Athletics: Running to restore a proud tradition

By GREGG WYCHERLEY and MURRAY McKINNON

With New Zealand athletics in the doldrums and Olympic success a distant memory, the glory days of Lovelock, Snell and Walker seem long gone.

But a fleet-footed youngster has stepped up to the blocks to put the gold back into New Zealand's proud middle-distance running history.

Nick Willis, aged 17, has already smashed the New Zealand under-20 record for the mile with a new mark of 4m 1.32s, set at Wanganui.

He knocked two seconds off the record, and was seven seconds faster than the previous best by an under-18-year-old in New Zealand.

Pundits say Willis has the potential to follow Jack Lovelock, Peter Snell and John Walker to win an Olympic Games 1500m gold medal.

Willis, barely out of high school, is a step ahead of his heroes, as Walker did not race a mile until he was 21, when he ran 3m 58.8s in Canada in 1973.

Olympic champion and former world record holder Snell also left the mile until later in his career, running a world-record time of 3m 54.4s at Wanganui in 1962 when he was 23.

British great Steve Cram set the fastest time for a 17-year-old of 3m 57.1s and went on to run a world record for the mile in 1985, with 3m 46.32s.

Walker said of Willis: "The future looks good for him. He's a lot more advanced than most other kids of his age."

But Walker sounded a warning. "We don't want to lose him to an American scholarship. We've got to keep him here and look after him."

Walker said far too many of our promising athletes disappeared on American scholarships, never to be heard of again.

"We've got to find him a good job, provide the right coaching and Athletics New Zealand needs to seek the best international competition for him.

"Nick reflects a good crop of young runners coming on. We are in for a new era, but it won't happen overnight."

He said athletics revolved around middle-distance running and New Zealand needed new talent such as Willis to claw back public interest, and hopefully success, in the sport.

"If we have another champion, the crowds will come out again and the sponsors will be back."

Willis, fresh from seventh form at Hutt Valley High School, has already set himself a big challenge.

"My mid-term goal [to the 2004 Olympics] is the world junior championships in Jamaica, in June next year, and possibly the Manchester Commonwealth Games after that."

US scouts are already aware of him but he is not contemplating an American scholarship at this stage.

He has been invited to compete as a guest in the US indoor high school championships in New York in March.

He is likely to clash with Allan Webb, an 18-year-old US middle-distance star who has run 3m 59.86s for the mile.

"He has just turned 18 so to have the opportunity to run against him indoors will be great."

Speed runs in the Willis family. Brother Steve is also an accomplished miler, having broken the four-minute barrier in Wanganui last year with 3m 59.04s.

"Nick has a lot more going for him than me," said Steve. "We often joke about who will end up the fastest but one goal we have is to become the first brothers in the same race to break four minutes."