Bay athletes shine at national championships in Wellington
The three athletes who represented Tasman at the New Zealand Athletics championships two weeks ago all achieved personal best performances.
When we wrote about the fact that Courtney Clarke, April Crawford and Chris Line had been selected (GBW 2/3) they all told us that they were aiming to continue to improve the way they have all season. Whether they could improve their personal bests when competing on the national stage would be determined by their temperament and confidence on the day, they told us.
Courtney, who competed in both the under-16 and under-19 discus, threw 36.20m in the latter event, finishing fifth and adding nearly two metres to her personal best.
April Crawford ran seventh in the under-16 800-metre race in a time of 2min 23.71sec. This was 3 seconds faster than she had ever run before.
Chris finished seventh in the under-19 discus, 6th in the under-19 javelin, 10th in the under-16 discus and achieved the podium finish he hoped for in the under-16 javelin event. There, he threw 49.72 metres, improving his personal best and winning a national championship bronze medal for his third place.
The club, coaches, parents and supporters who stand behind these Golden Bay athletes can be justifiably proud of their achievements.
Neil Wilson
