Stories from the NSW Masters Championships

Published Sun 05 Feb 2023

5 February 2023

Stories from the NSW Masters Championships

It is a huge year for Masters athletics in NSW, with the World Masters competing in events at the World Athletics Cross Country Championships later this month, then the Australian Masters Championships in Sydney in March. Here are some stories from the NSW Championships held last weekend at Campbelltown.

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Ahead of the Masters Team Relay at the World Cross Country Championships in two weeks, Charlotte Middleton and Ken Wilson have warmed up with wins in the 1500m at the NSW Masters Championships. Charlotte and Ken, considered one of the strong medal prospects in the mixed 2x2km relay, face very tough competition from dream-team Krishna Stanton and Steve Moneghetti.

In her youth, Charlotte Middleton (nee Templeton) was a talented metric miler.

“As a junior I ran 4:25, then 4:57 last season,” she said proudly.

“I have a good friend (Monique Perry) who is a sprinter, and we are soccer mums together, and she urged me to return to athletics and I said when I turn 50 I’ll try and I’m now 53.”

Charlotte now trains with a young group in Turramurra under coach Bill Nappin.

In Bathurst she will team up with Ken Wilson, who was a handy runner himself in his youth.

“I competed for Eastern Suburbs, I’m the longest club man there. I started at school in the under-12s,” said Ken.

“I’ve had two 10-year breaks, for study and then for kids. I’ve been back into it now for six years – returning just before I was 50,” said the Peter Good coached athlete.

Photos: Charlotte Middleton in the 1500m and Charlotte and Ken Wilson

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Over a decade after she ran ‘track for four years in high school in America’, Ramnett Kaur is really enjoying her return to athletics.

“It has been 15 years since I ran in high school. I stopped for over a decade and have been back running for a year now,” Ramnett said. “I run for my own health and fitness. I’m very passionate about running so I wanted to keep that up.”

She and Amritpal Kaur, who was second to her in the 1500m and 5000m, train three or four times a week for an hour with a personal trainer.

“It’s really beneficial in our lives,” said Ramnett. “We are very busy as mothers and wives and all that. We are really loving it.”

Photos: Ramnett Kaur in the 1500m and Ramnett Kaur (left) and Amritpal Kaur

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Few competitors can claim more years competing than Central Coast’s Brian Sharpe. “This is my 76th year in athletics. I don’t know why I still line-up, but it is as much a challenge as it has always been,” said the 92-year-old.

Originally from Orange, Brian was a talented middle-distance runner, winning the NSW Country Championships 880 yards and mile double on four occasions in the 1950s.

His distance running career has been curtailed in recent years.

“I got Bronchiectasis 20 years ago, and my aerobic capacity went down the gurgler. I went to throwing and have enjoyed throwing. It is a very social event in athletics. There is something about throwers and jumpers who converse during competition.”

At the NSW Masters, Brian won the 100m, hammer throw and weight throw and placed second in the javelin.

Photos: Brian Sharpe (leading) competing at Interclub in the 1960s and Brian throwing the Hammer at the NSW Masters.

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An international star competing at the NSW Masters Championships was World Masters 60-64 years 400m world champion John Wright. The Britain sprinter easily won the world title last year in Finland clocked 54.92 - over a second faster than second place. He also won medals in the 100m and 200m.

On Saturday at the NSW Masters he comfortably won the 100m (12.29) and 400m (58.78).

John was pleased to be back in Australia, visiting his son on the Central Coast – it had been three years since he had visited due to COVID.

John, who has been training at Mingara, has been enjoying the change in climate.

“The weather is brilliant. Marvellous. As you know England is cold, damp and wet and I don’t like training in the cold.”

Is he tempted to move to Australia?

“I am trying to move out here to be with my son. It is in the process, but since COVID it has been on the backburner.”

Photos: John Wright winning the 100m and John with his Australian-based family.

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Mounties sprinter/hurdler Sylvette Wearne has made a successful return to her promising athletics career in her teens, when she was at school in Mauritius. She had been going to the track for a few years now watching her children Christine and Shaun compete.

“The kids started to run, so I decided to join them. I was just standing around anyway,” said Sylvette who won bronze in the 80m hurdles, and was impressively third in the 100m against a full field of seven athletes.

“I did hurdles when I was younger, but I’m struggling at the moment to get three steps in between. I’m going to get more serious and train hard to get the three steps together. I’m still very driven and want to get fast.”

Photo: Sylvette Wearne and daughter Christine