Top four head to Olympic trials

Riana Phillips of Tauraroa Area School scooped four gold medals and came within a whisker of breaking the high jump record at the Northland Secondary Schools Athletics Championship in Whangarei.

Twenty-four schools and about 400 athletes from Rodney north competed in track and field events at Kensington Stadium yesterday.

Four students - Phillips, Imogen Hull of Kerikeri High School, Hazel Tana of Whangarei Girls' High and Etana Nathan of Kaitaia College - will compete in next week's Athletics New Zealand national championship and Olympic trials.

Phillips recorded 163cm in the high jump - 2cm short of the record.

She is nationally ranked number four in the 400m and number seven in the high jump.

Tana won gold in the 400m and 800m intermediate grade, while Hull triumphed in the 1500m and 3000m events.

Nathan won the discus and shot put in the senior category.

Kensington stadium manager Chris Portch said the four students might also participate in the North Island Secondary Schools championship in Tauranga in two weeks.