Records, Thrilling Finishes, and Star Performances on Day 2 of the Jennian Homes NZ Track & Field Championships

The action continued at the Jennian Homes NZ Track & Field Championships, with national titles, record-breaking performances, and electrifying finishes lighting up the Caledonian Ground in Ōtepoti Dunedin.

Olympic silver medallist Maddison-Lee Wesche showed her class in the Women’s Shot Put, dominating the competition with a winning throw of 18.49m. Natalia Rankin-Chitar (15.21m) took silver, while Kate Hallie (13.59m) finished third. After a wobbly start of three foul throws, Wesche found her rhythm in her first competition in NZ since Paris. Her best of the day proved to be a class above the field.
Weshe now turns her attention to the World Indoor Championships in Nanjing, China. Ahead of her is a diamond league circuit before the year’s pinnacle in Tokyo – The World Athletics Championships.

World U20 Champion Ethan Olivier continued his dominance in the Men’s Triple Jump, winning with a best jump of 16.33m. Sebastian Panakkal (14.60m) took silver, while Scott Thomson (14.35m) finished third.

Tori Moorby (56.15m) secured gold in the Women’s Javelin, with Alexa Duff (46.84m) and Mya Phillips (41.88m) rounding out the podium.

In the Men’s Discus, Olympian Connor Bell (60.73m) finished well clear of the field, ahead of Nathaniel Sulupo (52.59m) and Kieran Fowler (51.76m)

Cropp Beats Own U20 NZ Record

One of the standout moments of the day came in the Men’s 3000m Race Walk, where Jonah Cropp delivered a strong performance, clocking 12:10.56 to break the New Zealand U20 record. His time eclipsed his own best from 2024 of 12:16.43. His record-setting effort saw him finish ahead of Daniel Du Toit (12:44.11) and Lucas Martin (12:50.49) in a high-quality podium.

In the Women’s 3000m Race Walk, Arnika Nelson led the way in 13:57.14, followed by Alana Mathews (16:08.46) and Rozie Robinson (17:34.53). In the U18 division, Alysa Brown impressed with 15:52.77.

The Women’s 800m final was a thriller, with the race running five wide down the straight! Boh Ritchie prevailed, stopping the clock at 2:07.23 ahead of Stella Pearless at 2:07.51. Holly Rule (2:07.91) was right on their heels in one of the tightest finishes of the championships so far.

With 2024 champion and NZ record holder James Preston opting to focus on building up towards global championships, the title race was wide open. Ethan Smolej stepped up to claim gold with a solid time of 1:52.62, holding off Kosta Mills (1:54.13) and Oliver Dunshea (1:55.56) after a brave long kick down from over 300m out.

The Men’s 3000m Steeplechase came down to the wire as Michael Sutton (9:03.11) held off Ben Bidois (9:03.48) in a dramatic final stretch, with Matthew Arnold (9:04.72) securing bronze. With four athletes in contention going over the final water jump, it was anyone’s race to win. Sutton’s surging tactics over the last paid dividends as he stormed away to the title once over the final barrier.

Eva Pringle continued her impressive form on the women’s side, cruising to victory in 10:26.09, ahead of Ashleigh Gardner (10:55.97) and Laura Fernandez (11:30.84).

Paralympic star William Stedman (T36) put on a dominant display in the Men’s Para 400m, crossing in 54.51 (94.55%), well ahead of Jaxon Woolley (57.59, 84.20%) and Finn Tregurtha-Nairn (59.45, 81.56%).

In the Women’s Para 400m, Amy Ellis (T13) ran 1:11.77 (74.61%) to take the win, with Sarah James (1:15.00, 65.91%) and Sasha Al-Dazhani (1:19.70, 73.61%) rounding out the podium.

The Men’s 400m Hurdles delivered a fantastic race, as Jonathan Maples (52.80) edged out Hunter Dale (52.99) and James Hansen (53.50) in a high-quality final.

In the Women’s 400m Hurdles, Grace Wisnewski (1:02.78) won, with Zarah Rattray (1:05.47) finishing second.

The Men’s 4x100m Relay saw the home team of Otago claim gold ahead of Canterbury and Hawke’s Bay Gisborne. Shay Veitch was triumphant for Otago across the line, raising his baton to the sky. Meanwhile, the Women’s final was marred by a Canterbury disqualification, allowing Hawke’s Bay Gisborne to secure the win over Otago.

In the U20 Men’s 4x100m, Canterbury narrowly took the title from Wellington by just 0.01 seconds, providing one of the most thrilling finishes of the day.

In the Men’s Para Shot Put, Jack Adams (F46) claimed gold with 10.12m (60.24%), while Rorie Poff (F34) continued his remarkable run at this meet, throwing 7.10m (57.96%).

In the Women’s Para Shot Put, Sionann Murphy (F37) produced the best throw of 8.98m (57.94%), ahead of Una Kinajil-Reding (F46) – 8.10m (57.61%) and Charli Gardiner-Hall (F37) – 8.11m (52.37%).

The Women’s Long Jump was a highly competitive event, with Maddie Wilson leaping to a personal best 6.17m to claim gold. Phoebe Edwards (6.02m) and Kelsey Berryman (5.98m) completed the podium in a closely contested battle.

With two more days and more finals still to come, the 2025 Jennian Homes NZ Track & Field Championships action is heating up. Tune in to the live stream on Saturday at 3 pm on the Athletics NZ Youtube Channel.

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