News & Updates

Zoe Hobbs will have an eye on the weather heading into Wellington for the Capital Classic meeting on Friday and hoping for favourable conditions for the 100m and 200m.

After pulling out all stops and setting national record of 11.21 in the heats of the 100m in Hastings last week her time of 11.14 in the final was foiled by a following wind being just over the two metres per second allowable for records.

Hobbs will be seeking to replicate her current top form in the 100m where she holds the meeting record of 11.42 set at the 2019 Capital Classic meeting. The country’s next fastest this season Anna Percy with 11.40 has entered along with Symone Tafunai, Livvy Wilson and Chayille and Addira Collette.

Hobbs will line up 40 minutes later in the 200m, an event she last raced in Italy in July last year. The five times national 100m champion will face the current national 200m champion Georgia Hulls in the 200m. Hobbs also holds the meeting record in the 200m of 23.52 from 2019.

Tiaan Whelpton will be back in action in the men’s 100m following on from his national resident equalling record performance of 10.18 in Hastings. In the heats at the Potts Classic he swept to a wind assisted sizzling 10.09, inside the national record of 10.11 held by Gus Nketia. National long jump and 100m champion Shay Veitch and national 200m champion Cody Wilson will line up in the 100m.

Having equalled Joseph Millar’s resident record Whelpton will be chasing Millar’s meeting record of 10.36 from 2016.

Whelpton and Wilson will also contest the 200m along with the 2020 under-18 champion Zachary Saunders, who won at the Cooks Classic in a personal best 21.86. Veitch will be juggling between the sprints and the long jump where Francois Coetzee’s 2003 meeting record of 7.52m comes under threat.

Julian Oakley the dominant middle-distance runner this season having won national titles in the 3000m and mile should repeat his victory from last year in the 1500m, where he set a meeting record of 3:41.96. Russell Green, Zane Powell, Connor Melton, Jarod Monk and James Corbett fresh from their personal best miles on Sunday will make for a close race.

The Newtown Park ground was the scene last year of Hamish Kerr’s New Zealand high jump record of 2.31m. Kerr is back looking to go higher after an encouraging jump of 2.28m on Sunday in Whanganui. Keeley O’Hagan and Josephine Reeves are in the women’s high jump.

Lauren Bruce set the meeting hammer throw record of 71.66m last year and recent form indicates she will extend that. Nicole Bradley will also be seeking a 70 metre plus throw. Anthony Nobilo has the target of 67.43m in the men’s hammer throw, which is Philip Jensen’s 2003 record. Tori Peeters likewise will be aiming the javelin out beyond 57.38m, the meeting record in the women’s javelin.

Aaron Booth will be competing in the 100m, 110m hurdles, high jump and javelin throw in preparation for a good score at the national decathlon championship in early March.

Ieuan van der Peet, George Guerin and Michael Sutton should battle out the 3000m steeplechase, while in the 3000m race walk Jonah Cropp and Daniel Du Toit will foot it out.

James Ford will be looking to improve on his 800m personal best racing Michael Dawson and Mikael Starzynski while Holly Manning and Jennifer Hauke will make it a two-way race in the women’s 800m.

Laura Nagel should capitalise on her recent good form and run close to Angie Petty’s meeting record of 4:20.75 in the 1500m in an expected close race with Katherine Camp and Kara Macdermid.

Scott and Anna Thomson are in the triple jump while Mariah Ririnui and Ashleigh Bennett will contest the long jump which also includes Paralympic long jump champion Anna Grimaldi.

Amy Robertson won the 100m hurdles at last year’s meeting in her career best time of 13.58 and is back aiming for Rochelle Coster’s record of 13.41.

Heading the shot put contests are Nathaniel Sulupo and Tapenisa Havea and Natalia Rankin-Chitar.

The New Zealand under 20 mile championships for men and women will be staged, in the case of the men, for the first time since Rod Dixon won in 1969 in 4:19.8. The under 20 women previously did not have a mile championship with the first year of the metric equivalent the 1500m in 1975.

Will Anthony should add the mile title to the record breaking 3000m title he won last week in Whanganui. Also in the field are Karsen Vesty, Christian de Vaal.

Hannah Gapes will be aiming for the women’s under 20 title. In with a podium placing chance are Boh Ritchie and Jemima Antoniazzi.

The Sola Power Throwers Academy Meeting, which has been granted Area Permit Status, will be held at Moera Lower Hutt on Saturday.

It is the 11th anniversary of the annual celebration of throws established by Shaka Sola to encourage athletes from a young age into throwing events.

Lauren Bruce is the headline thrower at the meeting and will be competing in the hammer and discus throws. Bruce was at the 2013 meeting as a 14-year-old and has supported the concept for a number of years.

Her best hammer throw is 74.61m and her best this year is 72.15m at the Yvette Williams Memorial Meeting in Dunedin. In the discus Bruce threw 54.56m for the silver medal at the 2020 national championships. Twice national champion Te Rina Keenan along with Tatiana Kaumoana who won with 53.75m at the Potts Classic are also down for the discus throw.

Todd Bates, Mayce Ballantyne and Lexi Maples will also compete in the hammer throw.

Nathaniel Sulupo inspired by the presence of Jacko Gill set a personal best last year of 16.21m in the shot put and is back keen to improve on this distance.

Tapenisa Havea, Natalia Rankin-Chitar, Mikayla Sola, Suzannah Kennelly, Elizabeth Hewitt and Paralympic javelin F46 champion Holly Robinson will compete in the shot put. Jared Neighbours, Liam Ngchok-Wulf and Max Abbot will take to the circle in the discus throw.

A livestream of the Capital Classic can be seen on Sky Sport Next from 4pm on Friday

By Murray McKinnon