Tan Titles Tumble and Internationals Impress | Weekend Recap

The official Australian domestic season may have drawn to a close but the nation’s track and field stars are staying busy on the eve of the European season, as the weekend witnessed big names lay down strong markers and the NCAA make its mark outdoors.

Run The Tan saw Jessica Hull (self coahed) continue her trailblazing domestic campaign with a new record of 11:31 around the iconic 3.82m Melbourne loop, beating home rivals Linden Hall (Ned Brophy-Williams) and Abbey Caldwell (Gavin Burren) in times of 11:36 and 11:46 respectively.

Eclipsing the previous mark of 11:35 set by Hall in 2021, Hull picked up the record bonus to make it a $10,000 morning in Melbourne, setting up her international campaign which begins on Friday at the Doha Diamond League.

Also setting a new record around the tan was Michael Roeger (Philo Saunders) who stormed to victory in the Elite Para event with a time of 11:03 to defeat teammate Jaryd Clifford (Philo Saunders) by 12-seconds, while reigning champion Reece Langdon (Tim O’Shaughnessy) crossed the line in third place. Annabelle Colman (Liz Gosper and Anthony de Castella) was the first para woman home in 14:10.

Tokyo Olympian Jye Edwards (Dick Telford) proved too slick for the field in the Men’s race when bouncing back to form in 10:23 after an injury ravaged 2022, racing clear of Matthew Clarke (Adam Didyk) who claimed silver in 10:26. 18-year-old World Under 20 finalist Archie Noakes (Charlotte Wilson) added another significant result to his impressive resume with a swift 10:31 performance.

Australians competed prominently on Japanese soil in Hiroshima for the 57^th Oda Mikio Memorial, with wins flowing for Riley Day (Paul Pearce) and Georgia Winkcup (Ben Liddy). The 23-year-old Day took a leap in the right direction over 100m after a troublesome run with injury, capping off a consistent series with a run of 11.52 (+1.3) for the win, while teammate Georgia Harris (Paul Pearce) finished fourth in 11.64. Winkcup blew the field away in the 3000m steeplechase to take a dominant victory in 9:46.27.

19-year-old Aiden Hinson (Chloe Stevens) battled through the rain to claim second place in the triple jump with a 16.18m (+0.8) showing, while Jacob McCorry (Alex Stewart) finished sixth in a hotly contested 110m hurdles race with a run of 13.65 (+0.3).

The prestigious Penn Relays in the NCAA saw both individual and team success for Australians studying and competing in the US system, with Stephanie Ratcliffe (Harvard) and Josh Phillips (Villanova) taking out the hammer throw and 5000m respectively. Ratcliffe threw a career-best 70.59m to surpass the 70m-barrier once again, while Phillips’ 13:45.85 saw him finish ahead of Villanova teammate and fellow Australian Haftu Strintzos in 13:47.54 for silver.

Adding to the silverware in Philadelphia was Wisconsin’s Australian duo of Adam Spencer and Jackson Sharp, who combined to form two legs of the school’s winning quartet in the Distance Medley Relay (9:33.82), before returning to finish a narrow second in the 4xMile (16:14.24). World Under 20 finalist Hayley Kitching (Penn State) also delivered a crucial leg in Penn State’s winning team in the 4x800m (8:23.81).  

Rounding out the weekend’s action at the Mackay Track and Field Carnvial, Neil Janse (Ben Thomson) threw the javelin 78.41m to defeat Howard McDonald’s (Ben Thomson) mark of 77.36m, while Mia Gordon (Morgan Ward) delivered the best throw of her season with a 50.96m effort.

By Lachlan Moorhouse, Athletics Australia
Posted: 1/5/2023