Athletics Australia – News – Trans-Tasman Cup to test rivals\‘ mettle

This summer the Australian Athletics Tour is set to feature some of track and field’s true modern-day rivalries but perhaps the greatest grudge match of all will be played out tomorrow night at the Brisbane Athletics Classic, where traditional rivals Australia and New Zealand will go head-to-head for the 2011 Under 21 Trans-Tasman Cup.

Taken out by the Kiwis by just one point in 2010, the 12-strong Australian team is fit and fired up to claim bragging rights this year and level the history board at one match apiece.

With points up for grabs in seven events, competition between the two rival nations is set to go right down to the wire at Queensland Athletics Centre tomorrow night in the opening round of the 2011 Australian Athletics Tour.

Leading the green and gold charge will be 2010 IAAF world junior championships representatives Amanda Bartrim (pole vault), Kim Mulhall (discus throw), Taryn Gollshewsky (discus throw), Patrick Fakiye (100m), Jake Hammond (100m), Steve Solomon (400m) and Kuey Diew (800m), who will all be hoping their international form continues into 2011 with strong performances to kick-start the new year tomorrow night.

Having just returned from Athletics Australia’s Target Talent Program tour of New Zealand last month, Australian team members Alex Rowe and Kim Mulhall will step out in Brisbane well-versed in taking on their trans-Tasman foes and buoyed by the home crowd advantage.

Rounding out the Australian line-up will be 2009 world youth representatives Alex Beck (400m) and Alex Rowe (800m), 2008 Commonwealth Youth Games representatives Linden Hall (1500m) and Ellen Pearce (pole vault) and Queenslander Natalie Dudkowski (1500m).

With four points up for grabs for the first-placed competing team member in each event and three, two and one points up for grabs thereafter, competition will be fierce when the top Under 21 talent from around the Tasman comes together in Brisbane tomorrow night.

The Under 21 representatives join a star cast of Australian athletes set to line up in Round 1 of the Australian Athletics Tour in Brisbane tomorrow night, joining world discus champion Dani Samuels, Commonwealth Games 100m hurdles gold medallist Sally Pearson and world championships long jump bronze medallist Mitchell Watt  on centre stage.

Now in its second year, the Trans-Tasman Cup is a fixture of a busy summer of sport for Athletics Australia’s National Junior High Performance team.

Under the leadership of National Junior High Performance Manager Sara Mulkearns, the National Pathways Program in conjunction with the Target Talent Program will this season host training and education camps for 4x100m and 4x400m relays, horizontal jumps and 400m hurdles athletes and see members of the National Under 21s Squad flown from all over Australia to a competition-based camp run alongside next week’s Briggs Athletics Classic in Hobart.   

In 2011 Australia’s top emerging athletes will vie for selection to the IAAF world youth championships in Lille (FRA) in July and the Commonwealth Youth Games on the Isle of Man in September.

Athletics Australia – News