Former Little Athletes selected for Glasgow 2014

6 Jun 2014 by Ashlea Watt

The biggest Australian athletics team to leave our shores will step into the competition cauldron at Glasgow 2014 next month.

Confirmed by the Australian Commonwealth Games Association this morning, 103 athletes have now been officially selected to compete in track and field at the Commonwealth Games, with the size of the team second only to that which competed in Melbourne in 2006.

The team includes the Olympic champion Sally Pearson (Qld, 100m hurdles), IAAF World Championships medallist Kim Mickle (WA, javelin) and Australian record holders Melissa Breen (ACT, 100m), Alana Boyd (Qld, pole vault), Ryan Gregson (NSW, 1500m), Ben St Lawrence (NSW, 10,000m) and Benn Harradine (Qld, discus throw). It also features 2010 Commonwealth Games medallists Kurt Fearnley (NSW, wheelchair 1500m), Richard Colman (Vic, wheelchair 1500m), Fabrice Lapierre (NSW, long jump) and Michael Shelley (Qld, marathon).

In an exciting sign for the development of our next generation of stars, the selected team includes an outstanding 44 athletes who will make their open age major championship debut, which is a very positive result for the sport.

“It’s fantastic to see such large numbers and that comes first from the sport giving the athletes the opportunity and second from the athletes taking advantage of the opportunity,” Steve Moneghetti, the Chef de Mission of the Australian team, said.

“The Commonwealth Games has often been the first multi-sport team experience for young athletes and many of those selected fall into that category.”

“The Athletics Australia Selectors were very pleased to nominate such a quality team to the ACGA for their ratification. We wish all those that have now been selected the very best of luck,” Dion Russell, Athletics Australia Chairman of Selectors, said.

“It is the second biggest team ever to compete for Australia in track and field, and it is great to see a real mix of outstanding experience and up and coming talent on the team list. More than 40% of those set to start are debutants and I hope that they relish the privileged opportunity they now have to compete for their country at an open age major international championship.

“Athletics Australia’s Selection Policy was designed to align with the Australian Institute of Sport’s Winning Edge strategy, which has a stated aim of Australia being the number one nation at the Commonwealth Games. With this in mind, we have selected athletes who we believe have the greatest potential for success in accordance with Clause 9, which details the prioritizing of athletes.”

The 2014 Commonwealth Games will commence in Glasgow on Wednesday 23 July, with athletics competition set to commence at Hampden Park on Sunday 27 July. For more information on the event, please follow this link to the ACGA website or this link to the Glasgow 2014 home page.

At the 2010 Commonwealth Games in New Delhi (IND), the Australian athletics team was 66-strong and it won 11 gold, six silver and three bronze medals.

2014 Commonwealth Games
23 July – 3 August 2014
Glasgow, Scotland\
(Athletics: 27 July – 2 August)

Athletes listed in italics were officially selected on 9 April 2014, at the conclusion of the 92nd Australian Athletics Championships and Commonwealth Games Selection Trials.

MEN (50):
T37 100m: Sean Roberts (SA)
200m: Jarrod Geddes (NSW)
400m: Steven Solomon (NSW)
800m: Josh Ralph (NSW), Jeff Riseley (Vic), Alex Rowe (Vic)
1500m: Jeff Riseley (Vic), Ryan Gregson (NSW), Collis Birmingham (Vic)
T54 1500m: Richard Colman (Vic), Kurt Fearnley (NSW), Richard Nicholson (ACT)
5000m: Collis Birmingham (Vic), Ben St Lawrence (NSW)
10,000m: Ben St Lawrence (NSW), Harry Summers (NSW), Chris Hamer (Vic)
Marathon: Martin Dent (ACT), Michael Shelley (Qld), Liam Adams (Vic)
110m hurdles: Nicholas Hough (NSW), Sam Baines (Vic)
400m hurdles: Ian Dewhurst (NSW), Tristan Thomas (Tas)
3000m steeplechase: James Nipperess (NSW)
High jump: Nik Bojic (Qld), Brandon Starc (NSW)
Pole vault: Joel Pocklington (Vic), Matt Boyd (Qld)
Long jump: Robbie Crowther (Qld), Henry Frayne (Qld), Fabrice Lapierre (NSW)
Shot put: Damien Birkinhead (Vic)
Discus throw: Benn Harradine (Qld), Julian Wruck (Qld)
F42/44 discus throw: Paul Raison (SA), Don Elgin (Vic)
Hammer throw: Tim Driesen (Vic), Huw Peacock (Tas)
Javelin: Joshua Robinson (Qld), Hamish Peacock (Tas), Luke Cann (Vic)
Decathlon: Jake Stein (NSW), Stephen Cain (Vic)
4×100m relay: Tim Leathart (NSW), Jarrod Geddes (NSW), Jake Hammond (NSW), Alex Hartmann (Qld), Joel Bee (Vic), Jin Su Jung (NSW)
4×400m relay: Steven Solomon (NSW), Alex Beck (Qld), Craig Burns (Qld), Dylan Grant (Qld), John Steffensen (NSW), Tristan Thomas (Tas)

WOMEN (53):
100m: Sally Pearson (Qld), Melissa Breen (ACT)
200m: Ella Nelson (NSW), Ashleigh Whittaker (Vic)
400m: Morgan Mitchell (Vic), Anneliese Rubie (NSW)
800m: Brittany McGowan (Qld), Kelly Hetherington (Vic)
1500m: Zoe Buckman (Vic), Kaila McKnight (Vic), Melissa Duncan (Vic)
T54 1500m: Madison de Rozario (WA), Christie Dawes (NSW), Angela Ballard (NSW)
5,000m: Emily Brichacek (ACT), Eloise Wellings (NSW)
Marathon: Jess Trengove (SA), Melanie Panayiotou (Qld), Sarah Klein (Vic)
3000m steeplechase: Victoria Mitchell (Vic), Genevieve LaCaze (Qld), Madeline Heiner (NSW)
100m hurdles: Sally Pearson (Qld), Shannon McCann (WA), Michelle Jenneke (NSW)
400m hurdles: Lauren Wells (ACT), Lyndsay Pekin (WA)
High jump: Eleanor Patterson (Vic), Zoe Timmers (WA), Hannah Joye (Qld)
Pole vault: Liz Parnov (WA), Alana Boyd (Qld), Vicky Parnov (WA)
Long jump: Brooke Stratton (Vic), Jessica Penney (ACT), Margaret Gayen (SA)
T37/38 long jump: Jodi Elkington (NSW), Rae Anderson (NSW), Ella Pardy (WA)
Triple jump: Linda Leverton (Qld), Ellen Pettitt (Vic)
Shot put: Dani Samuels (NSW), Kim Mulhall (Vic)
Discus throw: Dani Samuels (NSW), Christie Chamberlain (NSW), Taryn Gollshewsky (Qld)
Hammer throw: Lara Neilsen (Qld), Gabrielle Neighbour (Vic)
Javelin: Kim Mickle (WA), Kathryn Mitchell (Vic), Kelsey-Lee Roberts (ACT)
Heptathlon: Sophie Stanwell (NSW)
4×100m relay: Sally Pearson (Qld), Melissa Breen (ACT), Ashleigh Whittaker (Vic), Ella Nelson (NSW), Margaret Gayen (SA), Michelle Cutmore (Qld)
4×400m relay: Morgan Mitchell (Vic), Anneleise Rubie (NSW), Caitlin Sargent (Qld), Lauren Wells (ACT), Lyndsay Pekin (WA), Jess Gulli (Vic)