Coach Kitching

26 January 2022

Coach Kitching

Two of NSW’s best emerging distance runners are Coffs Harbour pair Hayley and Jade Kitching. The siblings are coached by their father Tim Kitching, a former triathlete and runner.

Hayley and Jade Kitching compiled a very special 2021. In April at the national championships, Hayley won the under-18, while Jade was second in the under-16 800m. At the NSW All Schools in December Hayley won the 17-years 800m and 1500m. Her 800m time was a World U20 Championships qualifier and the second fastest in the history of the meet. Jade won the 15-years 800m and in the 1500m was 0.01 seconds behind the winner with both athletes breaking the record.

“I’m very happy with how they have been going,” said Tim. “I’m just assisting them with a gradual progression as they are young.”

Tim was a handy runner in his youth, running at state school championships, but triathlete was where he was making his mark. In the mid-90s as a triathlete he would mix it with the rising stars, defeating Chris Lee, Courtney Atkinson, Peter Robertson and Luke Harrop in one race at Penrith. In 1995 he competed in the junior race at the ITU Triathlon World Championships in Cancun and the next year, 1996, in the same race in Cleveland, he placed a very respectable 35th.

But shortly after he was off the college in America on an athletics scholarship to study at Mount St Mary’s, a NCAA Division I University in Maryland. There he ran cross country and on the track, primarily 5000m and 10,000m indoors/outdoors. Some of his best times in 1998 and 1999 were in neighbouring Philadelphia at the famous Penn Relays in front of crowds of 50,000 + spectators. He even ran a marathon in Sacramento.

“I didn’t do great as an athlete. I made a lot of mistakes,” reflected Tim, “But I did have the opportunity to train with some greats.” One who was around the university was 1988 Olympic 1500m champion Peter Rono.

“I’m hoping that guidance from them and being around people of that level helps me with my kids.”

After his last year at University in 2000, he returned to triathlon, and in 2002 placed second in the USA National Triathlon Championships in New York. Later that year he competed in the ITU Hamburg World Cup.

These days Tim works from Coffs Harbour as a Financial Controller for a Texas software company. Pre-COVID the company okayed him to work remotely from Australia.

Hayley is already scheduled to follow Tim’s pathway to college in the US, set to commence at Penn State in 2023.

David Tarbotton for Athletics NSW
Image: Hayley, Tim and Jade Kitching