College Sport: Stellar performance at NI champs by Adams

Valerie Adams was the star at the North Island secondary schools athletics championships at Wanganui's Cooks Gardens.

The Southern Cross campus fifth-former broke three North Island records and has put herself on target for a promising athletics future.

Adams, 1.93m tall and of Tongan-European descent, has been in the athletics business for only a short while, being coached by 1994 Commonwealth Games silver medallist javelin thrower Kirsten Hellier for 18 months.

Adams smashed Kelly Ihaka's nine-year-old intermediate discus record by just under three metres with a throw of a hefty 47.06m.

In the shot put, she erased her own 1999 intermediate record of 14.28m, extending the mark to 15.20m.

Adams completed the hat-trick by breaking Michelle Phillip's three-year-old open girls' hammer record by 1.5 metres.

Hellier said she was not surprised by Adams' record haul.

"We're still getting used to Val breaking records," she said. "She's a natural. Her size gives her great leverage for throwing."

Hellier is reluctant to confine 15-year-old Adams to a particular throwing discipline just yet.

"I don't want to push her into one event. She throws well in shot put, discus, the hammer, even the javelin."

The youngster's efforts has won her a place in the squad to travel to the Pan-Pacific championships in Sydney next month.

Other notable performers from the Auckland region included junior Nick Blincoe, who broke Hayden Townsend's 300m junior boys' record and won the junior long jump by 21cm, jumping 6.01m.

Lousia Karena was in outstanding form in the junior girls' shot put, winning with a throw almost three metres further than the second placegetter and breaking Helen Kaurai's 1999 record of 12.75m.

Matthew Stratton and Craig Bearda fought it out in the senior boys' 100m, with Stratton pipping Bearda. However, Bearda came home with a gold medal when he was an easy winner in the senior boys' 200m.

VOLLEYBALL Aorere got their revenge over arch-rivals Hillary College at the national secondary schools championships in Christchurch.

Aorere finished runners-up to Tauranga school Otumoetai, who won 3-1 in the final.

Hillary would have been disappointed to finish fifth after their winning performance in the Auckland championship final against Aorere.

Auckland senior girls champions Avondale College were a credible third equal. They were lost narrowly to Otumoetai 2-3 in the semis.

OUTRIGGER CANOEING Liston College came up trumps in the fourth annual Auckland secondary schools regatta, fending off Papatoetoe College and Mt Roskill Grammar to take the senior boys' title.

The senior girls' trophy was won by McAuley High School, five seconds ahead of the Papatoetoe High.

WRESTLING Six members of the New Zealand secondary schools team who will travel to the United States at the end of the month were able to polish their techniques at the Auckland championships.

Rosehill College's Israel McMillan and Kim-San Sok (Kelston) clashed in the senior 58kg final, with McMillan coming out on top, while Damien Watts and Daniel Wilkins, both of Dilworth School, met in the 76kg final. Watts was too strong for his mate.

Wesley College pair Rimoni Leota (85kg) and Hapafila Lui (97kg) proved they will be forces to be reckoned with at the New Zealand championships in Porirua in June.

There were only two competitors in each weight class in the junior and senior girls events. Epsom Girls' Grammar and Rosehill and Pukekohe Colleges were adjudged first equal.

TOUCH The top three qualifiers in each of the two Auckland zones have been found and will travel to Hamilton late in the fourth term to battle it out in the New Zealand championships.

Auckland Girls' Grammar beat Papakura High School 5-2 in the zone two final, while Waitakere College had a narrow win against Whangarei Girls' High, 2-1, to qualify at the top of zone one.

Kelston Boys' High were runaway winners in their zone one final against Massey High, 7-4, while Mt Albert Grammar triumphed over Auckland Grammar in zone two.