News & Updates

Welcome to the Athletics New Zealand Weekly Round up.This week’s edition includes:

Cross country results from around the country
International results, including the World Trail Running Champs in Portugal
Road and Trail race results
Murray McKinnon
Athletics New Zealand Correspondent
P:0274 806086
E:murray@mckinnon.co.nz
New Zealand Cross Country
AUCKLAND
Auckland Grand Prix No 3, Auckland teams cross country championships, Barry Curtis Park, East Tamaki – 8 June 2019
Peter Wheeler comfortably won the senior 8km in 26:51. Jono Jackson tracked Wheeler over the initial two laps before Wheeler eased into the lead. Jackson was second in 27:20 with David Lee third in 28:04, 26 seconds ahead of Hayden Rodger. Auckland City Athletics won the senior teams title from Owairaka and Pakuranga. Greg Darbyshire headed in the masters in 28:14 from Nick Moore and Sasha Daniels. Owairaka won the masters teams from ACA and Lynndale.

In the combined senior and master women 6km, national cross country champion Lisa Cross running in the MW35-39 grade won outright in 22:04. Grace Ritchie of Hamilton City Hawks was next and the first senior in 24:14 from Amanda Holyer 24:22 and Alana Lythe 24:48. Katherine Morgan was the second master in 25:53 ahead of Shamiso Sisimayi 26:14. Papakura, led by Cross, won the teams title from YMCA.

Luke Clements (15) opted for the under 20 and under 18 5km which he won in impressive style in 17:36. Ethan Verner was second and first under 20 in 17:44. Jahka Tohaia was next and second to Clements in the under 18 in 17:56. Papakura won the teams from Pakuranga.

Penelope Salmon (15) made no race of the under 20 and under 18 4km winning as she liked in 15:16. Macey Hilton was second in 16:47 and Zara Jancys third in 16:54.

Christian De Vaal won the under 16 4km in 14:07 from Ronan Codyre and Addison Stewart. Pakuranga won the teams from Lynndale. Arlo Farquhar led in Amelia Green and Siobhan Balle in the under 16 3km in 12:03. Papakura won the teams from Pt Chevalier and Pakuranga.

WELLINGTON
Dorne Cup Cross Country Races, Trentham Memorial Park – 8 June 2019
Last year’s champion, Kara Macdermid and Maiya Christini broke away from the rest of the field early and pushed the pace consistently for the first lap of their 6km race.

Macdermid put in a hard surge over the stop-banks on the second lap and opened up a five-metre gap on Christini. However, the two were back running together when they reappeared on the main field a kilometre later, before Christini made a bid for victory. She held and increased her lead, beating Macdermid through the two stream crossings to the finish line in 21:10. Christini now holds the current titles for all Wellington interclub races except the Cross Country Championships which is up for grabs next month. Macdermid recorded 21:21. Sarah Drought in 22:35 and Melissa Black were the next two runners home, to give Wellington Harriers a comprehensive win in the team competition.

The men’s race also saw two runners break away from the field straight away and keen relentless pressure on each other to the finish. Vosseler Shield champion Niam Macdonald-Joslin and New Zealand marathon representative Daniel Jones quickly cleared away from the field over their 8km race. During the second lap, they both put in several surges trying to break away from each other. Jones got a small gap going into the last narrow section of bush trail before the stream crossings. He held that gap to the finish in 25:00 to retain his Dorne Cup title.Macdonald-Joslin recorded 25:02. 17-year-old Liam Back, running as a senior, held off Isaac Murphy for third place in 25:29. Scottish comfortably won the teams title with their six scoring runners finishing in the top ten. Brian Garmonsway was the first master in 26:07 from Stephen Day and Andrew Wharton. Mel Stevens led in the master women in 23:56 from Lindsay Barwick and Renae Creser.

Under 20 4km Toby Gualter 12:10 from Max Karamanolis and Thomas Strawbridge. Under 18 4km Will Anthony 12:13 from Andres Hernandez and Andre Le Pine-Day. Under 20 women 4km Kristie Rae 13:43 from Sarah Lambert and Catrin Dawson. Under 18 women 4km Emma Douglass 14:28 from Saskia Cosgrove Drayton and Maali Kyle-Ford.

CHRISTCHURCH
Holloway Memorial Cross Country Races,Motukarara Race Course– 8 June 2019
Former national junior 10,000m and steeplechase champion Matt Dryden won the senior 10km in 33:54 from Daniel Redmond and Tane Cambridge. Ryan Kiesanowski was the fastest master in 34:57. Navajo Prentice, national junior steeplechase champion last year won the senior women’s 8km in 31:56 from Angela Doig and Andrea Hewitt. Maggie Chorley recorded 24:23 in the masters 6km.

Under 20 6km Ayrton Shadbolt 20:30 from Thomas Coleman. Under 18 4km Henry Allott 13:42 from Thomas Anderson and Dominic Pulley. Under 20 women 4km Liliana Braun 15:05 from Tamara Reeves and Sarah McClure. Under 18 4km Leila Dunlop 15:29 from Sequoya Prentice and Rosie-Jane Trotter.
Theo Walker B16 3km 9:58, Nicole Vance G16 3km 11:11.

DUNEDIN
Barnes Handicap Cross Country, Kettle Park – 9 June 2019
Steve Stewart won the senior 5km from Alexander Brown and Andrew Lonie. Russell Green was fastest in 17:10, Joel Carman 17:27 and Liam Chesney 17:48.
Lucy Marr won the women’s 3.75km from Alison Newall and Gail Sharp. Laura Bungard was fastest 15:36, Kristy Eyles 16:06 and Georgia Mitchell 16:28.
Under 18 men 2.5km Ollie Oberlin-Brown, fastest Benjamin Lund 9:27. Under 18 women 2.5km Zara Geddes, fastest Viviane Dalphin 10:26.
International Results
PORTUGAL
2019 World Trail Running Championships, Mirandha do Corvo, Coimbra, 8 June: Ruth Croft representing New Zealand finished second in the women’s 44.2km, with 2,200m of climbing, in 4:14:29. Blandine L’hirondel of France won in 4:06:18. Croft was not expecting to finish second mid-way through the race. “It was really hard from the start and I was 12th at 15km. The last 5km being road and flat suited me and I moved up to second.”

Nancy Jiang was 48th in 4:55:25 and Mel Aitken 111th in 5:34:38. Sam McCutcheon was the best of the New Zealand team in the men’s championship finishing 57th in 4:05:35. Andrew Thompson 4:32:25 (118), Paul Timothy 4:56:35 (156), Will Bell 5:07:42 (170), Tim Rabone 5:12:46 (177), Chris Dunnell 5:25:02 (188). Jonathan Albon of Great Britain won in 3:35:35. 204 men and 159 women completed the distance.

USA
NCAA Division 1, Austin TX, 5/6 June: Aaron Booth decathlon 7680 points PB, fifth all-time New Zealand rankings. (100m 11.12 +0.2, LJ 7.22m +1.5, SP 13.00m, HJ 1.95m, 400m 49.73 PB, 110m H 15.32 +0.5 PB, DT 41.54m, PV 4.71m, JT 56.66m, 1500m 4:35.13). 7 June: Geordie Beamish 5000m 14:13.18 (10).
Portland Track Classic, Portland OR, 8 June: Craig Lautenslager 10,000m 29:14.81 (12).

ITALY
IAAF Diamond League, Golden Gala, Olympic Stadium Rome, 6 June: Nick Willis finished 19th in the 5000m in 13:56.94. Telahun Haile Bekele of Ethiopia won in 12:52.98.

GERMANY
Laufgala, Pfungstadt, 8 June: Rhys Bishop 800m 1:53.27 (8).

SPAIN
Gran Premio Cantones, La Coruña, 8 June: Alana Barber 20km race walk 1:35:22 (32).
Road and Trail Races Around the Country
Auckland
Rat Race 5km, Takapuna, 5 June: Damon Nicholas 18:12, Andrew Cave 18:36, Dominic Cook 19:46. Jacey Cropp 20:22.