Christmas Edition

NEWSLETTER December 2011

LATEST NEWS Bunbury host brilliant Country Championship! On November 26 and 27, Little Athletes from country centres far and wide travelled to Bun- bury for the 2011 Country Championships. It was held at the impressive new Bunbury Re- gional Athletics Arena, the only Mondo surface track in regional WA and the same surface used at the last Olympic Games!

Over 400 athletes represented their country centres from Bunbury, Albany, Collie, Den- mark, Eastern Goldfields, Esperance, Geraldton, Margaret River, Merredin and Warren.

It was a smokey and chilly day, but everyone had a fantastic time. Travelling and competing with your team and family is one of the great parts of Country Championship. An added bonus on the day was having Australian 400 metre champion, Ben Offereins, pre- sent to meet athletes and award medals for the events. Many records were broken and the hosts, Bunbury, won the Overall and Handicap trophy. Eastern Goldfields came a close second.

A big thankyou to all volunteers, officials, athletes and families who made the meet a great success. We certainly look forward to the 2012 Country Championship!

For Metropolitan Little Athletes, below are the great championship events coming up dur- ing this 2011/12 Summer Season. Bring all your family and friends for a great day of Little Athletics at the stadium. Dates for your calendar: All events are at WA Athletics Stadium, unless stated. Sunday 11th December 2011- State Track & Field Relay Championships Saturday 11th February 2012- State Multi Event Championships (followed by 2012 Perth Track Classic) Saturday 3 & Sunday 4 March 2012- McDonalds State Track & Field Championships Venues TBA Saturday 17 & Sunday 18 March 2012- McDonalds State Track & Field Championships (Semi's & Finals) CENTRE NEWS

“Kids Helping Kids” PMH Activity Day, November 5, 2011 Saturday the 5th of November was a great fun filled day at various centres helping to raise money for the children at Princess Margaret Hospital (PMH). There were many great FUN- raising stories from the centre’s across WA. Eastern Goldfields were able to raise significant funds and also some art supplies as a bonus for the children to the hospital.

Congratulations to everyone who raised money and organised cool events at the centres. Many athletes reported the great times they had with the fancy dress theme’s and differ- ent games on competition day. You have helped ensure the children at PMH will have the chance to get creative with the artwork they can create over Christmas!

Top Left is a photo from the Narrogin Centre, they even got into the local newspaper as well! Bottom left is Finley Oakes from the Mindarie Mustangs Club In Ridgewood LAC!

Find us on Facebook WA Little Athletics is on Facebook! Go to Facebook.com/walittleathletics And stay connected with the latest news!

UPCOMING EVENTS

Classic day of Athletics coming this February On Saturday February 11, the Little Athletics State Multi-Event Championships are on at the WA Athletics Stadium. To make the day even more special, the Perth Track Classic will commence after the Little Athletics competition.

It’s a fantastic opportunity for YOU to bring all of your family and friends to the event to cheer you on and then witness some of Australia’s athletics superstars compete just a few months before the 2012 London Olympic Games.

Among the stars expected to line up are IAAF Female Athlete of the Year and World Cham- pion 100m hurdler, Sally Pearson, Olympic Champion pole vaulter, Steve Hooker, World Championship long jump silver medallist, Mitchell Watt, javelin star Kim Mickle and for- mer discus World Champion, Dani Samuels.

This is truly a fantastic chance for you to take part in Little Athletics in the morning and watch and learn from the athletics superstars in the afternoon. Make sure you mark Satur- day February 11 2012 on YOUR calendar!

More info at http://www.athletics.com.au/home/competition/aat2012/aat_meetinfo/ perth_track_classic

ATHLETE NUTRITION

Getting Ready Foods As they all say, breakfast is the most important meal of the day! A good ‘brekky’ perfectly sets you up to be your best for evening training or morning com- petition. A great athlete breakfast should include the following: Cereals that consist of rolled oats and other grains. Plain or flavoured Milks and low-fat Yogurt are perfect to complement your cereals. Finally, no breakfast is complete with some Fruit. Whether its fresh, canned or juice, an Orange, Banana and some mixed berries will keep you fit and healthy.

Include these in your breakfast and you will be feeling energised and prepared for your day!

CENTRE SNAPSHOTS

In November, the UWA Centre had the honour of welcoming athletes from Temasek Pri- mary School in Singapore. The boys and girls were under 11 and 12’s. They had a fantastic time competing and making friends with Little Athlete’s from Western Australia. It was their first time away from Singapore and they had never attempted triple jump or high jump before. They all gave every event a go and had a wonderful time!

Please send YOUR Centre Snapshots and story to [email protected]