Australian All Schools: Return after a three-year hiatus

5 December 2022

Australian All Schools: Return after a three-year hiatus

The Australian All Schools Track and field Championships were one of the major athletics events significantly affected by the pandemic, but return this week in Adelaide after two cancelled years. After a long three-year absence, we reflect on the last championships in December 2019 in Perth and now Adelaide in 2022.

In 2019 a relatedly unknown Delta Amidzovski placed second in the U14 80m hurdles and won the high jump. The World U20 Championships representative will be favourite in Adelaide this year for the U17 100m hurdles and should take down the 13.58 meet record from 14 years ago. Delta is also a strong medal prospect in the long jump.

What great progression Coffs Harbour’s Jade Kitching has made in the three years since 2019. In Perth he was eighth in the U14 1500m clocking 4:41.16 – some 25 seconds behind the winner. This year he sits at the top of the U17 800m rankings and over 1500m is fourth on the entries with 4:00.20 – seven seconds behind top seed Qld’s Seth Mahony. However since entries were submitted, Jade clocked a massive 1500m PB of 3:53.53 in October, in Brisbane where he defeated Seth by six seconds. Adelaide will be the showdown with a National title on the line.

A 12-year-old Ivy Boothroyd was second in the U14 1500m and third in the 800m in 2019. Three years on she is favourite in the U16 800m and a medal hope in the 400m. She arrives in red hot form after setting a NSW U16 800m record of 2:04.90 last week at the Albie Thomas meet – a time one second quicker that the Australian All School meet record.

Mackellar Girls student, Mali Lovell was in 2019 competing in the U16 division, placing second in the 100m, third in the 200m and winning the 800m. In 2022 she is a specialist sprinter with prospects of selection for the 2023 World Para-Athletics Championships. She is also running much quicker, over three seconds faster than her 34.74 200m time in 2019.

A 14-year-old Olivia Inkster won the U16 200m three-years-ago, and travels to Adelaide as the favourite to win the U18 200m. She will also contest the 100m where she faces tough competition from World U20 Championships teammate Aleks Stoilova.

In 2019, Isaac Beacroft placed sixth in the U14 3000m walk in a time of 15:57.30, but in 2022 he will tackle a rare double - the race walk and steeplechase events. His leadup form has been impressive, second in the 2000m steeplechase at the NSW Championships in 6:21 minutes and travels to Adelaide as a strong podium prospect. But his race walking progression has been unstoppable. In September he sliced a minute off the NSW All Schools meet record in the U16 3000m walk with a time of 12:40.00. However, Owen Toyne, a visitor from ACT, did take the win, 19 seconds faster than Isaac and will be very tough competition in Adelaide. But then last month Isaac clocked a stunning 11:47.34, well under the National U16 record.

Albury’s Xylavene Beale in 2019 won a close battle in the U14 discus and was third in the hammer throw. In Adelaide she will start favourite in the shot and a medal prospect in the discus.

Meriden School’s Ada Rand was three years ago eighth in the U16 800m and 13th in the 1500m. After a tremendous NSW All Schools Championships, she travels to Adelaide as the top seed in the U18 1500m.

Third in the U16 long jump and sixth in the triple jump in 2019, Pymble Ladies College student Sienna Bond is a strong hope to take out the U18 horizontal jumps double.

David Tarbotton for Athletics NSW
Image: Jade Kitching (image courtesy of Fred Etter)

EVENT PROFILE

Name: Chemist Warehouse Australian All Schools Track and Field Championships

Dates: Friday 9th - Sunday 11th December

Venue: SA Athletics Stadium, Adelaide

Who: high school students from across Australia

Info: including timetable, technical regulations, entries, live results, live stream, tickets https://www.athletics.com.au/events/142166/