Stunning success for junior athletes

April Campbell and Courtnay Fafeita provided the highlights of a remarkable Wairarapa effort on the opening day of the Wellington junior track and field championships in Wellington over the weekend.
Now fewer than 16 first placings were recorded by Wairarapa athletes with Campbell and Fafeita both setting centre records. Campbell , from Carterton,won the girls 13yrs 80 metres hurdles in a time of 12.81secs, well inside the previous best time of 13.46secs and a performance which should earn her selection in the New Zealand for the Pacific School Games to be held in Australia later this year
Fafeita, also from Carterton, won the girls 14yrs discus with a throw of 40.34m which easily bettered the existing centre record of 33m and also a sharp improvement on her own previous best distance of 38.5m.Her potential is evidenced by the fact that the current world youth championships qualifying mark for the girls discus is 43m, a distance which looks well within Fafeita's scope in the not-too-distant future.Fafeita also won the 1km walk in her age group in a time of 7min 5.63secs.
Stevie Paine from Masterton won the girls 12yrs 200m in a pb for her of 27.87secs, having all of 2secs to spare from her nearest rival, and the 800m in another personal best time of 2min 20.67secs while Ryan Saunders of Featherston made a huge impression when he won the boys 12yrs 400m in a time of 61.24secs and also the boys 14yrs long jump with a leap of 4.45m.
Carterton's Ariana Blackwood won the girls 13yrs discus with a throw of 31.40m, Corrina Paine (Masterton) won the girls 15yrs 800m in 2min 28.35secs and the 1km walk in 7m 5.66secs and Alison Andrews-Paul (Masterton) won the girls 10yrs 800m in 2min 46.18secs.
Liam Burling (Masterton) prevailed in the boys long jump with a jump of 3.94m, Alex Fafeita (Carterton) won the boys 13yrs 1km walk in 6min 59.27secs and Nathan Whiteman (Carterton) won the boys 7yrs shot put with a put of 6.86m.
In the medley relays made up of teams consisting of both sexes Masterton won the 12yrs grade by 10secs while Carterton took out the 13yrs grade in equally emphatic fashion.