Young Runners Shine at Interclub 7 & State 3000m Champs

They might have been contesting the Age Group (U14 through to U18) State 3000m Championships, but mature race tactics were on full display at the SA Athletics Stadium on Saturday evening. 

Two entertaining 3000m races (one female, one male) took place following Copyworld Toshiba Interclub 7, and it was Flinders Athletics Club duo Asha Lawson and Torben Roberts crossing the line first in the respective races.

Lawson claimed the U16 Women's title in 10:20.48, while Robers won Gold in the U18 event with a 9:23.84 run. 

Girls State 3000m Champions:

Boys State 3000m Champions:

Find all the results from the State 3000m Championships (Age Group) HERE 

Final all the photographs in the Gallery on the Athletics SA Website

The Girl's race contained 17 starters from the U14 to U18 competitors, and it was Tiana Cetta (United Collegians), Lawson and Elodie de Wit (Adelaide Harriers) forming a break away pack from the early stages. 

By the time the leaders entered their third lap Cetta and Lawson had put 40m on de Wit and the remainder of the competitors. 

Lawson sat behind Cetta for the whole run, but put on the after burners when she heard the 400m bell, quickly putting distance on the United Collegians U18 athlete to cross the line 15m ahead of Cetta. 

Tiana Chetta leads Asha Lawson and Elodie de Wit in the Girl's State 3000m Championship race on Saturday evening. Each of these runners went on to win their respective age group titles.

The Boys had a similar field depth, and it was Southern Athletic Club's Multi Eventer Zayden Kamish (U16) setting the early pace.   

Kamish tired and United Collegians' Thomas Kavanagh ended up running through to take the lead during the second lap, with Roberts following.

Kavanagh and Roberts led the race until the 1200m mark, and that's where Roberts made his move to sprint away from the United Collegians runner. 

Roberts held an 80m lead with 800m to run and cruised across the line, with Flinders U15 runner Jordan Leane coming through in second place with a time of 9:35.48 and Kavanagh third (9:39.88).

The Open, U20, O35 and O50 State 3000m Championships will be held at the SA Athletics Stadium on Thursday night - Registrations close Tuesday, February 1.

Also, don't forget to get your registrations in for the State Track and Field Championships (February 18-20) - Registrations close Monday, February 7

Torben Roberts won the Men's U18 State 3000m title. Thomas Kavanagh, running next to Roberts in bib 1242, won the U17 title. 

COPYWORLD TOSHIBA INTERCLUB 7

There were several impressive results recorded at Saturda's Copyworld Toshiba Interclub, headlined by two young sprinters Jordi McMillan and Aidan Murphy.

Both hailing from the Saints Athletics Club, McMillan ran a World Juniors Qualifying time of 11.18 in Heat 1 of the Women's 100m, while Murphy broke yet another State Record. 

The rest of the pack chases Saints sprinter Jordi McMillan in Heat 1 of the Women's 100m on Saturday.

This time it was the Open Men's 100m State Record, which was previously set as 10.40 in 1987 by Steve McBain.

Murphy ran 10.35 on Saturday to edge out Western's Harrison Hunt, who ran a club record 10.47.

Hunt looked to have had Murphy covered in the 100m at the mid-way point of the race, before the 18-year-old Saints athlete lifted his pace to run away. 

It's the third State Record that Murphy has broken this season, having twice previously broken the Men's U20 200m Record (20.62), and he now sits alongside his mother Tania Van Heer as an Open 100m State Record holder.

Commonwealth Games Gold Medallist, Van Heer's Open Women's 100m State Record of 11.29 has remained since 1998. 

Aidan Murphy, bib 82, Western's Harrison Hunt, yellow top, and Jacob Aston were neck and neck at the mid-way point of the Men's 100m before Murphy ran away to break the Open Men's State Record (10:35). 

In his second Interclub appearance for the season, 2021 State 100m and 200m Open Champion Liam Moss won Heat 2 of Saturday's the 100m in 10.81.

Murphy also won the 400m in 46.83, again ahead of Hunt (47.39), but the 400m highlight came in the Women's field as Western's Iluka-Rose Taylor won Heat 1 in a time of 57.68... at the age of 12.

Taylor edged out Western's teammate Tayla Philis (59.27) and Layla Kinnane (59.94) of Pembroke.

Taylor also competed in the U14 80m Hurdles (12.67), 100m (13.12) and U14 Long Jump (4.84m) on Saturday.  

12-year-old Iluka-Rose Taylor, bib 402, won the Women's 400m race on Saturday.

Saints' Brooke Hines won the Women's 1500m in 4:31.77, ahead of Adelaide Harrier Annabel Kitto (4:36.72) and Jessica McManus (4:38.27) of Port Adelaide, while on the Men's side of the draw it was Hills' Dan Canala who took out the 1500m in 3:56.38, ahead of Dylen Krenczeck (3:57.25) and Tom Lancaster (3:58.45). 

There were some good results in the Women's Pole Vault, as Courtney Smallacombe (4.20m), Madeline Lawson (4.05m, Jamie Scroop (4.05m) and Tryphena Hewett (3.60m) each cleared National Qualifying heights. 

Courtney Smallacombe cleared 4.20m at Copyworld Toshiba Interclub 7.

Margaret Gayen, who finished second to McMillan in the 100m, won the Women's 100m Hurldes (14.46) and Open Long Jump (5.86m). 

Returning from injury Northern District's Lachlan Page threw 53.18m to win the Men's Discus, while Kamish won the U16 Men's Discus with 48.31m. 

Para Athletes Brayden Davidson (4.92m), Jack Netting (4.40m) and Keira Post (3.49m) performed well in the Long Jump, while Sam Paech threw 33.98m in the Para Discus competition.

Find the full Interclub results HERE

See all the pics from Interclub 7