Athletics Australia – News – Pearson eyes rare treble

As one piece of history closes, Sally Pearson is eyeing her own little bit of Australian Athletics Championships history – a rare treble in individual women’s events.

The 89^th Australian Athletics Championships and Selection Trial will be the last major event staged at Melbourne’s famous Olympic Park venue. All season, Pearson has been ruling the individual women’s sprints and sprint hurdles, culminating with a treble at the Australian Athletics Tour Final in Perth a fortnight ago.

Now, the Beijing Olympic hurdles silver medallist is considering the same treble at the Australian Athletics Championships. The 24-year-old Queenslander has entered the 100m and 200m and her flagship 100m hurdles event.

Despite a tight timetable – 100m heats Friday, semi-final and final Saturday; 200m/100m hurdles heats and final Sunday – Pearson would be heavily favoured to win all three events.

The last woman to achieve such a gruelling feat at the Nationals was Pam Ryan, the woman whose long-standing national hurdles record Pearson broke in 2007. Ryan competed in five individual events at the 1967-68 women’s championships in Adelaide, winning the 80m hurdles, 100m hurdles and the pentathlon as well as a silver medal in the 100m and long jump.

Whatever she attempts, Pearson will be the focus of attention in the sprint events at Olympic Park. She looks to be without a real challenger in the hurdles, while defending 100m champion Melissa Breen, Charlotte van Veenendaal and Laura Whaler will be hardest to beat in the sprints.

The 400m will be the pick of the men’s sprints with defending champion Ben Offereins coming in with a confidence-boosting win over Commonwealth Games silver medallist Sean Wroe at the Go for 2& 5 Australian Athletics Tour Final. They face the formidable challenge of Steven Solomon, who provided the most stunning upset of the Australian Athletics Tour with a win in 46.12 at the Melbourne Track Classic.

Across the longer middle distances, titles will go to those who run the smartest races, not necessarily those who come to the line with the fastest times.

The men’s 1500m looks a cracker, with Australian mile record holder Craig Mottram, Flame athlete Jeremy Roff and rising youngsters James Nipperess, Brett Robinson and Jordan Williamsz all facing the same question – how to beat the tactically astute Jeff Riseley.

Lachlan Renshaw, the defending champion, will start as a slight favourite in the men’s 800m whilst in the women’s event Tamsyn Lewis will be chasing a 10^th 800m national crown with the 32-year-old returning to the event for the first time in three years.

On the runway, the duel between world indoor champion Fabrice Lapierre and Australian Athletics Tour jumps champion Mitchell Watt in the men’s long jump is the one to watch.

Unfortunately an anticlimax at the Go for 2&5 Australian Athletics Tour Final, Lapierre will be keen to return to form as both he and the world championships bronze medallist Watt search for automatic selection to the IAAF world championships in athletics later this year.

Meanwhile in the men’s triple jump, Kane Brigg and Henry Frayne will look to improve on their current 5^th and 7^th standing on the Australian All-Time list. Edging toward the world championships qualifying mark of 17.20m, the Queensland based duo look set to battle it out across the six rounds of jumping.

On the hunt for world championships selection in the throws events are Australia’s world class quintet Dani Samuels (discus throw), Jarrod Bannister (javelin throw), Benn Harradine (discus throw), Kimberley Mickle (javelin throw) and Dale Stevenson (shot put).

The world champion and Australian record holder respectively, Samuels and Harradine will be keen to again break through the world championships qualifying standard for the women’s and men’s discus events.

Bannister is set to return from injury on his home track in Melbourne as he looks to break through the 82.00m qualifying barrier, Mickle heads east in good form after a 63.28m personal best at the Sydney Track Classic and Stevenson, the Commonwealth Games bronze medallist, continues his quest for an elusive 20.50m qualifier.

The 89^th Australian Athletics Championships and Selection Trials commence this Friday, April 15 at 11.30am.

Competition continues for three days, with events to continue on Saturday, April 16 and Sunday, April 17 2011.

89^th Australian Athletics Championships & Selection Trials
Friday, April 15: 11.30am – 7:00pm
Saturday, April 16: 4:30pm – 9:30pm
Sunday, April 17: 11:30am – 4:30pm
Melbourne Olympic Park
Melbourne, VIC
Tickets are available at the gate, with access to the venue through the western entrance (Westpac Centre) side of Olympic Park.

To view and download the current entry lists to the Australian Athletics Championships, please click here.

 

Athletics Australia – News