Willis 6th at Fifth Avenue Mile race

USA
NEW YORK
Fifth Avenue Mile – 26 September 2010
Nick Willis was unable to sustain a sprint finish in the annual mile race finishing sixth in 3m 54.81s. Willis ranged up beside Bernard Lagat nearing the finish but it was Continental Cup 1500m winner Amine Laâlou of Morocco who swept through for victory in 3m 52.83s. Lagat was second in 3m 53.30s, followed by last year’s winner Andrew Baddeley 3m 53.34s, Alan Webb 3m 53.72s, Leonel Manzano 3m 54.17s and Willis 3m 54.81s. Adrian Blincoe was tenth in 3m 56.07s.
Willis won in 2008 in 3m 50.5s, just edging out Lagat by a tenth of a second. Willis was third in 2006 in 3m 54.7s.

JAPAN
Kawasaki Super Meet, Todoroki Athletics Stadium – 19 September 2010
Johan Smalberger was sixth in the javelin with a throw of 69.72m. Won by 2007 World Champion and bronze medallist at 2008 Beijing Olympics Tero Pitkämäki of Finland with 83.12m.

AUSTRALIA
Oceania Track and Field Championships, Barlow Park Cairns – 23/25 September 2010
Elizabeth Lamb warmed up for the Delhi Commonwealth Games, with victory in the high jump at the Oceania track and field championships in Cairns.
Lamb, who holds the New Zealand W17 and W18 record at 1.85m, cleared 1.80m to beat Tara Strano of Australia who was over the bar at 1.68m. Lamb won both the open and U/20 high jumps at 1.80m in each event.
Andrea Miller also enroute to the Delhi Games won her specialty event the 100m hurdles in 13.55s. Dedeh Erawati of Indonesia was second in 13.84s with Rochelle Coster of Pakuranga third in 14.67s. Beatrice Faumuina also on her way to Delhi won the discus with a throw of 58.32m.
Merewarihi Vaka of Counties Manukau set a championship record of 47.75m in the under 20 discus throw and was third in the open discus with 47.23m, while Solomone Vaka won the under 20 shot put with 14.48m and the discus throwing 50.08m.
Among the other winners from New Zealand were Daniel O’Shea and Campbell Wu in their respective grades 400m hurdles. Peter Callagher collected the under 20 110m hurdles in 14.92s. Marshall Hall won the discus with a throw of 51.53m and Marissa Pritchard and Portia Bing won their respective long jumps.
Scott McLaren, with hardly any competition, won the decathlon scoring a total of 7293 points for the ten events. His best scoring events were the 100m in 11.34s, the 400m in 50.54s and the 110m hurdles in 15.51s.

Summary of results:
New Zealand placings.-
Men.-
100m: Isaac Tatoa 10.96s 3, Michael Wilson 11.07s 6. U/20 Zac Topping 11.14s 4.
200m: Nick Ash 22.34s 5, Wilson 23.43s 7. U/20 Topping 22.90s 4.
400m: Ash 48.94s 5.
800m: Tim Hawkes 1m 53.24s 2, Aniel Smith 1m 57.92s 5.
1500m: Smith 3m 57.20s 2.
110m hurdles U/20 Peter Callagher 14.92s 1.
400m hurdles: Daniel O’Shea 51.68s 1, Shay Taylor 53.60s 5. U/20 Campbell Wu 56.46s 1.
Shot put: Jerram Huston 13.00m 7. U/20 Solomone Vaka 14.48m 1.
Discus throw: Marshall Hall 51.53m 1, Keri Tongalea 49.48m 2. U/20 Vaka 50.08m 1.
Javelin throw: Ben Langton-Burnell 60.38m 2. U/20 Langton-Burnell 58.46m 2.
Long jump: Andrew Moore 6.91m 4. U/20 Andy Kruy 7.04m 1, Moore 6.83m 2, Zinzan Fern 6.59m 3.
Triple jump: Todd Swanson 14.06m 3, Daniel Fake 13.69m 4. U/20 Fake 14.05m 2, Swanson 13.96m 3, Fern 13.96m 4.
High jump: Moore 1.80m 4.
Decathlon: Scott McLaren (100m 11.34s 786, long jump 6.70m 743, shot put 14.37m 751, high jump 1.91m 723, 400m 50.54s 790, 110m hurdles 15.51s 789, discus throw 40.34m 671, pole vault 4.40m 731, javelin throw 56.22m 681, 1500m 4m 48.53s 628) 7293 points 1.
4 x 100m relay: NZ (Nick Ash, Michael Wilson, Daniel O’Shea, Isaac Tatoa) 42.20s 2. NZ U/20 (Peter Callagher, Andy Kruy, Zac Topping, Daniel Dyet) 50.40s 1.
Women.-
100m: Rochelle Coster 11.93s 2. U/20 Lauren Wilson 12.15s 1.
200m: Rebecca Gibson 25.74s 4. U/20 Lauren Wilson 24.96s 1.
400m: Gibson 57.74s 6. U/20 Katherine Camp 57.00s 1.
100m hurdles: Andrea Miller 13.55s 1, Coster 14.67s 3. U/20 Zoe Ballantyne 14.83s 1, Portia Bing 14.88s 2.
400m hurdles: U/20 Alexandra Skerten 63.65s 1, Ballantyne 65.77s 2.
3000m steeplechase: Sarah McSweeney 11m 14.44s 1.
10,000m race walk: Roseanne Robinson 53m 43s 2.
Shot put U/20 Merewarihi Vaka 13.36m 2.
Discus: Beatrice Faumuina 58.32m 1, Vaka 47.23m 3. U/20 Vaka 47.75m 1.
Long jump: Marissa Pritchard 5.81m 1, Nneka Okpala 5.21m 4. U/20 Bing 5.70m 1, Greer Alsop 5.48m 2.
Triple jump: Okpala 12.21m 2. U/20 Alsop 12.11m 1, Charlotte Muschamp 11.56m 3, Camp 11.51m 4.
High jump: Open Elizabeth Lamb 1.80m 1, Emma Sutherland 1.50m 7. U/20 Elizabeth Lamb 1.80m 1, Charlotte Muschamp 1.68m 3, Emma Sutherland 1.60m 5.
4 x 100m relay: NZ (Lauren Wilson, Rebecca Gibson, Rochelle Coster, Andrea Miller) 48.33s 3. NZ U/20 (Portia Bing, Alexandra Skerten, Katherine Camp, Merewarihi Vaka) 49.18s 1.

Link to the Championship site: http://hosting1.sportingpulse.com/www.athletics-oceania.com/?id=346

WHANGAREI
The Takapuna two man team of Matthew Downs and Stephen Lett won the annual Waipu relay which doubled as the Northland Rod Relay Championships. The pair recorded 1h 26m 47s for the 24.4km. Whangarei were second in 1h 34m 51s with Hatea third in 1h 42m 26s. Lett set a record of 19m 7s on one of the 6.1km laps.
Whangarei won the women’s relay from Hatea. 14 year old Tayla Going of Whangarei with 26m 25s ran the fastest 6.1km lap.

AUCKLAND
Viaduct Harbour 5km Series – 21 September 2010
Nick Pannett won in 15m 16s, from Leyden Tolhurst 15m 39s.

TAURANGA
Waikato Secondary Schools Road Championships – 22 September 2010
Senior boys 6km won by Julian Oakley in 20m 6s, Mohamed Ali was second in 20m 8s. Mikayla Neilson won the senior girls 4km in 13m 50s. Intermediate boys 4km went to Michael Sutton in 12m 50s, from Tom McLaughlin 12m 51s. Olivia Ritchie won the intermediate girls 3km in 10m 46s.

WELLINGTON
Waterfront 5km Series – 21 September 2010
Hamish Carson won in 15m 00s, beating Richard Swan 16m 00s. Tina Harris was the first woman in 17m 18s with Gabrielle O’Rourke second in 17m 26s and Stephanie Mackenzie third in 18m 20s. Terri Grimmett took her eighth consecutive victory in the walk in 30m 43s.

CANTERBURY
The Phil Costley shield, the symbol of Primary and Intermediate Schools’ Cross Country supremacy, was shared by Canterbury and Wellington, at Hanmer Springs on Thursday. Over 275 Year 5 to 8 school children from Canterbury, Tasman and Wellington took part.
Canterbury, who had wrestled the shared shield from Wellington in Nelson in 2009, were dominant in the Year 7 age groups, due to having Athletics New Zealand 2010 Cross country champion, Ari Graham, winning the girls’ race and Angus Bailey, winning his third IRXC title in a row in the boys. Wellington’s strength was in the Year 8 age groups. IRXC 2007 winner Kelsey Forman, led in four of her team mates for a clean sweep in the girl’s race. With one race to go over the very testing 1.1km course, the shield lay in the balance with Wellington trailing by one point. The final race of the day saw IRXC history being made when Wellington’s Noah Billingsley took out his fourth Inter-Regional title in a row after a competitive race with Tasman’s Sam Mackay-Wright and Canterbury’s Fergus Eglesfield. Billingsley’s victory ensured a win for his team and the shield would be shared for the second time.
The closest race of the day was in the Year 5 Girls’ race where Canterbury’s Georgia Stroud, daughter of Canterbury Tactix Coach, Helen Mahon-Stroud, out sprinted her team and school mate, Mya Graham, on the line, to win by 0.38 seconds. Tasman were very competitive in the younger age groups, winning two team silver medals. They also won their first IRXC title for two years when Nelson’s Ben Hamer dominated the Year 6 boys’ race.
World Schools’ Cross Country Champion, Margot Gibson and New Zealand running legend, Phil Costley, whom the shield is named after, presented the Shield and Medals.

DUNEDIN
Port Chalmers to Dunedin 12.4km Road Race – 25 September 2010
Dougal Thorburn was the fastest over the 12.4km in 41m 36s, Elliot O’Sullivan ran 46m 55s and Louis Tomlin 48m 6s. Martin Fey was first on handicap.
Sarah Chisnall was the fastest woman in 49m 55s. Julie Wilson recorded 53m 24s and Maria Sleeman 55m 45s. Kerry Rowley was first on handicap.

ATHLETICS NEW ZEALAND
Leanne Asher Announces her Resignation
Athletics New Zealand Competitions and Events Manager Leanne Asher has announced her resignation after seven years with the National Association.
During her tenure, Leanne has led the refinement of the nine national championship events that Athletics NZ delivers, as well as providing significant operational support to the Lion Foundation Rotorua Marathon, the IAAF Permit Meet (now discontinued) and the Annual Meetings of the sport. Leanne’s attention to detail has seen a full overhaul of the Association’s procedures and policies in the competitions area, but undoubtedly her greatest strength has been her ability to provide real and valued support and guidance on event day itself. Leanne has formed very strong working relationships with key event organisers throughout the country and her empathy and direction will be sorely missed.
Leanne’s final national championships will be this Saturday’s National Road Relay event at Inglewood on 2 October.
Athletics New Zealand will begin the search for a replacement Competitions and Events Manager shortly.