College sport: Three already beat Commonwealth qualifying marks

By JENNI RUTHERFORD

New world youth shot-put champion Valerie Adams joins pole vaulter Jenni Dryburgh and discus thrower Ian Winchester in qualifying for the Commonwealth Games in Manchester next year.

Adams, aged 16, from the Southern Cross Campus in Mangere, easily bettered the standard of 16.30m with her winning put of 16.71m in Hungary. However, she had already qualified for the Games with a 17.08m throw in the preliminaries.

Although the meeting was for under-18 competitors, the shot-put used was the senior 4kg weight that competitors will use in Manchester.

All three athletes qualified within two weeks of one another.

Winchester's 62.64m throw on July 1 in Los Angeles was 1.64m clear of the mark and Dryburgh jumped 4.20m in Ottawa 10 days later, qualifying by 10cm, in her build-up for the forthcoming world championships in Edmonton.

The timeframe for qualifying is from July 1 this year to June 30 next year, and the Athletics New Zealand convener of selectors, Dave Norris, said it was unusual for three athletes to make the New Zealand standards this early.

He did not doubt they would be in the same good form for the Games, which start on July 25, and said all would be required to back up their performances before next June.

Norris was excited by Adams' achievement and is confident she will continue to perform well.

"She will easily back it up, and she may even qualify for the hammer," he said.

Adams initially entered the hammer event in Hungary, but pulled out when qualifying times for that event clashed with the shot-put.

New Zealand had a successful world youth championships, with Adams' gold medal, three other competitors making their finals, seven making semifinals and 10 recording personal bests.

King's College sprinter April Brough was impressive in her 200m final, finishing fifth after a Cuban runner was disqualified.

The women's relay team were seventh, less than half-a-second behind the fourth-placed team, and Max Smith, from King's High School in Dunedin, came ninth in the 1500m final in 3m 55.39s.

DUATHLON

James Elvery, of Auckland Grammar, showed good form in winning the senior boys title at the New Zealand secondary schools championships in Nelson. He has since travelled to Canada to compete at the world championships.

Julia Scopes, from Epsom Girls Grammar, made the step-up to the senior girls grade with ease. Last year's intermediate girls champion was 28s ahead of Hamilton's Louise Jenkins.

Jade Gilbertson (Epsom Girls) was too strong for Sarah Bryant from St Hilda's in the intermediate girls race, holding Bryant out by 23s.

Rangitoto College's strength in multisport was highlighted with Stuart Robinson winning the junior boys race and Rachael Nordmeyer the junior girls.

RUGBY

Auckland Grammar fullback Ben Atiga made a full recovery from a knee injury that kept him out of the first seven weeks of the 1st XV 1A competition, scoring two tries in their 84-12 thumping of Avondale.

Atiga was one of 11 Aucklanders named in the New Zealand secondary schools squad to play England schools as the curtainraiser to the Bledisloe Cup clash at Carisbrook on August 11.

The squad has a core of experience, with six of the 23 players reappearing from last year's side that beat Australia and Tonga.

Three others were members of the 2001 world champion New Zealand under-19 team.

In total, five members of the under-19 squad have made the schools side, including Atiga, who is in his third year in the squad.

The other under-19 representatives are St Kentigern College winger Joe Rokococo, who was also in the schools side last year, Westlake Boys High School first five-eighths Luke McAlister, King's High School prop Ben Nolan and Kavanagh College hooker Ti'i Paulo.

Other Auckland members of the secondary schools side include John Afoa (St Kentigern), Edwin Asotasi (St Peter's), Luke Eketone (Auckland Grammar), Cameron Jowitt (King's), Jerome Kaino (St Kentigern), Anthony Koonwaiyou (King's), Berry Tuia (Mt Albert Grammar) and Ray Tuivaiti (Kelston Boys).

With so many Auckland players in the side, the semifinals of the Auckland 1A 1st XV competition, originally scheduled for August 11, will now be played on Tuesday, August 14.

St Kentigern College and Kelston Boys High appear to have secured a place in the semifinal with three rounds to play, but at least five schools will battle it out for the final two spots.

This week:

TODAY

Intercity boys hockey.

Counties Manukau: Netball.

TOMORROW

Intercity girls hockey.

FRIDAY

Auckland: premier basketball, squash.

SATURDAY

Auckland: rugby, soccer, netball.

Counties Manukau: Lenco Cup rugby, rugby.

North Harbour: rugby, netball.

SUNDAY

Auckland: cycling.

MONDAY

Auckland: girls rugby, squash.