Nick Price will compete in the hammer throw in next week’s Australian Junior Athletics Championships. Photos: Barry Smith 270213BSH10.
TAMWORTHS’ athletics prowess will be on show in Perth next week.
Several young athletes will be hoping to run, throw, hurdle or jump their way onto the Australian Junior Athletics Championship podium.
Calrossy’s Julia Scott has qualified in four events and will contest the 100m hurdles, U18 and U20 high jump and long jump.
Jessica Aldridge, Lia Mills, Ben Allen, Amory Merrick and Nick Price are also among those heading west. Price will compete in the U15 hammer throw.
He qualified for the nationals by figuring in the top three U15s at last month’s NSW Championships.
There he competed in the U16s division and threw 33.94m to bring home bronze.
Price had said that making the nationals was a major goal this year. He just didn’t expect it to be in the hammer.
The State Championships was his first competitive hammer throw.
He’s only just really recently added it to his throwing repertoire. You have to be at least 14 to be able to compete.
Price has quickly taken to it quickly and was happy – and surprised – with how he went.
“They were all throwing around 25m. Then I threw it and it was 34m and I thought holy dooley,” he said.
He’s been working on his technique and has been throwing about 36, 37m in training.
“I’ve worked on more spins,” Price said.
“I’m only doing one spin and throwing 35. The others are doing four or five spins.”
More will allow him to build up more momentum and more power.
Price just missed out on qualifying for the shot put and discus as well placing fourth in the U15s in both.
Merrick is the best U14s javelin thrower in the state.
She threw 28.42m to win the gold last month.
It wasn’t her best throw and she’s going to the nationals hoping to throw further, and knowing she can.
Only a week or so before the state championships she’d registered a personal best 28.63m to take silver at the NSW Country Championships.
The three-day championships begin on March 12.
Comparing the results from the other state championships he goes into the nationals ranked second, and will head over confident of finishing in the medals.