Day lights up over shot
From junior teammates to world title hopefuls
THEY’RE best friends who have known each other since they started racing in primary school and are now Australia’s track and field team babies.
Riley Day and Ella Connolly are 17-year-old Queenslanders on the ride of a lifetime which has taken them from the Bahamas to London in the space of a couple of weeks.
Their first race was at the national primary school championships in Bendigo in 2010. They were both 10 and after a chat they think Day came second and Connolly third.
“Do you want to have a look at a picture from the race?” Riley says holding her phone.
The pair have been teammates in junior rep squads ever since and were together at the Commonwealth Youth Games in the Bahamas last month where Day won the 200m and finished second in the 100m, while Connolly finished second in the 400m.
That was supposed to be the end of the international adventure but then Caboolture’s Connolly was informed she’d been selected in the senior 4x400m relay team for London’s world championships.
Day had actually returned home to Beaudesert for a day before she got the call from Athletics Australia to say she’d received a 200m spot in London, based on world ranking.
“I still can’t believe that I’m here,’’ she says.
“It’s so surreal. I said to Ella last time I saw her, I’ll be watching you on TV, go and get ‘em, run hard.
‘When my mum told me: “They want you to go to London”. I didn’t say anything for 10 minutes. But I wouldn’t pass up an opportunity like this, especially at 17, it’s amazing.
’“I was definitely going to come, no matter what. Even if everyone said “No”. I was like: “Sorry. See ya.’’
Connolly travelled to Australia’s team camp at Tonbridge, outside of London, where she was looked after by the likes of superstars Sally Pearson who’d been in a similar position many moons ago as the baby of the team.