Patrick Cantlon (Owen Stewart) in Cali, both finishing in 12th place of their heats in times of 3:55.14 and 3:57.50 respectively.
Fronting up after a recent bout of COVID-19, Craig was all class post-race:
“I just didn’t have. It was way different to what I expected, the quality of everyone else in the field was unreal. I know I am good enough to run in a final, but those boys are very good runners. I’ll be back in two years.”
It was a tough day in the sandpit for long jumper Blake Shaw (Chloe Stevens) who mustered a performance of 7.07m (-.09) to finish in 13th place of Group B. Laura McKillop (Andrew Lulham) and Emily Morden (Phillip Molesworth) felt the full effect of challenging conditions in Cali, both failing to finish Heat 2 of the Women’s 3000m Steeplechase – McKillop citing a knee injury midway through the race and Morden making it well into the final kilometre before stepping off the track.
By Lachlan Moorhouse, Athletics Australia
Posted: 2/8/2022
