Athletics: Polish runner aims for first NZ title

By Murray McKinnon

Former Polish international runner Anna Brzezinska will be chasing her first New Zealand title when she lines up in the national 3000m championship at Massey Park, Papakura, tonight.

The race should be one of the features at the third meeting of the 1999 Marley Games. It has attracted a top-class field including four previous champions.

Brzezinska has been living in Auckland for over a year and has the fastest 800m of the season (2m 7.85s).

The 28-year-old, who competes for the Bays Cougars, has the long-term aim of running for New Zealand over 5000m at next year's Sydney Olympics.

"I want to run as fast as I can. My training has been going very well," Brzezinska said yesterday. "I would like to go under nine minutes."

Brzezinska was third in the 3000m at the 1994 European indoor championships in Paris and has an outdoor best of 8m 44.05s, run in Zurich in 1995.

Three-times champion (1984-88-90) Chrissy Pfitzinger, Geraldine MacDonald (1995), Linden Wilde (1993-97), the defending champion, 14-year-old Demelza Murrihy, and Sonia Barry will ensure a top championship battle.

Adding even more interest to the star-studded field are Australians Natalie Harvey and Kylie Risk.

The senior men's championship over the same distance promises to be just as close.

It also boasts four previous winners, with John Henwood, Richard Potts, Robbie Johnstone and Phil Clode lining up.

Johnstone, impressive in winning over 5000m at the first Marley Games in Christchurch, will start a slight favourite, but will be wary of the other former winners, as well as Jonathan Wyatt, Alan Bunce and Australian Darren Lynch.

Sprint star Chris Donaldson will chase the 100m hat-trick and would have an even bigger night if he can break the 100m and 200m New Zealand resident records.

Despite bad starts in both Christchurch and Wanganui, Donaldson has been invincible over the shorter distance. He will run in the 200m for the first time in the series.

Mozambiquan Tina Paulino is keen to get her name in the record-book.

She tackles her favoured 800m determined to break two minutes and the allcomers' mark held by her cousin, Maria Mutola.

The men's 800m has attracted a field capable of breaking 1m 47s.

Shaun Farrell, forced to settle for second behind American Bryan Berryhill in Christchurch and young Australian Paul Clearly in Wanganui, has the chance to avenge those defeats in what promises to be one of the best races of the meeting, which starts at 7 pm.