Club Newsletter RAY Mccormack CHRISTMAS GIFT

WESTERN ATHLETICS Inc www.westernathletics.com.au JANUARY EDITION Club Newsletter RAY McCORMACK CHRISTMAS GIFT

On December 17th Western Athletics held their annual Christmas Gift, with over 80 people in attendance we saw some great races, some fun outfits, enjoyed the food, raffles, laughter's and of course Santa. The 120m handicap gift consisted of a number of heats, with various athletes of all ages trying to win their heat to qualify for the final. We saw distance runners running sprints and vice versa. However the winner of the 2013 Ray McCormack Christmas Gift was Robert Weitsz with Steve Redmore a close second and Demi Utber third. The 100m invitation was won by Keegan Andrews. The 1000m is always a highlight with many athletes dressing up in the Christmas spirit and make there way around in the 1000m. This years race of consisted of 40 athletes including the distance runners, sprinters and even throwers. The Surprising winner for the 2013 Ray McCormack 1000m gift was Luke Hodgart second was Shihab Deen Mohamed and third was Demi Utber. The handicap for the 1000m is calculated at the end of the race, so the order is irrelevant but it was great to see Chris Downie come in first over the line in a time of 2:46.77. WESTERN ATHLETICS Inc JANUARY EDITION Christmas Gift 1000m Individual Results

1. Chris Downie - 2:46.77 21. Demi Utber – 3:27.78 2. Cody Shanahan - 2:50.41 22. Daniel Bunworth – 3:28.92 3. Allan Cook – 2:54.76 23. Josh – 3:29.16 4. Liam Cashin – 2:55.30 24. Peter Cashin – 3:30.48 5. Jayden Defina - 3:03.77 25. Thomas Rebesco – 3:39.37 6. Daniel Dunstone – 3:04.30 26. Adam Knowles – 3:40.11 7. Shihab Deen Mohamed – 3:04.92 27. Robert Weitsz – 3:41.72 8. Luke Hodgart – 3:05.46 28. Justine Muscat – 3:42.96 9. Nick Sampson – 3:05.8 29. Sharon Rankin – 3:43.74 10. Bailey Sharp – 3:10.67 30. Sue Rebesco – 3:47.02

11. Kirk Shanahan – 3:13.90 31. Phil Dunstone – 3:49.13 12. Christiaan Weitsz – 3:15.27 32. Bianca Rebesco – 3:55.84 13. Chris Camilleri – 3:15.83 33. Mechelle Lane – 3:57.36 14. Ayrton Redmore – 3:17.86 34. Mark Simmons – 4:01.27 15. Bailey Rankin – 3:20.85 35. Connor Macaulay – 4:05.13 16. Paul Shanahan – 3:21.42 36. Teagan Newman – 4:29.44 17. Brandon Muscat – 3:23.32 37. Bree Bunworth – 4:30.62 18. Claire Hodgart – 3:23.62 38. Loren Lane – 4:30.81 19. Georgia Muller – 3:25.49 39. Aimee Lane – 4:57.57 20. Mark Sharp – 3:26.72 40. Vana Evans – 4:57.67

WESTERN ATHLETICS Inc JANUARY EDITION Summer Summary With the Shield competition nearing the halfway mark, things are starting to heat up for our teams. Round 5 on 14th December saw lower numbers in our U14 and U16 teams due to the LA Vic State Relays on the same day. This resulted in the U16 men finishing 2nd for the first time this season. The U16 and U14 girls had lower than usual numbers and it showed in their team placing. Where our junior teams struggled, the 40+ teams soared. The 40+ men won for the first time this season mainly due to bigger numbers in the distance events. The 40+ ladies also won despite low numbers in their team. Many members competed in multiple events. Well done! Round 5 Ladder Men Div 1 3rd 3rd Men 40+ 1st 3rd Only 2 points behind 2nd placed Essendon Men U18 2nd 2nd Men U16 2nd 1st Ahead by 2 points Men U14 2nd 2nd 2 points behind Women Div 1 4th 3rd Women 40+ 1st 1st 2 points ahead Women U18 3rd 2nd 2 points ahead of 3rd Women U16 4th 3rd Women U14 5th 4th Following some consultation with the Women 16, the Summer Committee decided to move the Women U16 to the Women U18 team. Both teams were very low on numbers. By joining the two teams we can create a strong Women U18 team. This change comes into effect from Round 6 onwards. Athletes who competed in the Women U16 team will now need to re qualify for Shield Final. This means they will need to compete in a minimum of 4 of the remaining 7 rounds and compete in a variety of Program 1 events. Good luck to the new, strong Women U18 team who now stand a chance to finish on top of the ladder. In individual performances we continue to see some outstanding performances. Many junior athletes have obtained qualifying standards for the Australian Junior Championships in recent rounds. Well done to all those athletes! VICTORIAN COUNTRY CHAMPIONSHIPS 24-26 January 2014 in Ballarat. If you are looking for an additional opportunity to compete don’t forget to get your entry in by midnight on Tuesday, 14th January 2014. VICTORIAN MULTI CHAMPIONSHIPS (U14 AND u16) will be held in conjunction with the LA Vic State Multi Championships in Bendigo on 1st and 2nd of February. Entries are now open. VICTORIAN MILERS CLUB If AV throw on, some 3000m graded races on the Saturday 1st March of the Vic Open Championships at Lakeside, would you be interested in having a run?? The normal VMC entry fee of $5 would apply and there would be no qualification standards. If you are interested head to the VMC Facebook Page and express your interest by commenting or liking their post. WESTERN ATHLETICS Inc JANUARY EDITION

Victorian All Schools The 2013 Victorian All Schools Track & Field Championships were held at Lakeside Stadium from 25- 27 Oct 13. These Championships are open to anyone from any school (primary or secondary), entrants do not need to be a member of an athletics club to participate, so everyone competes in their school sports uniform. This event attracts many athletes who do not regularly compete in athletics, but are very good at other sports such as football, so it tends to bring out some very good athletes that we don't usually see competing in regular athletics competitions. Western Athletics had many athletes competing who all achieved fantastic results, such as: Billie Arch U15 400m 1st 57.59; 200m 3rd 26.54; Long Jump 5th 5.08 Amador Bermejo U20 Discus 1st 35.68; Hammer 1st 29.89; Long Jump 2nd 5.36; 110mH 2nd 17.13; 100m 4th 12.01 Declan Best U15 Hammer 4th 33.18; Discus 5th 43.68; Javelin 6th 32.08; Shot Put 7th 11.97; 100mH 10th 18.70; Long Jump 11th 4.59; Triple Jump 14th 9.62; 100m 15th 13.29 Julia Bourke U16 Shot Put 1st 13.50 (Victorian Record!) John Camilleri U18 3k 9.43.25 Liam Cashin U17 2k Steeple 6th 6.54.07; 3k 12th 9.44.48 Jade Chamley U14 Hammer 1st 27.20; Shot Put 2nd 10.91 Matthew Chamley U18 Discus 2nd 36.92; Hammer 3rd 39.16 Jayden Defina U17 400m 9th 53.86 Daniel Dunstone U17 3k 7th 9.25.27 Claire Hodgart U18 2k Steeple 1st 8.04.14; 3k 5th 11.22.42 Lachlan Huell U16 3k 10th 10.16.82; 1500m 14th 4.39.93 Jeremy Kirkham U17 1500m 1st 4.04.97; 800m 2nd 1.58.54 Travis Knox U17 3k 13th 9.46.18 Jy Lambley U15 400m 9th 58.62; 200m 13th 25.73 Kyle Lambley U17 800m 8th 2.16.99; 1500m 13th 4.46.50 Lyndon Le U18 Pole Vault 5th Reinaldo Lobos-Caneleo U15 200mH 8th 31.69; 400m 11th 59.18 Conor Lynch U17 3k 15th 9.57.32 Connor Macaulay U16 Hammer 3rd 47.33; Discus 6th 39.25; Shot Put 6th 11.16 Daniel Masini U14 Pole Vault 4th 2.00 Nicholas Masini U15 Pole Vault 1st 2.60 Brittany McIntyre U18 Javelin 3rd 32.50 Bryce Mizzi U16 1500m 19th 5.23.62 Aliesha Newman U20 400mH 1st 71.36 Teagan Newman U16 Discus 1st 38.39; Hammer 1st 45.15; U16 Shot Put 2nd 11.91

WESTERN ATHLETICS Inc JANUARY EDITION Victorian All Schools Continued Matthew Schaumberg U16 3k 2nd 9.20.43; 1500m 10th 4.24.92 Cody Shanahan U16 3k 4th 9.24.48; 1500m 8th 4.21.59 Kirk Shanahan U15 1500m 11th 4.47.98; 3k 12th 10.16.26 Demi Utber U15 2k Steeple 3rd 8.20.89 Christiaan Weitsz U15 2k Steeple 2nd 6.55.27 Robert Weitsz U15 2k Steeple 6th 8.24 .85 Kale Wood U16 200m 6th 24.41; 100m 8th 11.93; Long Jump 12th 5.31 Australian All Schools

From these results, the Victorian Team was selected to compete in the Australian All Schools Track & Field Championships in Townsville, Qld from 6-8th December 2013. To be eligible for selection, athletes had to finish 1st or 2nd in U14, U16 or U18 or 1st in U15 or U17 in their event at the Vic All Schools Champs (the U15 & U17 athletes had to compete in the U16 & U18 events respectively at Nationals). Some athletes were unable to attend Nationals, so the next placed athletes in each event were offered a position in the State team. It was compulsory for the Vic Team members to travel and stay with the team, so it was a great experience for the athletes to travel together & share accommodation with other athletes from around the state. A great way to forge friendships for years to come & to learn to respect other athletes requirements with differing competition timetables! Despite the high heat & humidity and very windy conditions in Townsville in December (which hit them like a wall when they stepped off the plane!), the 135 member Vic Team performed very well. The Western Athletics representatives in the Victorian Team that competed in Townsville & their terrific results were: Julia Bourke U16 Shot Put 5th 13.24 Teagan Newman U16 Hammer 5th 46.18; Discus 7th 36.96; Shot Put 10th 9.92 Daniel Masini U14 Pole Vault 3rd 2.20 Nicholas Masini U16 Pole Vault 5th 3.00 Matthew Schaumberg U16 3k 7th 9.45.98 Congratulations to all Western Athletics members competing in both Victorian and Australian All Schools Track & Field Championships for some fantastic results! (apologise if we have missed any athletes in this report so many athletes competing and so many outstanding performances) WESTERN ATHLETICS Inc JANUARY EDITION Zatopek: 10 & Vic Milers Zatopek:10 was held on Thursday 12th December at Lakeside Stadium, in front of a healthy crowd who were confronted with a pleasant December evening. Featuring the men’s and women’s 10,000 metre Australian Championships and Commonwealth Games selection trial for Glasgow 2014. As well our Club had athletes competing in the VAL 70m & 300m events, the 6 person mixed relay and the women's 4x400m relay final. Chris Downie (400m) and Morgan Mitchell (200m) joined with four Werribee LAC athletes (Abbey Goldsworthy - 100m, Jalen Jaimangal - 100m, Grace Goldsworthy - 200m, Daly Andrews - 200m); the team ran 2.9 seconds faster than last years team and were rewarded with a Silver medal. Aimee Lane, Billie Arch, Rochelle Kennedy & Morgan Mitchell competed in the Victorian 4x400m relay final finishing a credible 5th in a non confirmed Club record time of 3:56.29 (nearly 4 seconds faster than the heats). Great work by all five ladies (Lexie Alfieri competed in the heats).

Vic Milers Club December 19 Melbourne University

Western Aths once again figured prominently at milers especially in the 3k event. With almost 30 competitors speed over the 1k and 3k events Western Aths must have had more runners than almost any other club on Dec 19. The evening started at 40 degree heat but cooled down as the night wore on. Despite the conditions several PB's were recorded

Matthew Hussey Loren Lane Dan Dunstone Adam Knowles Brandin Muscat Lachlan Huell and Paul Shanahan are all to be congratulated for recording fastest times and many others were close to PBs such as Liam Cashin and Cody Shanahan

Kirk Shanahan excelled in the 1k coming in right on 3 minutes.

Next milers at Nunawading on Jan 21 WESTERN ATHLETICS Inc JANUARY EDITION

Athlete Interview: AMY CASHIN My time in America so far:

The decision to come to America was a tough and long one! It took me a while, and with the help of many different people, it was decided West Virginia was the place to go. Having attended this college for almost half a year, I can gladly say it was one of the best decisions of my life! I have already been provided with so many opportunities and as a life experienced that've been invaluable. There were 8 freshman that joined me with 5 of us internationals( the other 4 were Canadian) this was great, as I didn't have to go through things such as orientation alone. Cross country season was the first and it was decided I would wear the singlet, and not redshirt which is usual for freshies- only two of us wore the singlet. This led to many opportunities of high competitive races such as Big12 and also I had the privilege to race at NCAA XC NATIONALS which is bigger than the worlds. This was a experience I will never forget especially racing it as a first year, since most are not selected in the team. The XC season was successful, given the circumstances, now it's onto indoor where again I'm not wearing the redshirt and racing in the singlet, and then again outdoor, which so far I wearing the singlet as well. At the same time as all of this, I have been able to study and by the time 5 years pass I will have my undergrad and start my masters if I so wish. The teachers so far are great, and being an athlete comes in handy and many people have respect especially since they know how hard it is to be on top of your game athletically, academically and also have the time to socialise. It has been a bonus being Australian as everyone loves the accent so it seems easier to make friends. Study hall also helps as its just for athletes where we end up doing a lot of mingling since we all have compulsory hours of study ( track has 6 a week, others have 10). All around it has been a great experience here and are many differences but having an athletic training room to go to everyday, a fantastic coaching team, and a brilliant bunch of girls makes me feel right at homee. I couldn't be any happier, although I do miss the Western Aths clan a whole bunch. If anyone ever wants to Skype shoot me a message. Also I have a blog going, which will be updated soon, so if anyone is interested in hearing more I depths stories I suggest reading them! http://amycashinblog.wordpress.com/2013/11/26/ncaa-xc-championships/

Cheers Amy

WESTERN ATHLETICS Inc JANUARY EDITION

Upcoming Competition

When competing at lakeside (only) your spikes must be 6mm spike not 7mm SHIELD COMPETITION

Round 7 Sat, 18 January 2014 Program 2 Aberfeldie from 1:00pm Round 8 Sat, 1 February 2014 Program 1 Aberfeldie from 1:00pm Round 9 Sat, 8 February 2014 Program 2 Williamstown from 1:00pm Round 10 Sat, 22 February 2014 Program 1 Aberfeldie from 1:00pm Round 11 Sat, 8 March 2014 Program 2 Werribee from 1:00pm Round 12 Thur, 27 March 2014 Program 1 Aberfeldie from 6:00pm AV Shield Final Sat, 12 April 2014 Program 1 Albert Park from 10:00am

SUMMER CALENDAR JANUARY 2014 Sat 18 AA Tour – Hunter Track Classic Newcastle Sun 19 AV Throwers – Rd 2 Nunawading Sun 19 High Velocity Club – Meet 4 Knox Tues 21 Victorian Milers Club – Meet 3 Nunawading Fri 24 – Sun 26 Victorian Country Athletics Championships Ballarat Wed 29 Rare Air Club – Meet 7 Melbourne Uni

FEBRUARY 2014 Sat 1 AA Tour – Briggs Athletics Classic Hobart Sat 1 – Sun 2 Victorian Junior Multi Championships (U14/U16) Bendigo Sun 2 2014 Australian 20km Road Walking Championships Hobart Sun 2 AV Throwers – Rd 3 Nunawading Sun 2 High Velocity Club – Meet 5 Albert Park Sun 9 Rare Air Club – Meet 8 TBC Sun 9 AV Throwers – Rd 4 Nunawading Wed 12 Rare Air Club – Meet 9 Melbourne Uni Fri 14 – Sun 16 Victorian Junior Track & Field Championships Albert Park Sat 15 AA Tour – Adelaide Track Classic Adelaide

WESTERN ATHLETICS Inc JANUARY EDITION SUMMER CALENDAR continued Thur 20 Victorian Milers Club – Meet 4 Melbourne Uni Thur 20 Rare Air Club – Meet 10 Melbourne Sat 22 AA Tour – Perth Track Classic Perth Tues 25 MUAC – 5000m & Pole Vault Melbourne Uni Fri 28 – Sun 2 Victorian Open Track & Field Championships Albert Park MARCH 2014 Sat 1 – Sun 2 Victorian Over Age Multi Championships Albert Park Sat 1 – Sun 2 Victorian Open, U20, U18 Multi Championships Albert Park Thur 6 MUAC – Track Events & High Jump Melbourne Uni Sun 9 AV Throwers – Rd 5 Nunawading Sun 9 Rare Air Club – Meet 11 Mentone Wed 12 – Sun 16 Australian Junior Track & Field Championships Sydney Sat 15 AA Tour – Sydney Track Classic Sydney Sat 15 – Sun 16 Victorian Masters Track & Field Championships Nunawading Wed 19 High Velocity Club – Meet 6 Albert Park Thur 20 Rare Air Club – Meet 12 Albert Park Thur 20 Victorian Milers Club – Meet 5 Sat 22 IAAF Melbourne World Challenge Albert Park Sat 29 AA Tour – Queensland Track Classic Brisbane Sat 29 Rare Air Club – Meet 13 Mentone Sat 29 – Sun 30 LAV State Championships Albert Park Sun 30 AV Throwers – Rd 6 Nunawading APRIL 2014 Fri 3 – Sun 6 Australian Track & Field Championships Albert Park JULY 2014 Thurs 24 – Sun 3 XX Commonwealth Games Glasgow, Scotland Upcoming Events Entries are now open for the Wyndham Rotary fun run/walk at http://www.wyndhamfunrun.org/enter-here.

All Early Bird entries are eligible for prizes of $200 Mizuno runners. So get in early to increase your changes of winning these fantastic runners that will certainly help to improve your PB! The event will be run on Sunday March 2nd, at Chirnside Park Werribee so put it in your diary and training calendar now! Choose from 5km/10km runs and family friendly 4km/8km walks. Please enter as apart of the Western Athletics Team when you register WESTERN ATHLETICS Inc JANUARY EDITION

Western Athletics is excited to launch Western Recreational running group. If you don’t want to race but still want to run and get fit then WRRG is ideal for you. You do not need to be a member of Western Athletics to join.

WRRG provides beginner and intermediate runners, joggers and walkers a fun, friendly and non-competitive training environment. With a focus on providing participants social support, motivation and guidance on reaching their fitness goals to achieve a healthy lifestyle. Coaches and athletes from Western Athletics will provide guidance, on training programs.

When: Thursday 6:30pm Chirnside Park Werribee Sunday 8.25am, You Yang's Regional Park, at the Rangers Hut

Cost: Gold coin donation

Contact: Aimee Lane 0401 281 410