The Weekend Wrap: Invitational, Walks and Throws

Forget Mad March: for Athletics SA, last weekend was Mad February! Here's a quick wrap-up of all the weekend's action:

Matt Denny visits Port Adelaide Athletics Club

Paris Bronze medallist Matt Denny headed out to Port Adelaide on Friday evening, surprising the Little Athletics cohort with a Q&A providing some great insight into his life and journey as a professional athlete.

While there, Denny also took the opportunity to meet some of the Port Adelaide Athletics Aboriginal Squad, the first club in the state to have established such a program.

Adelaide Invitational starts off Summer Series with a bang!

It all kicked off with the Adelaide Invitational on Saturday evening; the excitement, competition, colour and atmosphere of the Chemist Warehouse Summer Series rolling into town with a great night of athletics.

Some of the highlights from the night included Matt Denny's meet record throw in the Men's Discus of 67.82m, and Cara Feain-Ryan's meet record run of 9:33.61 in the Women's 3000m Steeplechase.

But it was the two 800m races that really lit up the evening on the track. Abbey Caldwell took the women's crown with a time of 2:01.84 in a star-studded field, kicking on well to win out by a second.

And in the men's race, Olympian and fan-favourite Peter Bol looked to have victory all but sealed, before 17-year-old Daniel Williams took the crowd by surprise, launching an attack on the final bend to take the lead. It was an audacious move, and one that was all too short-lived, as Bol streaked away on the home straight to claim first place.

It was awesome to see the athletics community turn up for the event, especially on such a busy night around Adelaide. Thanks go out to all of our volunteers, officials and workers who came together to get the evening running smoothly - it was a fantastic night enjoyed by all.

Read Australian Athletic's recap of the event HERE

For full results for each event, head HERE

Records fall on new course at 20km Race Walk Championships

The Australian 20km Race Walk Championships headed to a new course at Karen Rolton Oval in the Adelaide Parklands. It proved to be a quick course, with the strong 2025 field setting two records on Sunday morning. 

Canadian Evan Dunfee raced hard, turning up the pace in the final half of the Open Men's race to claim the Australian All Comers Record, set at the 2000 Sydney Olympics, in a time of 1:17:39.

This record was one that Dunfee had been eyeing for 20 years, and the course, conditions and atmosphere enabled him to maintain such great pace throughout.

The U20 National record also fell, with Isaac Beacroft's 1:22:52 almost 2 seconds faster than the previous record.

But it was the Paris Olympic relay pair (and medal winners!) of Jemima Montag and Rhydian Cowley who came away with the Open Women's and Men's titles, respectively.

Read AA's full recap HERE

Olympic coach drops by for throws clinic

While the walks were going on only a short distance away, back at the track at the SA Athletics Stadium, Olympic coach and head of the National Throws Centre Mike Barber joined up with World U20 Team Coach Steve Larssen to host a specialised workshop.

Aimed at accredited beginner to intermediate coaches looking to enhance their knowledge and confidence in javelin and shot put,  the workshop took coaches through a technical progression for each event. 

Barber and Larssen explained the purpose and intent of the drills and provided a framework for problem-solving in the training environment.

It was an awesome, interactive and educational session and was the perfect way to round out a full on weekend for the sport here in Adelaide.