News & Updates

Paralympic shot put champion Lisa Adams will be the star name on show at the 2023 Sola Power Throwers Meet in Lower Hutt on Saturday (4 February) – which for a second year takes on World Athletics Challenger meet status.

The event has attracted some of the finest throwing exponents in New Zealand, and all will be eager to flex their muscles, none more so than the formidable Adams, who will look for a good performance on the road to defending her shot put F37 title to the World Para Athletics Championships in Paris in July.

The 32-year-old, set her world shot F37 record of 15.50m in Hastings in 2020, and it will be interesting to see how the Lake City AC athlete performs less than 24 hours after competing at the Team Ledger Harcourts Capital Classic in Wellington.

A powerful para field will include national U20 shot put F37 record-holder Sionnan Murphy and 14-year-old Milly Marshall-Kirkwood of Inglewood Athletics, the national U17 record-holder in the F57 division.

New Zealand U20 shot put champion Natalia Rankin-Chitar (Papatoetoe) is another standout name entered for the women’s shot.

In-form New Zealand U20 champion Liam Ngchok-Wulf will be the man to beat in the men’s shot put. The 19-year-old Papakura club athlete last weekend at Cooks Classic launched the senior implement out a 90cm PB of 17.24m and he will looking to back that up in Lower Hutt. Samoan international Nathaniel Sulupo (16.21m) will also be a threat.

Several Para-athletes also compete led by national open shot put F20 record-holder and 2019 World Para Athletics Championship representative Jack Lewer (Palmerston North) and national U20 F12 record-holder Corran Hanning (Kiwi AC).

The men’s discus looks like serving up a compelling three-way battle between Sulupo – with a best of 52.17m – the 2022 New Zealand senior men’s discus silver medallist Jade Zaia (50.66m) and Jared Neighbours (50.19m), who claimed national bronze in 2021. Max Abbot (Karori), the national U20 champion, also competes.

Hanning, a national U20 discus F12 record-holder is also entered.

The women’s discus serves up a head-to-head battle between the one-two from the 2022 national U20 discus as Rankin-Chitar faces off against Elizabeth Hewitt (Mana). Emerging teenage Para athletes Murphy, the national U20 F37 record-holder and Kirkwood, the New Zealand U17 F57 record-holder will also take to the circle.

The 2022 New Zealand senior women’s hammer bronze medallist Lexi Maples leads a quality line up in the women’s hammer. The 23-year-old Canterbury-based athlete set a PB of 57.38m for second at Potts Classic and faces strong opposition in the shape of Dyani Shepherd-Oates (57.44m).

Hewitt, the reigning national U20 champion, leads a strong line-up in the U20 event, where she will take on the challenge of her club-mate Anya Dunlop Brown, the national U20 silver medallist, and New Zealand national U18 silver medallist Mia Bartlett (Wairarapa). New Zealand U18 hammer champion Mikayla Sola will be strongly fancied in the U18 division.

Bartlett, the national U18 javelin champion, leads the contenders in the javelin.

Among the more prominent entrants in the men’s hammer is Australian 55.98m thrower Damian Wells. Others likely to figure include Abbot, he national U20 silver medallist with national U18 silver medallist Alexander Hewitt the lead name in the U18 division.

Watch out too for 55-year-old Phil Jensen, the 2002 Commonwealth Games silver medallist and 20-time New Zealand senior men’s hammer champion, who is also entered.

The men’s javelin has attracted reigning senior men’s national champion Jared Neighbours (Christchurch Old Boys), who boasts a PB of 61.84m and Kaleb Sola, the 2022 national U20 silver medallist, son of meet organiser, Shaka.

***The programme begins at 10am and concludes around 5pm. Check out the full programme here

***Men’s entries here

***Women’s entries here

***The event will be livestreamed from 9.45am on Saturday. Livestream link here