NSW All Schools: 10 new emerging athletes to watch

22 September 2026

NSW All Schools: 10 new emerging athletes to watch

We are familiar with many of our established junior stars like Alice Hill, Ollie Facer, Lachlan Chappell, Sienna Vassella, Marnie Laurence, and many more who will compete next week, but who are some of the new names we can look forward to emerging during the NSW All Schools Championships and over the season ahead. Here are just 10 -

TOM BLACKMAN

Trinity Grammar’s Tom Blackman is one of NSW’s leading emerging javelin throwers, placing 3rd last April at the Australian under-18 Championships. On that occasion in Brisbane, he threw a best of 58.73m. But this season he has made a leap forward nailing a PB of 65.47m at the recent CAS (Combined Associated Schools) Championships, where he won the event by 11 metres and added three metres to the record. Tom is coached by master javelin throwing coach Rhys Stein. However just hours ago, his expected competition Toronto’s Alex Campbell a student at Belmont Christian College, blasted a throw of 65.05m today at the CIS (Combined Independent Schools) championships. Alex would have no doubt noted Tom’s throw last Thursday and responded today.

ANNIKA KUMAR

Last April in Brisbane Annika Kumar won silver medals in the 400m at two Australian championships within four days. After placing second at ALAC (Australian Little Athletics Championships), she was again second in the under-14 400m at the Australian Championships. Last summer Annika ran a best 400m time of 56.70, but the Meriden student has opened her 2025/26 summer campaign with 55.94 at the annual IGSA Schools carnival. Coached by Piyush Kumar, Annika will also be a serious threat in the 200m setting a PB of 24.98 last month.

EAMON HENDERSON

Eamon Henderson, a student at Bega High on the NSW south coach, has the right elements to be a terrific hurdles star of the future. A key to being a good hurdler is speed in the sprints and especially the 200m, which is exactly what Eamon has. The self-coached athlete missed the Australian Junior Championships in April due to an AFL injury, but over the last month he has returned to competition with a series of excellent performances. Last year at the NSW All Schools he just missed the podium in the 100m and 200m, while in the 110m hurdles he won the bronze medal. At the CHS (Combined High Schools), last week, he claimed a treble, winning the 16-years 100m, 200m and 110m hurdles. He clocked excellent times of 11.05, 22.05 and 14.39 into a wind in the hurdles. The times were not far short of his PBs of 10.97, 21.88 and 14.18. At the NSW All Schools next week he will face tough competition in the sprints from the CAS (Combined Associated Schools) athletes. In the hurdles there is also some quality CAS athletes, but most of his competition were in the recent CHS race which he won. Eamon, who lives in a Candelo, a small village (population 800), 20 minutes from Bega, does not have the same access to facilities as many athletes; training on a local grass track over some recently purchased plastic hurdles.

SIENNA WADE

Sienna Wade is a talented athlete with an unusual range of events. In April at the Australian Junior Championships, she won silver in the under-17 2000m steeplechase, bronze in the 800m and was 5th in the 400m. She has continued that top form across similar events at the recent CHS (Combined High Schools) Championships, where she won four events - the 15-years 400m, 800m, 1500m and 2000m steeplechase. She dominated her events winning the 800m and 1500m by three seconds and steeplechase by 15 seconds. Sienna, a Chatswood High student, will narrow her program to the 400m, 800m and steeplechase for the NSW All Schools.

PHILLIP BOTONIS

Westfields student, Phillip Botonis has won distance running gold and three silver medals at the last two (2024 and 2025) Australia All Schools Championships. But his 2026 winter season has been peerless winning two Australian cross-country titles. In Ballarat in August, he won the Australian under-16 4km cross country title by five seconds ahead of arch-rival, Victorian Oscar Woodhouse. Last week in Sydney, Phillip was again the winner, of the Australian 14/15 years Schools Cross-country Championship by four seconds. Coached by Brett Mathieson, Phillip will compete the under-16 1500m and 3000m events at the NSW All Schools.

MARLEE GILL

She may not win gold at the NSW All Schools as she competes against Tallara Joseph-Riogi, but Marlee Gill, with a PB of 48.06m is one of the best young javelin throwers in Australia. A student at Bede Polding College in South Windsor, she is coached by Michel Hemmings Jones. At her last three Australian Championships she has finished on the podium – silver at 2025 Australian U17s, bronze at the 2025 Australian All Schools U17s, then bronze at the 2026 Australian U18s. The Riverstone Athletics club athlete added a bronze in the U18s at the 2026 Oceania Championships in May in Darwin.

LEO BALMOND

Leo Balmond started his athletics journey at Balmain Athletics at the age of just four. A specialist discus thrower, Leo missed the NSW and Australian All Schools in 2025 due to injury, then at the 2026 Australian U16 Championships in April, he fouled three times, with 56.94m sufficient to finish on the podium. But he has commenced his 2026/27 summer in incredible form smashing a 44-year-old CHS (Combined high Schools) record with a winning throw of 63.97m in the 15-years discus. The older record, set in 1982, was held by a NSW little Athletics legend, Steve Carline (Heathcote High) who was captain of the winning 1979 ALAC (Australian Little Athletics Championships) team. Steve can be heard daily on 2GB radio station doing the traffic reports. Leo’s throw at the CHS was no one off, as his series included four efforts over 62 metres. Leo, who also plays rugby union, will next week receive good competition at the NSW All Schools title from Douglas Pentecost (Springwood) and Patrick Rowston (Cowra).

LUCY GILMOUR

Reigning from Leeton, a six-hour drive from Sydney, Lucy Gilmour has warmup for the NSW All Schools with a gold medal winning treble at the CHS Athletics carnival. Coached by Brooke Gilmour and attending St Francis College in Leeton, Lucy, a T44 Para-athletics competitor won the 18/19-years 100m, 200m and long jump. At the CHS, her highest points were achieved in the 100m where she clocked 15.19, close to her PB of 14.99. She was also in range of her long jump PB, leaping 4.00m into a headwind, 15cm behind her lifetime best.

MATTHEW FAULKNER

Matthew Faulkner competes in one of the most competitive NSW age groups – the boys under-15. Such is the dominance of this distance running group last year at the Australian Cross-country Championships NSW took the top-6 places. Some of the best are Isaac Robinson, Zach West and Isaac Zreika. Matthew, who comfortably won the Australian under-15 3000m title last April, has over winter placed third in the Australian under-15 XC and was first 14-year-old at the Australian Schools XC last week in Sydney. On the track he has been inform, breaking the CHS 14-years 1500m record, in a solo run clocking 4:12.63 – winning by eight seconds. The Jacinta Doyle coached, Endeavour Sports High student, has a busy program at the NSW All Schools competing in the 1500m, 3000m and 2000m steeplechase.

ANNISHA READER

With two Australian titles in the last 12 months, Annisha Reader is one of the leading hammer throwers at the NSW All Schools next week. In December 2025 Annisha won the Australian All Schools under-16 title and in April 2026 the Australian under-17 title - both wins were by a comfortable four metre margin. Annisha is a former discus thrower, who won the Australian All Schools under-14 title in 2023. Now specialising in the hammer throw, the Catherine McAuley student (Westmead), is coached by Bre Clement.

David Tarbotton for NSW Athletics

Image: Trinity Grammar’s Tom Blackman (image courtesy of David Tarbotton)