Illawong Little Athletics 2010/2011 Season Presentation Day

Illawong Little Athletics2010/2011 SeasonPresentation Day29 th March 2011

President’s ReportAs the 2010-2011 season draws to an end I would liketo thank the Illawong Little Athletics committee,coaches, athletes and parents and carers who helpedmake this another successful season.We started off the season with a brand new shed onthe lower field which has been an enormous help forsetting up. Late January our little yellow electric cartarrived which has made moving equipment around thefield a lot easier. We hope to continue withimprovements to the facility during the off season.Now if only we could get some shade!!!!Congratulations to all the athletes and coaches for theresults they achieved at both Centre andrepresentative competitions. We had athletescompeting at every LAANSW championship thisseason and winning medals at each of thesechampionships (See Officer for ChampionshipsReport) We also had some long standing recordsbroken this season, shown later in this report.Thank you to our Centre Captains, Brooke Giffen andthe Pierce Coles-Sinclair for their leadership, friendshipand the encouragement. Although Pierce was notpresent very often – we certainly knew it when he didturn up! I would also like to say farewell to all ourUnder 15’s and wish them all the best in their futureendeavours, we hope they leave Illawong with fondmemories and strong friendships.I would like to give my sincere thanks to all membersof the Illawong Little A’s committee:Glen Nicholls - for taking on the role of Vice-Presidentthis year assisting with the running of the club whilealso acting as Under13’s age manager and frequentlyalso as equipment set out/packup and as a sponsor tothe club.Michelle Maxwell - who took on the role of Secretary,always carrying out his duties efficiently andeffectively. Michelle also worked long hours in thecanteen (especially over the Region weekend) veryably assisted by regular helpers Bree Makovec andJeanette Sale.Anthony Makowiak - continuing in the position ofTreasurer and has kept the club in a sound financialposition. Many thanks to Anthony for a job well doneand for making sure we had sufficient funds to spendon rewards for our athletes.Helen Nisbet - our Registrar, I appreciate all the hoursHelen puts in registering athletes, doing the runningaround organising t-shirts for our Region athletes andthe jackets for the State team. With the assistance ofDeirdre Kable, she chose all the trophies for thisevening.Tanya Giffen - our Officer for Championships, whichby default also makes her team manager at the variousChampionship events, ensuring she was kept busyevery weekend. This is also Tanya’s last season andshe will be sorely missed. I have enjoyed Tanya’scompany, her friendship and all the help she hasprovided over the years.Amanda Nicholls – for filling the tough role ofMarketing Officer, and what a job she did. Amandamanaged to get even more sponsors than her husbandGlen did the previous year. Amanda also acts as theUnder 6’s age manager.Laura Reid – a new arrival to the Centre took on therole as newsletter writer, for which I am very grateful.Laura already has plans for how she will do things nextseason.Our Coaches: Dani’elle Clarke, Norm Windred (andPauline Stark), Steve Robinson, Brigitte Bannister,Greg Engeler and unofficial coach Ernie Lee. Althoughmost of these people are not present at our weeklycarnivals or even have kids at little A’s any more(except for Greg) they are regularly at the track puttingtheir training groups through their paces and providingadvice and guidance. The success at the variouscompetitions show what an asset it is to have goodcoaches. We thank all our dedicated coaches forfreely giving their time to train our athletes.Our Age Managers contributed significantly throughoutthe year and I am grateful for their efforts – theymarshall their charges and try to get enough helpersfor their age group to get their events underway. Wewill require more age managers next year and I urgeyou to consider acting as an age manager – you’ll getto know the kids and parents in your own age groupand have a lot of fun with them.‘Uncle Ray’ – who this season made the recordingtable his own domain. Ray also helped fix things whenthey broke and assist with set up and pack up. He hasbeen a great asset this season and we look forward tohis return next season.Thanks to Joe Sammut and Georg Herger for manningthe timing equipment each weekend in all weatherconditions and Lynne Moseley for being the “buttonpusher” this year.To all Illawong parents, you just need to take a look atthe smiles on your kids faces when they get a new PBor master an event that they’ve been struggling with toknow that it is all worth it. Thank you for yourinvolvement and for responding when I call forassistance to move equipment about or help on thefinish line.The 2010-2011 team has done a great job, but weneed more people to help out not only at the weeklycarnivals but also on the committee so that Illawongcan continue to be a Centre of which we can all beproud. Please join the Illawong committee, as withoutthe committee we will not have a club.Enjoy your winter season, hope to see you all backnext season.Deborah EngelerVice President’s ReportAnother successful Season has past and I would like tocongratulate all our Athletes for their success in all thatthey have achieved whether it be a PB, going to Zone,Region or State. Congratulations to all, you should beproud of your achievements.At Illawong Little Athletics I feel we have one of thebest venues in the shire. It takes great dedication,commitment and hard work from a Committee to keep

athletes also set a number of records with the newtiming system and Brooke Giffen U15 broke a longoutstanding long jump record.59 individual athletes progressed to Region wherethere were strong performances by all, including ourUnder 8’s Stephanie Potter, Bienne Terita, AlexanderPrice, Brayden Roeger, Zacariah Smith and AlexanderZinnato who performed very well.Special mention to Josh Kelly-Makovec U17 who alsoset a new region record in the 1500m. All of theathletes looked great in their Region Polo Shirts andcaps. Many thanks to Helen Nisbet for organisingthese and the State Jackets. A very big thank you alsoto all the parents and committee members whoassisted at Region to make the carnival enjoyable andsuccessful.23 quality athletes progressed to the StateChampionships, with 8 of them competing in two ormore events. Their efforts resulted in 2 Gold (ThibautPotin & Harrison Brierley), 3 Silver ( Brady Goodyear,Joshua Kelly-Makovec & Gabrielle Moseley) and 2Bronze medals (Joseph Cowell and BrookeSalzmann). A fabulous result.Earlier in the year, Illawong fielded 4 teams in theNSW State Relay event with the U12 Boys Long/HighJump relay winning Gold and U11 Boys Long/HighJump relay winning Silver. Congrats to our other U13and U15 mixed teams who also performed splendidly.Joshua Smith U11 and Adam Engeler U12, were alsoselected in the NSW Trans Tasman team where theyboth medalled with Silver and Gold respectively intheir high jump events. We also had a fabulous resultagain with our 4 athletes competing at the State MultiEvent in Wagga Wagga. Congratulations to BrookeGiffen U15 winning Silver (and her selection in theNSW State Multi Team), Silver to James ApostolakisU7, Bronze to Theo Christian U7,and a very credible6 th placing to Michael Northey U15 amongst verystrong competition.Illawong Little Athletics was also proudly representedat the 2010 Menai District Sports awards with manynominees. Adam Engeler and Brooke Giffen werefinalists for Junior Male and Female Sportspersons ofthe Year. Jack O’Loughlin was runner up for JuniorMale Rookie and the U11 boys High/Long JumpTeam(Kyle Goodwin, Tom Bennett, Adam Engeler andMitchell Nugent) winning Junior Male Sporting Teamof the Year.There were also 9 new Ground Records set this year!This is not including all new records for the U17 withJosh Kelly-Makovec and Samantha Sale keeping Debbusy every week!Little Athletics is all about fun and fitness and achievingyour personal best. Every athlete should be proud oftheir performance no matter what their result. Weappreciate your efforts to make all of our carnivals funand successful.Thank you also to the Coaches who helped theirathletes achieve their goals. Your efforts are certainlyappreciated.In conclusion I must congratulate all of our Under 15’s& U17’s, who include some extremely talentedathletes. I wish you every success in life and yourathletic pursuits. I anticipate that all Illawong athleteswill continue to achieve and have another successfulseason next year.Tanya GiffenSeason Championships ResultsState relaysU12 boys high jump/long jump team - goldTom BennettLiam MazeKyle GoodwinMitchell NugentU11 boys high jump/long jump team – silverJoshua SmithHarry BrierleyJesse PaiceJohn PalumberiU9 boys 4x100m – 6 th in heatU13 mixed 4x400m – 8 th in finalU15 mixed 4x400m – 4 th in final

Trans Tasman Challenge – SydneyJoshua Smith – under 11’s teamAdam Engeler - under 12’s team:High jump – silverHigh Jump - goldDiscus – 7 th Discus -Shot Put – 11thState Multi's – Wagga WaggaWe only had four competitors make the journey to Wagga Wagga this year, but the results were outstanding:U7 – James Apostolakis - SilverU7 – Theo Christian – BronzeU15 – Brooke Giffen - SilverU15 – Michael Northey - 6thBased on her performance, Brooke wasalso selected to the State team to competein the U15’s Multi event at the AustraliaLittle Athletics championship at Homebushin April.

Zone ChampionshipsUnder 7 - This age group do not progress to Region. There were, however, some outstanding results from thisage group. Special mention needs to go to James Apostolakis on winning 3 gold medals and to Theo Christianon winning 2 gold and 1 silver medal. A fantastic effort was put in by all out Under 7’s and it was their first majorcompetition experience. Congratulations to all of you.Athletes progressing to Region (only U13-U17 compete in more than 4 events)U8 BoysAlexander Price 4 60M Hurdles4 Long JumpBrayden Roeger 4 400M Run4 Pack StartZachariah Smith 3 Discus3 Shot PutAlexander Zinnato 1 100M RunU9 BoysMorgan Dutton 2 800M Run3 400M Run3 High JumpEthan Westwood 1 700M Walk4 Shot PutU10 BoysBenjamin Birchall 3 1500M Run1 400M Run3 800M RunJoseph Cowell 3 1100M WalkDominic Nisbet 2 1100M WalkU11 BoysJack Boyling 4 Shot PutHarrison Brierley 1 High Jump1 Triple JumpJesse Paice 3 Triple Jump4 60M Hurdles3 1500M Run3 400M RunKyle Roeger 3 DiscusJoshua Smith 2 Shot Put2 High Jump1 DiscusU12 BoysAdam Engeler 2 Javelin2 Discus2 High JumpKyle Goodwin 1 High Jump4 Long Jump2 200M RunDominic Herger 3 800M Run3 1500M RunLiam Maze 3 Long JumpMitchell Nugent 3 High JumpU13 BoysTyler Cotter 3 1500M Run3 800M RunJoshua Lucas 1 High Jump2 Triple Jump3 Long Jump1 80M Hurdles2 200M HurdlesBlake Sale 1 800M Run1 1500M Run2 3000M RunU14 BoysLachlan Grahame 4 100M Run4 High Jump4 400M Run3 200M Run2 Triple Jump4 Long JumpThibaut Potin 1 High JumpLiam Sparke 2 1500M Run2 3000M RunU15 BoysPierce Coles-Sinclair 3 800M Run1 1500M Run3 3000M RunBrady Goodyear 1 3000M RunMichael Northey 1 Long Jump4 Triple Jump1 High Jump2 100M Hurdles4 400M Run2 1500M WalkU17 BoysJoshua Kelly-Makovec 1 3000M Run1 1500M Run1 400M Run1 800M Run

U8 GirlsStephanie Potter 2 60M Hurdles4 70M Run4 Long JumpBienne Terita 3 70M Run4 100M RunU9 GirlsAnnelise Faust 4 60M HurdlesElla Robinson 2 Discus1 700M Walk4 Shot PutU10 GirlsRachel Fealy 3 1100M WalkRebekah Lee 2 100M Run3 Shot Put2 70M Run1 60M HurdlesMelody Nelson 2 Discus2 Long JumpIsabella Price 2 1100M Walk3 High JumpKiara Shaw 1 Long JumpU11 GirlsGeorgia Kalnin 4 High JumpMadison Kelly-Makovec 4 1500M RunU12 GirlsMaddison Boyling 1 High Jump3 60M HurdlesRachael Herger 4 1500M WalkMadeleine Nelson 3 JavelinBrooke Salzmann 2 100M Run2 High Jump1 Long Jump1 Triple JumpU13 GirlsSophie Maxwell 2 3000M Run3 400M Run2 800M RunCassandra Thanasoulias 4 200M HurdlesRachel Woods 3 200M HurdlesScarlett Wynn 3 Triple Jump2 High Jump2 80M HurdlesU14 GirlsKate Beudeker 1 800M RunAlana Dean 3 DiscusJessica Kable 4 Shot PutGenevieve Nisbet 3 Triple Jump4 Long JumpU15 GirlsChelsea Sammut 4 400M Run1 1500M WalkBrooke Giffen 1 Long Jump1 Triple Jump1 200M Hurdles2 100M Run1 90M HurdlesGabrielle Moseley 1 1500M WalkEliza Nelson 2 Triple Jump2 Discus3 Long Jump3 Shot PutMonique Sale 3 800M Run2 1500M Run1 3000M RunU17 GirlsSamantha Sale 1 800M Run2 400M Run1 1500M Run1 3000M Run

Regional ChampionshipsSome of the 58 athletes who made up the 2011 Illawong Region teamIllawong hosted Region for the first time and what a big weekend! Thank you to those that assisted over theregion weekend, especially those who worked the entire weekend. A couple of these volunteers did not even havekids competing at Region.The under 8’s do not progress to State but we had 4 boys and 3 girls competing over the region weekend whodeserve a special mention:Alexander Zinnato:Brayden Roeger:Alexander Price:Zachariah Smith:5 th in 100m heat7 th 400m8 th 700m pack start6 th 60m hurdles heat6 th shot put4 th discusStephanie Potter:Bienne Te Rita:4 th 70m heat4 th 60m hurdles final6 th Long jump4 th 70m final5 th 100m final

Your 2011 Illawong State repsElla RobinsonNickname: ‐‐Age group: U9Do you have a coach? Coach’s name: Shane Moseley, Danielle Clarke,Helen NisbetHow often do you train? Twice per weekFavourite event(s): discus, walk and 70mEvent(s) competed in at State: discus and walkResults at State: 6 th – walk, 15 th ‐ discusJoseph CowellNickname: JoeAge group: U10Do you have a coach? Coach’s name: ‐‐How often do you train? weeklyFavourite event(s): 1100m walkEvent(s) competed in at State: 1100m walkResults at State: BRONZERebekah LeeNickname: Bec Age group: U10Do you have a coach? Coach’s name: ‐‐How often do you train? ‐‐Favourite event(s): high jump, triple jump, 100mEvent(s) competed in at State: 60m hurdlesResults at State: 5 th in heatJoshua SmithNickname: JoshAge group: U11Do you have a coach? Coach’s name: Steve Robinson, Danielle ClarkeHow often do you train? Twice per weekFavourite event(s): high jumpEvent(s) competed in at State: high jump, discusResults at State: 5 th – high jump, 12 th ‐ discusHarrison BrierleyNickname: HarryAge group: U11Do you have a coach? Coach’s name: Danielle ClarkeHow often do you train? Twice per weekFavourite event(s): high jump, triple jump, 100mEvent(s) competed in at State: high jumpResults at State: GOLD

Maddison BoylingNickname: Maddy Age group: U12Do you have a coach? Coach’s name: Danielle ClarkeHow often do you train? Twice per weekFavourite event(s): high jump, hurdlesEvent(s) competed in at State: high jumpResults at State: =5thAdam EngelerNickname: ‐‐Age group: U12Do you have a coach? Coach’s name: Ernie Lee, Steve Robinson, GregEngelerHow often do you train? Twice per weekFavourite event(s): high jump, javelinEvent(s) competed in at State: javelinResults at State: 15 thMitchell NugentNickname: Mitch Age group: U12Do you have a coach? Coach’s name: Ernie Lee, Greg EngelerHow often do you train? Twice per weekFavourite event(s): high jump, hurdles, javelinEvent(s) competed in at State: high jumpResults at State: 11 thBrooke SalzmannNickname: Brooksta Age group: U12Do you have a coach? Coach’s name: Danielle ClarkeHow often do you train? Twice per weekFavourite event(s): long jump, triple jump, high jumpEvent(s) competed in at State: long jump, triple jumpResults at State: BRONZE ‐ triple jump, 5 th ‐ long jumpSophie MaxwellNickname: SophAge group: U13Do you have a coach? Coach’s name: Norm WindredHow often do you train? 3 times per weekFavourite event(s): 400m, 800m, 3000mEvent(s) competed in at State: 800mResults at State: 11 thBlake SaleNickname: ‐‐Age group: U13Do you have a coach? Coach’s name: Lindsay WatsonHow often do you train? 6 days per weekFavourite event(s): 3000m, 1500mEvent(s) competed in at State: 3000mResults at State: 11 th

Joshua LucasNickname: JoshAge group: U13Do you have a coach? Coach’s name: Danielle ClarkeHow often do you train? 4 days per weekFavourite event(s): high jump, triple jumpEvent(s) competed in at State: high jumpResults at State: 11 thScarlett WynnNickname: ‐‐Age group: U13Do you have a coach? Coach’s name: Danielle ClarkeHow often do you train?Favourite event(s): high jumpEvent(s) competed in at State: high jumpResults at State: 4 thThibaut PotinNickname: ‐‐Age group: U14Do you have a coach? Coach’s name: Ernie LeeHow often do you train? Not often enoughFavourite event(s): high jumpEvent(s) competed in at State: high jumpResults at State: GOLDLiam SparkeNickname: Sparkey Age group: U14Do you have a coach? Coach’s name: ‐‐How often do you train? ‐‐Favourite event(s): 3000mEvent(s) competed in at State: 3000mResults at State: 9 thGabrielle MoseleyNickname: Gabby Age group: U15Do you have a coach? Coach’s name: Anne SavilleHow often do you train? 4 days per weekFavourite event(s): walkEvent(s) competed in at State: walkResults at State: SILVERMonique SaleNickname: Nique Age group: U15Do you have a coach? Coach’s name: Lindsay WatsonHow often do you train? 6 days per weekFavourite event(s): 800mEvent(s) competed in at State: 3000mResults at State: 6 th

Eliza NelsonNickname: Liza Age group: U15Do you have a coach? Coach’s name: ‐‐How often do you train? ‐‐Favourite event(s): discusEvent(s) competed in at State: discus, triple jumpResults at State: 16 th ‐ triple jump, 7 th ‐ discusPierce Coles‐SinclairNickname: ‐‐Age group: U15Do you have a coach? Coach’s name: Lindsay WatsonHow often do you train? 3 days per week + cross trainingFavourite event(s): 800m, 1500m, 3000mEvent(s) competed in at State: 1500m, 3000mResults at State: 4 th ‐ 3000m, 5 th – 1500mMichael NortheyNickname: NortheyAge group: U15Do you have a coach? Coach’s name: Max Wilkinson, Shane Moseley,Danielle ClarkeHow often do you train? 4 days per weekFavourite event(s): triple jump, high jump, hurdles, walkEvent(s) competed in at State: walk, triple jump, high jumpResults at State: 6 th ‐ high jump, 11 th ‐ triple jump, 5 th ‐ walkBrady GoodyearNickname: custard tart Age group: U15Do you have a coach? Coach’s name: Lindsay WatsonHow often do you train? twice per week running, more for swimmingFavourite event(s): 3000mEvent(s) competed in at State: 3000mResults at State: SILVERSamantha SaleNickname: SamAge group: U17Do you have a coach? Coach’s name: Lindsay WatsonHow often do you train? 6 days per weekFavourite event(s): 1500mEvent(s) competed in at State: 800m, 1500m, 3000mResults at State: 7 th – 3000m; 9 th – 1500m, 7 th 800mJoshua Kelly‐MakovecNickname: JoshAge group: U17Do you have a coach? Coach’s name: Lindsay WatsonHow often do you train? 5 days per weekFavourite event(s): 800m, 1500mEvent(s) competed in at State: 800m, 1500m, 3000mResults at State: SILVER – 3000m; 6 th – 1500m, 13 th ‐ 800mAnd ……………he loves his Mum!

Menai District Sports AwardsIllawong Athletics had a very successful night at the Menai District Sports Awards, held in November 2010 at ClubMenai, with both the Little Athletics Club and Senior Athletics club very successful on the evening. The awardscelebrate and recognise the achievements of the athletes over the 2009/2010 season.Congratulations to following athletes:Runner up, Junior Male Rookie of the Year - Jack O'LoughlinWinner, Junior Male Sporting Team of the Year - U11 boys High/Long jump team (Kyle Goodwin, TomBennett, Adam Engeler, Mitchell Nugent)Finalist, Junior Female Sportsperson of the Year - Brooke GiffenFinalist, Junior Male Sportsperson of the Year - Adam EngelerBrooke Giffen was also a member of the Winning Senior Female Sporting Team of the Year through the Illawong& District Senior Athletic Club - 4x100m Relay Team.Age manager reportsTiny TotsWhat a season it has been for the tots this year,from their sometimes awkward beginnings, theyhave all done really well in all their events.When we started the season the concept ofrunning in their own lanes was a little lost on thetots, we found that often 2 (or more) runnerswould end up finishing in the same lane, not tomention the odd occasion where 2 heats would (toour surprise) go tearing down the track at thestarters gun, they are certainly an enthusiasticbunch.The field events started in much the samemanner, long jump usually ended withsandcastles, high jump also started in a similarfashion with lots of belly flops.Progressively over the year they have refined theirskills and honed their form to become the littleathletes they are today, even if we do still enjoythe odd play in the sand pit.It has been great to see you all this year, I hopeyou all had lots of fun and I’m sure we will beseeing some of you in the Under 6’s next year,and for those staying with the tots for anotheryear, I hope you will be able to help the new totsfind their feet.A big thank you to Natasha for your help, and allthe other stunt parents who volunteered forvarious roles in helping out, we never had ashortage of eager wabbits volunteering for thecross country.Matt Coote.Under 6’sWhat a FANTASTIC SEASON the U’6s have had.There have been many new friendships made andeveryone had a lot of fun achieving P.B’S.CONGRATULATIONS must go to the followingStar Award achievers -Jason Nicholls - Yellow, Green & Red StarAwardsHana O’loughlin - Yellow & Green Star AwardsJasmine Bagshaw – Yellow & Green Star AwardsConnor Giovenco – Yellow & Green Star AwardsToby Evans – Yellow Star AwardMathew Lavidis – Yellow Star AwardWELL DONE, a great effort for your first season ofcompetition.It has been a pleasure to Manage the U’6 groupthis season & I have also enjoyed hearing allabout what they have been up to during the week.Special thanks to Kim O’loughlin (our crosscountry rabbit), the U’6s certainly have had agreat time chasing you.

Thankyou to all the U’6 parents that havevolunteered to help out each week and to theCommittee for their time as without this help wewould not be able to run the Saturday Carnival.I look forward to seeing you all in the U’7s nextseason. Keep smiling and having fun kids. I loveyour energy and enthusiasm.Amanda NichollsUnder 7’sWhat a great year. The little athletes performed inall weather conditions from rain to cold to heat. Itdidn’t matter what the weather was the U7’s cameout to try and beat their personal best from theweeks before. Many of the little athletes beat theirpersonal bests week after week, which wasexcellent to see. Congratulations on yourperformances.This year was the first year these little athletescould compete at the Zone Championships and itwas pleasing to see so many of the U7scompeting, here are some of the finalists.James 1 st 70 metres (new Zone record), 1 st 100m,1 st Long JumpTheo 1 st 50m (= Zone record), 2 nd 70m, 1 st 500mpack start (new Zone record), 7th Long JumpHayden 7 th 50m, 8 th 70m, 9 th Discus, 8 th 100mLachlan 7 th 500m pack start, 10 th Long JumpXavier 7 th Shot Put, 7 th DiscusMadison 8 th 100m, 6 th 500m pack start, 7 th LongJump, 7 th 200mThanks to a great band of parents who helpedevery week, without their support the little athleteswould not have had so much fun.Hope next year will be just as good as this year.See you all next season.Adam Westwood/Donna CooteUnder 9’sWe have had a great year, with all the athleteshaving fun and learning new skills and showinggreat improvement. We have had many PersonalBest’s achieved in various events each week. Itwas great to see so many of us competing at theZone Championships this year. At the ZoneCarnival Ella and Ethan both set new ZoneRecords in the walk. Annelise, Morgan, Ella andEthan qualified to go to Regional Championships.Congratulations to Ella who medaled 2 nd in discusand 2 nd in the walk at the Regional Carnival,qualifying her for State. Out of 18 competitors ineach event Ella placed 6 th in the walk with anotherP.B and 15 th in discus. Well done Ella !Thank you to the parents who week after weekhelped with the running of our events. It has beengreat working with these parents, with us all thereto see every child learn and achieve.It has been a pleasure to manage these boys andgirls this year as they always competed with greatsportsmanship and encouragement for eachother. Looking forward to seeing many of youback again next year.THANKSBelinda Westwood and Melissa RobinsonUnder 11’sI'd like to start with a big congratulations to all ourUnder 11's. We had quite a few new members &our 'seasoned' athletes welcomed & encouragedthem throughout the season. It was great to seethe support from & for all members as theycompeted.Many PB's were achieved & some recordsbroken. It was great to see the enthusiasm runright to the end of the season, with PB's evenbeing chased, & attained, on the final competitionweek. We had some trip-ups trying to managethe triple jump for the first time, & even with meshowing them what to do, by the end the athleteswere doing the event like they had always knownhow.Congratulations goes to the Under 11's whocompeted at Zone, with some progressing toRegion. And I wish all those who have made itthrough to State the best of luck.Lastly, but by no means least, a BIG thank you toall of the parents who assist each week, in allsorts of weather. Without you the age managersjob would be a lot harder.I wish you all well over the break & look forward towelcoming you back next season.Samantha KalninUnder 12’sWow another year where does the time go.2010/11 was a very exciting year for the Under12's. Our under 12 boys had a very successfultime at the State Relays. The Under 12 boys(Mitchell, Kyle, Tom and Liam), competed in theLong/high competition at the State Relays andwon gold. This is the third year in a row and weare all very proud of them. Adam was selected tothe Trans Tasman Team for a second year andwon gold. We had many Under 12's complete atzone, regional and state level and all didextremely well.Many thanks to all Under 12 parents, your helpeach week and at each event is very muchappreciated. Lets hope we are all together again

for 2011/12 it would be great to see you all backnext season.Gaynor NugentUnder 13’sWOW, what a Season. We had a great turn out inthe U13’s this year and it has been a pleasuresupporting their achievements over the season.Thank you to all parents who assisted in theevents, your help is appreciated. All enjoyed theirfirst time at javelin for this Season and it was greatto see their sportsmanship as they helped eachother learn the technique on throwing the javelin.I would like to congratulate the following U13athletes for their performances at:Zone ... Blake Sale, Tyler Cotter, Joshua Lucas,Rachel Nicholls, Rachel Woods, Sophie Maxwell,Phoebe Hick, Scarlett Wynn, CassandraThanasoulias, Zoe Smith.Region... Blake Sale, Tyler Cotter, Joshua Lucas,Rachel Woods, Sophie Maxwell, Scarlett Wynn,Cassandra Thanasoulias.State ... Blake Sale, Joshua Lucas, SophieMaxwell, Scarlett WynnYou all showed spectacular performances throughthe season and you all should be proud of yourachievements.Tom and Josh it was great to see your friendlycompetition and I hope to see you continue toencourage each other to better yourselves. It wasgood to see Rachel and Kyle achieve their StarAward this season and encourage everyone toparticipate in this program.I hope to see you all back in the next season, letsbreak some records!Glen NichollsUnder 14’sThe Under 14’s group was, once again, apleasure to manage. They are friendly,cooperative and very, very sociable. We gained afew new athletes this season, Lachlan andEoghan but kept the core of the group which havebeen together for years.Back again this year were Jess, Genna, Alana,Chelsea and Kate and Tasmin was here at thebeginning. David and Jack were regulars alongwith the two new guys and Liam was there a lot atthe start of the season. Thibaut turned upoccasionally.There was only one Ground Record, the Javelin,broken by Alana (although she broke it twice).We had Jess, Alana, Genna, Kate and Chelsea allget through to Region as well as Lachlan, Thibautand Liam. Liam and Thibaut both went through toState with Thibaut gaining a Gold medal in theHigh Jump. Liam came 9 th in the 3000m.They all got lots of PB’s throughout the season,made us laugh each week and seemed to behaving a tremendous amount of fun! They were adelight to be around each week and we hope theyall return next season.Helen NisbetUnder 15/17’sWhat a wonderful year this group has had; all 11of them-: Brooke, Eliza, Gabbi, Jamie, Josh,Michael, Monique, Pierce, Sam and yes, Brady &Panayioti did put in the odd appearance now andthen. Not only did you manage to organise yoursocial lives but also put in some fabulousperformances each Saturday.Many PB’s and personal goals were achievedthroughout the season, with many new CentreRecords amongst them, particularly Josh andSam who kept Deb busy updating the U17’s.With the exception of Jamie & Panayioti, all of theage group competed at Zone and with theabsence of Brooke, who yet again managed toinjure herself at a crucial time, all progressed toRegion and State Championships. That is anabsolutely outstanding effort especially Eliza whoproduced some fabulous PB’s at these carnivals.Special congrats to Brady, Gabbi and Josh onyour Silvers medals at State. I’m so proud of all ofyou.Well done to our U15 mixed 4x400m State Relayteam of Gabrielle Moseley, Monique Sale, MichaelNorthey and Pierce Coles-Sinclair who ran a veryhard race and finished fourth, an experience I’msure you will all remember. Congrats also toBrooke Giffen who won Silver at NSW StateMulti’s (and her subsequent selection into the U15NSW State Multi team) and on her nominationfrom the South Met Zone for the McDonald’sAthletics Scholarship Award.All other season competition results are in thisfinal newsletter.Whilst the above are to be congratulated on theirresults, I saw how all of you put in your absolutebest each week and had fun doing so. I knowmost of you also had fabulous results at yourState and National school events.Keep safe over the winter break, Good luck atyour school carnivals and winter sports. I mustsay it has been a pleasure for me to (age)manage many of you for the past 5 or so years.You are all amazing and talented people.Tanya Giffen

Farewell U15’sCaptain’s Report –Brooke GiffenHi, I’m Brooke and I amthe girl captain for2010/2011 seasontogether with PierceColes-Sinclair. I startedwith Illawong LittleAthletics as an U6 andhave continuedcompeting every yearsince. 10 years is along time doing athletics with the same club but Ican admit that I have thoroughly enjoyed everyminute.I have always been competitive and those whoknow me can attest to that. When I was in theU6’s Bruce Lawrence (President at the time) betme that if I caught the bunny in the cross country Iwould win an ice block and a mars bar. So beingme I took off and starting chasing the bunny.When I got to the end I yelled out “I CAUGHTTHE BUNNY”. From that day on, I’ve rememberedthat story so I can tell myself and other athletes tocontinue trying your hardest and go for your goalsbecause there will always be a reward at the end,even if it’s just an ice block!Winning my first medals at zone as an U7 mademe extremely proud and even me more ambitious.In the under 9’s I started to realise that my realpotential was in sprints and jumps, with othersbranching off to throws and distance running.However with the encouragement of my mum andall the parents, everyone did every event withoutfail so that everyone felt they were contributing toour club.I started training with Brigitte Bannister andMichelle Douglas at a very young age and feltextremely privileged to be able to train with theBannister girls and other talented and inspiringathletes. Brigitte (sprints) and Michelle (Hurdles)soon worked me towards being a multiple stategold medallist and I owe them both for theirdedication to my training and development as aperson and an athlete.As the seasons flew by, so did many fabulousfriends. Friends that stopped running during theearly years, I still continue to communicate withtoday (Thanks to Facebook).With many people dropping out of athletics in theU10-12’s, friendships became very strong. Whenmy best friend Gabrielle Moseley was unable tocome for the second half of the season due toinjury in the under 10’s, I made close friendshipswith other members of my age group and we arenow a very tight knit U15 group.My first State Multi’s in the under 10’s was one ofmy most enjoyable times in athletics. I havecompeted every year since winning it four times. Ihave met so many athletes from country areasand have created close bonds with friends that Iwould otherwise not have met. I recommend moreathletes to participate in this wonderful event.Similarly with the Trans Tasman competition. Mytrip to New Zealand to compete was extremelymemorable.I was also very fortunate to have been selected inthe under 13’s state team and I achieved my finalgoal this year being one of two NSW girls selectedin the under 15’s state multi team. I will be able tocatch up with my athletics friends from all of theother States at Nationals.Lastly I would like to express to all the youngerathletes to continue to aim for your dreams. Manythings may hinder your path but continue workingas hard as you can for your goal, and I guaranteeif you put in the effort like I see you all doing everySaturday; you will be rewarded. I have thoroughlyenjoyed being Captain of this fabulous athleticsclub. Have fun and GOODLUCK BrookeCaptain’s Report – Pierce Coles-SinclairHi everyone andthanks for comingalong tonight. Before Igo any further I wouldlike to say how much Iappreciate the effortsof all those parentswho make LittleAthletics happen,week after week andyear after year. Thisyear was my 11 th yearat Little A’s, I started in Tiny Tots when I was 4.My mum reminds me that when I first started torun in the races she had to carry me because Iwas too shy to run by myself – luckily that’schanged!Even though most of you know me as a distancerunner, I was always encouraged to enter at least1 field event when zone came around and I ampleased to say I made it to region once for thediscus – something I’m proud of. I’m also proudof having represented NSW at many track & fieldand cross country meets – the trips away I havehad over the years have been fantastic and theyare all thanks to my involvement with LittleAthletics.Along the way I have made some great friendsfrom all over the state and still run into fellowathletes from Queensland and Victoria that I firstmet when I was 10. It’s certainly a great sport formaking friends. One of the highlights of myathletics was making the U13 Little Athletics Stateteam in 2009 with Brooke and Gabby. The team

headed off to Adelaide for competition and we hadthe best time – I’ll never forget it.Over the years I have been lucky to train withsome awesome coaches. Bruce Lawrence, TonyRussell and Brigitte Bannister. They werewonderful mentors to me and really believed in myability. I am grateful to have been able to trainunder them.Today I train with Lindsay Watson who I first metat the Little A’s JETS clinics. Lindsay is a greatcoach who has trained international athletes.Even though this night brings an end to my time atLittle Athletics, here at Illawong we are so lucky tohave a great seniors club and I have been runningwith the seniors club for a number of years nowand look forward to continuing for many years tocome.I would like to take this opportunity to wish all theathletes the very best for their future athletics.Good luck to the new captains for next seasonand thank you for the opportunity to be yourcaptain this season and especially thanks toBrooke Giffen for her captaincy also, we’ve beentogether since U6’s and it was nice to be captainstogether this season.PierceGabrielle MoseleyWell it’s hard to knowwhere to start. How tosay good bye to the onething, apart from myfamily, that has been theconstant in my life.My family were active inIllawong Little A’s longbefore I was born and soit naturally went thatwhen I came along Iwould be involved too. My earliest memories ofathletics involves Saturday afternoons at BuckleReserve being carried in my dad’s arms to thedifferent events to watch my sisters compete, thebest event would be standing at the end of the100 metre track dangling a red frog for my sisterAshlea, hoping this would encourage her to finishthe race.It was not long before I could compete, spendingtwo years in tiny tots and then my hugeopportunity to enter the big time by registering forthe under sixes. I had big shoes to fill because mybig sister Danielle was a great long jumper andgood sprinter but as luck would have it she wasan even better walker.I tried my hand at all events but eventually foundmy niche as a walker too. I can remember mybiggest goal was to win at zone, my best friend atathletics was Brooke Giffen and if you knowBrooke you will know that she is an amazingathlete and I wanted to be just as good as her andget a state jacket. Well it took some time to getthat elusive state jacket but it eventually found itsway into my wardrobe, I was in the under 11’s andwas starting to show some promise as a walker, Ithink I finished third at zone and that year it wasour regions turn to have four athletes qualify tostate. And it was my luck to finish 4 th . Well youwill not believe my excitement at getting thatjacket and making it to the big time. That year Ifinished 5th at state and it was the first time that Ican remember having that feeling that 5th was notgood enough. So I decided to train and put someeffort in to walking and before you knew it I waswinning. I went on to be the zone region andstate champion. One of the biggest highlightswas being selected to complete as part of theNSW team at the Australian Little A’schampionships and believe it or not I placed thirdand got an Australian bronze medal for myefforts. The feeling of standing on that dais willnever leave me; it was and is one of my proudestmoments. Whoever said coming third does notcount has never stood at an AustralianChampionship and won a bronze medal.Of course this just didn’t happen on its own. I hadthe help of some great people that over the yearsnot only trained my sisters but trained me. Peoplelike Jim Dade, John Ambrose, Brigit Bannister,Tony Russell (who in fact became like a father tome) and my latest walk coach Anne Saville whosaved me from quitting this year. You know it isalso thanks to my parents who every Saturday formore years than I have been alive packed up theesky and headed to ‘Buckle Reserve’ and then to‘the Ridge’, when I am sure they would ratherhave been at the beach or around the pool, wellall you parents know what I mean; all I can say is‘mum and dad I hope I made you proud’I don’t know yet if I will continue in athletics, butthis much I know for sure, this club and what itstands for has had a big influence on my values;always try your best, never give up and do it witha smile on your dial. These are things that will bepart of my life forever; I cannot tell you how muchI will miss those long hot summer afternoons atIllawong Little A’s wearing the royal and sky blueuniform with pride. I really have had the time ofmy life, thank you for having me.Gabrielle

Centre MeetingThe next centre meeting will be held on Wednesday 13 th April at 7.45pm in the Operations Room at TheRidge Athletics Track. Discussion items will include Executive positions for next season.All parents are invited to attendIllawong Athletics AGMThe Annual General Meeting of Illawong Athletics Inc (combined Little Athletics and Senior Athletics Club)will be held at 7.30pm on Thursday 12th May 2011, at The Ridge Athletics Track Operations Room. Reportswill be presented from each club, nominations called for /voted on for new Executive Positions and delegatesto the Committee of each club.Followed by a light supper and refreshments - All parents are invited to attend.We would love to see you there.

Illawong Athletics Winter 2011 ProgramCross country races are conducted each Saturday afternoon from late March until early September. Wehave lots of runners of all abilities and ages who turn up to have a run or walk each week. We alsocompete in the Athletics NSW State Championship events as well.If you need to know more then contact Ian Kearns on 9543 5820 or send an e-mail tosapresident@illawongathletics.org. Otherwise, just come along and join in.Date Venue Events/TimeSat 26-Mar-11 The Ridge 2km 2:20pm; 3km 2:45pm; 5km/10km 3:15pmSat 2-Apr-11 Salt Pan Creek 2km 2:20pm; 3km 2:45pm; 5km/10km 3:15pmSat 9-Apr-11 Garrison Point 2.2km 2:20pm; 3.1km 2:45pm; 5.3km/10.0km 3:15pmSat 16-Apr-11 Miranda Park 2km 2:00pm; 3km 2:15pm; 5km 2:30pm; 8km 3:00pmSat 23-Apr-11 Como 2.2km 2:20pm; 3.1km 2:45pm; 5.3km/10.0km 3:15pmSat 30-Apr-11 Scarborough Park ANSW Novice ChampionshipsTue 3-May-11 The Crest Anzac Track Marathon Relay (3km legs) 6:30pmSat 7-May-11 Yala Rd 2km 2:20pm; 3km 2:45pm; 5km/10km 3:15pmSat 14-May-11 The Ridge 2km 2:20pm; 3km 2:45pm; 5km/10km 3:15pmSun 15-May-11 Sydney CBD SMH Half MarathonSat 21-May-11 Gannons Park 2km 2:20pm; 3km 2:45pm; 5km/12km 3:15pmSat 28-May-11 Miranda Park ANSW Cross Country RelaysSat 4-Jun-11 Olympic Park ANSW Road RaceSat 11-Jun-11 Haigh Park 2km 2:20pm; 3km 2:45pm; 5km/10km 3:15pmSat 18-Jun-11 Jannali Reserve 2km 2:20pm; 3km 2:45pm; 5km/10km 3:15pmSat 25-Jun-11 Willandra ANSW Cross CountrySat 25-Jun-11 The Ridge 2km 2:20pm; 3km 2:45pm; 5km/9km 3:15pmSat 2-Jul-11 Scarborough Park Endeavour Cup (early start)Sat 9-Jul-11 Wollongong ANSW Road RelaysSat 16-Jul-11 Yala Rd 2.2km 2:20pm; 3.1km 2:45pm; 5.3km/10.0km 3:15pmSat 23-Jul-11 The Ridge 2km 2:20pm; 3km 2:45pm; 5km/9km 3:15pmSat 30-Jul-11 Upjohn Park ANSW Short Cross CountrySat 6-Aug-11 Garrison Point 2.2km 2:20pm; 3.1km 2:45pm; 5.3km/10.0km 3:15pmSat 13-Aug-11 Ferntree 2km 2:20pm; 3km 2:45pm; 5km/12km 3:15pmSun 14-Aug-11 Hyde Park City to SurfSat 20-Aug-11 Gannons Park 2km 2:20pm; 3km 2:45pm; 5km/10km 3:15pmSat 27-Aug-11 Salt Pan Creek 2km 2:20pm; 3km 2:45pm; 5km/10km 3:15pmSat 3-Sep-11 Wanda 2km 2:00pm; 3km 2:15pm; 5km 2:30pmSun 4-Sep-11 Garrison Point ANSW Half MarathonSun 18-Sep-11 Milsons Point ANSW Marathon