William Hamlyn-Harris (AUS) (© Getty Images)
World Student Games bronze medallist William Hamlyn-Harris made a dramatic breakthrough into the elite division of men’s Javelin throwing with a series of four throws over 82 metres, topped by a winning best of 85.60m, at the second of two days competition at the Telstra A-series meeting in Canberra, Australia.
26 year-old Hamlyn-Harris who had a personal best of 81.82m (2003) and a current season’s best of 78.81m (11 Jan) coming into today’s competition, opened with his winning 85.60m release. He followed that up with another two marks above his old personal best - 83.49m in round two, 82.82m in the fourth - before concluding an impressive series with another 85 metre heave (85.24m).
As well as his World Student Games podium finish in Daegu, Korea last summer, Hamlyn-Harris finished seventh for the Oceania team in the 2002 IAAF World Cup competition, and was fourth in the Manchester Commonwealth Games of the same year.
Pittman wins flat 300m
In the women’s 300m, Jana Pittman the women's World 400m Hurdles champion (who withdrew from the 200m) was back to winning ways but hardly bounced dramatically back from yesterday’s disappointment in the 100 metres. Pittman took the win in 37.92 seconds, someway off her season’s best of 37.31 which was run in a mixed race in Perth on 11 January, and way below her national best of 36.34 which she established in Campbelltown on 15 February last year.
NB. In the last two weeks Pittman has variously been reported as having suffered from either a knee injury to a misaligned pelvis.
Elsewhere, there was a fine men’s 400m with Casey Vincent's winning 45.38 one of four sub-46 second clockings in the race.
In the women's sprints, Lauren Hewitt ran a superb 22.94 to win the 200m, and finished second (11.34) in the 100m behind Nigeria's Gloria Kemasuode's 11.33. Both races benefitted from an illegal wind.
There was an 8:55 winning outing for Benita Johnson in the women’s 3000m, while in the Long Jump Bronwyn Thompson leapt to 6.68m.
Commonwealth champion Jane Saville took a fine 20km Race Walk win in 1:32:53.00.
IAAF
Selected Results – 31 January 2004
Men
100m (+1.2)
1 Shirvington, Matthew 10.36
2 Ross, Joshua 10.37
200m (-0.3)
1 Miller, Adam 20.91
2 Neofytou, Kristoph 20.91
3 Geddes, David 20.94
1 Vincent, Casey 45.38
2 Hill, Clinton 45.71
3 Steffensen, John 45.72
4 Dwyer, Patrick 45.99
5 Ormrod, Mark 46.59
6 Pearce, Paul 46.87
110m Hurdles (+0.5)
1 Vander Kuyp, Kyle 13.83
Long Jump
1 Thornell, John 8.00m (+2.5)
Shot
1 Anlezark, Justin 20.03mm
2 Martin, Scott 19.41m
Javelin
1 Hamlyn-Harris, William 85.60m
(85.60m 83.49m 76.04m 82.82m 77.09m 85.24m)
20km Walk
1 Adams, Luke 1:23:45.00
Women
100m (wind +3.8m/s)
1 Kemasuode, Gloria (NGR) 11.33
2 Hewitt, Lauren 11.34
200m (+3.1)
1 Hewitt, Lauren 22.94
2 Cripps, Sharon 23.39
300m
1 Pittman, Jana 37.92
400m
1 Bulikiobo, Makeles (FIJ) 52.41
2 Smith, Annabelle 52.43
800m
1 Ronholt, Rikke (DEN) 2:02.95
3000m
1 Johnson, Benita 8:55.08
High Jump
1 Price, Petrina 1.92m
Pole Vault
1 Grigorieva, Tatiana 4.20m
Long Jump
1 Thompson, Bronwyn 6.68m (0.7)
Heptathlon
1 Wheeler, Kylie 5827pts
(14.08; 1.85m; 11.90m; 24.77; 6.07m; 34.53m; 2:20.05)
20km Walk
1 Saville, Jane 1:32:53.00
