Quartet of titles for Ruddell at athletic champs

Whangarei's Paul Ruddell has added four more provincial titles to the triple jump and sprint hurdles he won earlier this season.

On Friday, the LJ Hooker Athletics Whangarei teenager ran 11.15 seconds to break the Kamo High School 100 metre record. Then on Saturday in the Athletics Northland Championships held at the Kensington all weather track, he completed the M17 sprint treble (100m, 200m and 400m) before claiming the long jump title by a margin of seven centimetres from Whangarei's Brad James.



Another Whangarei athlete Sarah de Bruin made her championship debut, and completed the W17 sprint treble with a fine win in the 400m with a personal best time of 63 seconds.

Amanda Still (Whg) won the W17 800m, while clubmate Hazel Tana won the W20 800m and 400m improving her best times in these events by three seconds.

Triathlete Rachyl Edge (Whg) won the W20 1500m. As expected Athletics Whangarei's top distance athletes, Ian Calder and Imogen Hull were convincing winners of the both the 800m and 1500m in their respective divisions.

Inter-provincial champion Ethan Johnstone won the M20 100m and 200m while Whangarei's Dennis Langford took out the men's 100m, shot put and long jump.

The throwing events produced some excellent performances. Kaitaia's Te Ruawai Herbert-Brown was over 30m in the W17 hammer and also added the W17 shot title with 10.53m.

Blayne Smith (Whg) had an outstanding series in the javelin culminating in a winning throw of 48.65m. EJ Nathan (Kai), competing for the first time this season in an Athletics New Zealand event, won both the M20 discus (46.00m) and shot (13.86m).

Mark Lett added the discus title to the senior 100m and 200m he won earlier in the meeting.

Whangarei's Nancy Bowmar was kept busy, winning all the women's throwing events in addition to the long jump.

Next weekend, Whangarei athletes Amanda Still, Hazel Tana, Imogen Hull, Riana Phillips, Eryn Lovell, Ethan Johnstone and Tawera Henare will compete in the Athletics Auckland Championships.