4 Feb 2019
Burnett captures state heptathlon
In contrasting conditions, light rain on Saturday and very warm weather of Sunday, the NSW Combined events were held at the Crest track at Homebush.
The athletes endured the conditions with Commonwealth Games representative Alysha Burnett (CHE) claiming her third NSW open heptathlon title. On day one she was outstanding. After a weather effected 100m hurdles, she cleared 1.88m in the high jump and missed two credible attempts at 1.94m on a wet/slow surface. In the shot she reached 14.11m, a 49cm PB. She was happy with her 200m of 25.83. A strong long jump of 6.03m was followed by her reliable javelin which yield 42.26m. She closed with a comfortable 2:37.36 in the 800m to score 5689, her sixth highest of her career. Her training partner, Alec Diamond (UTN) won the men’s title despite a no height in one of his strong event, the pole vault. He scored 6018 points with his strongest performance in the shot put (14.70m).
At the all-comers meet held in conjunction we saw the first summer triple jump by Commonwealth Games representative Emmanuel Fakiye (UTN) who bounded out to a wind assisted 15.60m. Pole vaulter Nickolai Simmons (BAN), 17, continues to make tremendous progress clearing 4.85m. Also at the jumps, a new find for athletics was teenager Will Freyer (UTN) leaping a wind-legal 7.50m in the long jump. On the track, Josh Atkinson (HIL), who last December broke the state under-16 800m record, ran another terrific time of 1:53.19.
Full results: http://www.nswathletics.info/liveresults/2019/nsw_multi/
David Tarbotton for Athletics NSW
Images: Alysha Burnett (courtesy of David Tarbotton)