World U20 Championships: Preview

Published Sun 31 Jul 2022

31 July 2022

World U20 Championships: Preview

Australia have arrived in Cali for the six-day World Athletics U20 Championships which commence Tuesday morning AEST. The team has historically won a few medals, averaging four for each of the recent championships. But a look at the entries from the 145 Nations and you realise how difficult this task will be. Just one relay team and one athlete in ranked in the top-3.

For many athletes the goal is a PB or maybe a top-8, which would be a great achievement, however we know Australian athletes do regularly place about their ranking.

We start with a distance group. Pat Cantlon ran terrific times of 3:45.30 (1500m) and 8:12.84 (3000m), at the trials and sits ranked around 30th in both events. Ranked just inside the top-10 in the half-mile is Charlie Jeffreson who faces-up to three high quality races in three days where just eight will run in the final. Luke Boyes has the same challenge as Charlie in the 800m, from his ranking inside the top-40 amongst the 62 entries. Ranked just outside the top-10, Hayley Kitching lines up amongst 42 athletes in the 800m from 29 countries. The women’s 800m program also has three rounds.

Nicola Hogg is top-10 in her 1500m and top-15 in the 3000m. Her potential program is heat and final in the 1500m and a straight final in the 3000m. Nicola will be the first Aussie to compete in a final when she starts in the 3000m. In contrast Laura Roderick, competes on day six, enabling her to see how the championships unfolds.

NSW has an athlete in all four hurdle events. Wollongong’s Delta Amidzovski, ranked around the top-30, competes against 53 athletes from 33 countries in the 100m hurdles. She is young enough to compete at the 2024 World U20s. In the men’s high hurdles, Mitchell Lightfoot is top-12 amongst the 56 entries for the men’s 110m hurdles. In the 400m hurdles, Dom Panozzo is top-50 amongst the 37 Nations competing in his event. Isabella Guthrie, also in the 400m hurdles, is just inside the top-15 amongst the 48 athletes representing 35 countries. She faces potentially three rounds in three days in the hurdles, followed by relay duty at the end of the program.

Jasmin Guthrie is top-20 in her individual 400m and faces a similar program to hurdling twin sister Bella. Both are in the 4x400m relay squad. Australia is ranked eighth, but times and rankings mean little in this event as, like Australia, it is only a State team and not the national team that clocked that time. An interesting historical fact is the new Federal member for Mackellar, Sophie Scamps, was a gold medallist in the 4x400m relay at the 1990 World Junior Championships.

Also on relay duty is Olivia Inkster, Aleksandra Stoilova and Connor Bond in the 4x100m relay events. Both teams are top-5 ranked, but similar to the 4x400m relay, many countries have not yet posted times as a unit and therefore rankings are rough, but there is no doubt both Aussie line-ups can lower National records and push for the podium. Sprinting individually Olivia lines up in the 200m where she is ranked inside the top-35 amongst the 57 entries from 35 countries. In the jumps, Central Coast’s Katie Gunn is top-25 in the long jump, while Erin Shaw is top-10 in the high jump.

GIRLS (10)

200m: Olivia Rose Inkster (Melinda Gainsford-Taylor & Katie Edwards, UTS Norths Athletic Club),

400m: Jasmin Guthrie NSW (Angus McEntyre, UTS Norths Athletic Club)

800m: Hayley Kitching NSW (Tim Kitching, Coffs Harbour Athletics Club)

1500m: Nicola Hogg NSW (Ben Liddy, UTS Norths Athletic Club)

3000m: Nicola Hogg

5000m: Laura Roderick NSW (William and Jordan Williams, Randwick Botany Athletic Club)

100m Hurdles: Delta Amidzovski NSW (Roger Fabri, Athletics Wollongong)

400m Hurdles: Isabella Guthrie NSW (Angus McEntyre, UTS Norths Athletic Club)

High Jump: Erin Shaw NSW (Jack McArdle, UTS Norths Athletic Club)

Long Jump: Katie Gunn NSW (Matthew Horsnell, Gosford Athletic Club)

4 x 100m relay: Aleksandra Stoilova (Hayden Kovacic, Westfelds Athletic Club), Olivia Rose Inkster