Seven of the 13-strong NZ Olympic track and field team competed in the Cooks Classic in Whanganui

George Lambert on his way to winning the under-20 title at the Manawatu/Whanganui Cross Country Championships at the Bason reserve. Photo / Supplied

Opinion:

The Bason Botanical Gardens proved to be an excellent venue for the Manawatu/Whanganui Cross Country Championships on Saturday, even if the weather did not play its part.

As mentioned last week, how blessed we are with wonderful parks. The Bason did not disappoint. The course was demanding with hills, muddy sections and scenically outstanding. Although it was raining lightly at the start, we were spared most of the storm that made the Whanganui club rugby final such a challenge. Only during the final men's combined races did the rain became heavier and the wind stronger. Runners were home before the worst set in. However, spare a thought for race director Rob Conder and his team, who cleared up when the weather was at its worst.

New Zealand Schools international George Lambert provided the leading local performance winning the under-20 championships by 15 seconds from Andrew Le-Pine Day (Fielding Moa). The combined men's race helped Lambert as he was not only pushed by Le-Pine Day but by senior men's winner Damian Lardner (Fielding Moa) who was only metres behind Lambert through the four 2km laps before commencing his final senior men's lap in the 10,000m race. It was Lambert's first 8km cross-country race. His time of 28 minutes 23 seconds was a little shy of his 28min target. The conditions and nature of the course made it a hard target, but the experience gained will be valuable in preparation for the New Zealand Championships in August.

Ben Conder was third behind Lambert. Lucas Martin finished third in the under-18 division. Brendon Sharratt was first in the M35 division of the masters, Rob Conder the leading M45 runner and Brian Dunne the leading M60 runner. Di Mathews and Nuala Dunne were first in the respective W55 and W60 grades. Joanne Merson and Paula Conder came second in their respective W50 and W45 grades. Peter Monrad and Louise Byam were first male and female walkers.

The Olympic Games has risen to many challenges since the first Games in 1896, but probably none as great as the postponed 2020 Olympics in Tokyo that starts this week. I will as always be an avid Olympics viewer, but with mixed feelings this time. Empty stadiums, Covid protocols, and antagonism from many in Japan take the shine off this Games with so many questions being asked about whether they should even be held.

There are 13 in the New Zealand track and field Team. The team has a mix of experience and younger athletes headed by Dame Valerie Adams and Nick Willis, both attending their fifth Olympics, and both debuted in Athens in 2004. Both have won Olympic medals (Adams gold in 2008 and 2012, silver 2016; Willis a silver in 2008 and bronze in 2016). There are no athletes from Whanganui in the team, although the athletics operation manager is Kat Austin from Whanganui who showed her early flair for organisation as Whanganui Collegiate Club captain in 2003.

However, most of the team are no strangers to Whanganui. Seven of the team competed at the Cooks Classic in January with three setting stadium records at that meeting. Hamish Kerr in high jump (2.27m), Lauren Bruce in the hammer (71.34m), returning to the ground where she set the NZ Schools record in 2014, and Jacko Gil shot (21.11m) after an epic battle with 2016 Olympic bronze medal and 2019 Worlds bronze medal winner Tom Walsh where Gil finished in seventh place. There are five throwers in the team highlighting New Zealand's strength in throwing disciplines. Maddison-Lee Wesche, a world junior champion in 2018 and was also at the Cooks Classic in January, and Julia Ratcliffe (hammer) are the other throwers.

Nick Willis holds the Cooks Gardens Mile record and has set five sub-4-minute miles on the famous track. Sam Tanner is an exciting emerging middle-distance runner. Tanner won the New Zealand Mile Championship at the Cooks Classic in January. Tanner is only 20, 18 years younger than Willis, and will benefit from Willis' great depth of experience. Malcolm Hicks who is a member of the Cooks Gardens sub-4-minute roll of honour in 2012, starts in the marathon where he will be joined by Zane Robertson. Camille Buscomb narrowly missed Lucy Oliver's (nee van Dalen) Cooks Stadium record in winning the New Zealand Mile championships in January at the Cooks Classic. She finished 12th in both the 10,000m and 5000m at the last world championships. Race walker Quentin Rew is the other team member and will compete in the 50km race walk. He was 12th in at the last world championships (Doha 2019).

The Olympic athletics programme starts on July 30.

The 13-strong NZ track and field Olympic team:

• Kat Austin – operations manager

• Dame Valerie Adams, shot put (Pakuranga Athletic Club/Auckland), coached by Dale Stevenson. Age 36

• Lauren Bruce, hammer (South Canterbury Athletic Club/Canterbury), coached by Dale Stevenson. Age 24

·• Camille Buscomb, 5000m/10,000m (Hamilton City Hawks Athletics/Waikato Bay of Plenty), coached by Nic Bideau. Age 31

• Jacko Gill, shot put (Takapuna Athletic and Harrier Club/Auckland), coached by Mike Schofield. Age 26

• Malcolm Hicks, marathon (Wesley Athletic and Harrier Club/Auckland), coached by Paul Hamblyn. Age 33

• Hamish Kerr, high jump (Christchurch Old Boys United/Canterbury), coached by Terry Lomax. Age 24

• Julia Ratcliffe, hammer (Hamilton City Hawks Athletics/Waikato Bay of Plenty), coached by Dave Ratcliffe. Age 28

• Quentin Rew, 50km race walk (Wellington Harrier Athletic Club/Wellington), coached by Brent Vallance. Age 37

• Zane Robertson, marathon (Hamilton City Hawks Athletics/Waikato Bay of Plenty), advised by Steve Willis. Age 31

• Sam Tanner, 1500m (Tauranga Ramblers/Waikato Bay of Plenty), coached by Craig Kirkwood and Andy Powell. Age 20

• Tom Walsh, shot put (South Canterbury Athletic Club/Canterbury), coached by Dale Stevenson. Age 29

• Maddison-Lee Wesche, shot put (Waitakere City Athletic Club/Auckland), coached by Mike Schofield and Walter Gill. Age 22

• Nick Willis, 1500m (Lower Hutt Athletic Club/Wellington), coached by Ron Warhurst. Age 38