Three magic number for Ward

Wairarapa College pupil Keelan Ward returned from the New Zealand track and field championships held at Trusts Stadium, Waitakere, last weekend with three medals - one gold and two silver.

Contesting the boys AWD (athletes with disability) 17yrs and under age group in Wellington colours, the 15-year-old came first in the 400m in 69.34secs and was runner-up to Auckland's Richard Nelson-Parker over the 100m (14.37secs) and 200m (30.74secs).

His 100m effort was a personal best by more than 1secs and he was close to his PBs in the other two events as well.

Masterton-based coach Mark Harris has had Ward in serious training for only about six months and says he has been "absolutely blown away" by the progress he has made. His 400m time had improved by almost 10secs over that period.

"He's not a big kid but he's gutsy and he wants to learn, you certainly can't fault his attitude," Harris said. "Obviously there is still plenty to work on but he's definitely promising, he's got what it takes."

Harris was also impressed by the efforts of sprinter Simone Small, who represented Wellington in the senior women's 100m and 200m events.

In the early throes of working on a new starting technique, things didn't exactly fall into place at the start of her 100m heat but she still managed to register a respectable time of 12.73secs.

There was better fortune in the 200m though when she came fourth in her heat with a time of 26.32secs and qualified for the final where she finished sixth in 26.67secs.

Making that 200m performance even more impressive was that it was Small's first attempt at racing around a turn since she ruptured a medial ligament in a knee midway through last year and, not surprisingly, there was some trepidation going into her heat and even the final.

"I think it's fair to say she was a bit careful but that was understandable ... just finishing in one piece will have done wonders for her confidence," Harris said.

Rathkeale College field eventer Tim Girling-McLean was using the Waitakere meet as a final dress rehearsal for the North Island secondary schools track and field championships at Tauranga this weekend. His third placing in the boys 17yrs and under shot put with a put of 16.40m was impressive. He also managed 11th in the discus with a throw of 37.25m.