College sports: Stakes high for many in triathlon races

More than 140 secondary school triathletes from as far south as Gore and from as far away as New South Wales will compete in the New Zealand secondary schools triathlon championships at Kinloch, Lake Taupo, on Saturday.

The juniors will race over a 350m swim/10km cycle/3km run course and the intermediates a 500m swim/15km cycle/4km run course. The seniors will have a 750m swim/20km cycle/5km run course.

For some of the senior competitors this event heralds the start of a demanding eight days, as they will take part in two important races - Saturday's national championships, then on April 3 the selection race for the New Zealand junior triathlon team to contest the 2004 world championships on the Portuguese island of Madeira on May 8.

The girls' race could well feature a re-run of the recent Auckland championships in which Jacqui Seebold (Diocesan) pipped Rangitoto College's Anna Hamilton by just hundredths of a second. Other senior girls triathletes to watch out for will be Alice Weaver from Kapiti College and Pukekohe College's Theresa Knight, who was third in this event last year.

In the senior boys race, the favourites include Tim MacIntosh (Auckland Grammar), Bruce Hunter (Macleans College, Auckland), Nathan Saunders (St Kentigern College, Auckland) and Ben Visser (Rangitoto College, Auckland), who placed 4th, 5th, 6th and 7th respectively last year.

SPORT CLIMBING

The first event of 2004 was completed on Sunday, with 37 climbers from 13 schools taking part at the Birkenhead Leisure Centre.

Grace Glover from Epsom Girls Grammar won the junior girls event and Ludo Bourneville of Mt Albert Grammar won the junior boys.

Sophie McDougall of Mt Roskill Grammar won the senior girls and Stefan Hum from King's College prevailed in the senior boys.

ORIENTEERING

Auckland Grammar proved to be the top boys school after the six-event summer orienteering series.

Grammar overcame challenges from King's College and Westlake Boys High School to take the honour. They were led by Robert Longuet-Higgins, who won the advanced grade title from Thomas Reynolds of Westlake.

Toby Scott of Glendowie College won the standard grade title.

St Cuthbert's College was the top girls school. They took the top two individual titles - Hannah Linkhorn won the advanced and Nicola Peat the standard grade. Sandra Moelbert of Howick College won the novice grade.

St Cuthbert's beat Epsom Girls Grammar and Glendowie College in the top school competition.

CRICKET

King's College have won the 2004 Auckland one-day first XI championships after defeating Westlake Boys in the AH Marryatt Cup final at North Harbour Stadium.

Batting first, Westlake scored 151 in the face of a strong bowling performance from King's, led by Tim Southee, who took 4/24.

Southee has made a huge impact on Auckland secondary schools cricket this year, having taken 40 wickets at an average of just 8.5 runs per wicket.

King's then cruised to 152/3, with Andrew de Boorder scoring 64 not out.

King's are now the Zone 1 qualifiers for the next round of the Gillette Cup national secondary schools cricket competition.

The cup is at present held by Hamilton Boys High School.

* This week is one of the biggest secondary school sporting weeks of the year.

The Maadi Cup rowing regatta in Twizel will feature Auckland and North Island crews vying for the prestigious titles.

The champ of champs swimming will be held at West Wave Aquatic Centre in Henderson from 9.30am tomorrow. The national volleyball championships will take place in Tauranga and Inglewood hosts the North Island track and field champs.