High jumper on the rise
Wimmera athlete Lily Cameron, 16, has continued to emerge as a rising sporting talent after medalwinning performances at Australian Athletic Championships in Sydney.
The 184-centimetre Monivae College year-11 student, from Nurcoung, produced personal-best performances in under-18 and under-20 high-jump events to clinch bronze medals in both.
The podium result at Sydney Olympic Park Athletic Centre followed strong performances earlier this year in Victorian junior championships, where she collected silver and Victorian country titles, gold.
Late last year she had a top-five finish at Australian All Schools under-18s after winning a Victorian Secondary School Sports gold, and collected a silver on countback at Victorian All School titles.
Wimmera coach Rick Price said Cameron cleared the bar at 172 centimetres to medal in the under-18s and produced another personal best of 173 to collect bronze in the under-20s.
“With the incremental rises she just missed getting over the bar at 176, which would have smashed her PB,” he said.
“She went into the under-18s ranked fifth and has now gone up a ranking.”
In the under-18s, Cameron finished behind Emily Whelan of NSW with a jump of 175. In the under-20s, Paige Wilson, also of NSW, jumped 184cm to win the event from Clare Gibson, 179, and Cameron.
Price has coached Cameron for the past two years and noted that her improvement had been significant since she competed at national titles in Perth last year, where she finished ninth.
“At that stage she was jumping 160 so in 12 months her PB has gone up by 10 centimetres,” he said.
“From a coaching perspective, she is much improved, is growing in confidence and has a good mind-set. Having almost cleared 176 you have to think she has more improvement to come. She also started to jump better when the bar went higher which is what you want. When she jumps well, she makes it look easy. For Lily to qualify in for world titles she pretty much has to jump her height at 184, but that’s 12 months away.”
Anna Bush, from Horsham, also competed in the national titles, coming fifth in under-20 100-metre hurdles after being part of a Victorian under-20 gold medal-winning 4 x100m team.
Bush also finished fourth in the multi-discipline under-20 women’s heptathlon after competing in 100m, high jump, shot put, 200m, long jump, javelin throw and 800m.
Bush, studying year-12 in Melbourne, ran a personal best in the 100m to make the final and ran another personal best in the 100m hurdles. Kalimna Park croquet, Horsham: Saturday, association handicap, I. Jackman and K. Blake d F. Pearson and Y. Watts 21-8, K. Geyer and H. Phillips d T. Brown 14-11, Y. Watts d K. Blake 11-6, K. Geyer d F. Pearson 22-18, T. Brown and H. Phillips d I. Jackman 7-4.
Golf, D. Mills d M. Russell 7-6, S. Heard and M. Shearwood d M. Russell 7-6, D. Mills and S. Hinch d M. Ward 11-2, S. Hinch d M. Ward and S. Heard 8-5, S. Hinch d S. Heard 8-5.
Horsham Golf croquet: Saturday, division one, B. Etherton 2-20, I. Rees 2-14, division two, R. Rees 2-19, T. Wright 2-17, division three, N. Byrne 2-22, D. Scott 2-21; Thursday, I. Rees 2-22, Jon Pipkorn 1-17, division two, R. Rees 3-24, V. Hanna 2-20, division three, G. Mccartney 2-20, Jen Pipkorn 1-18. Haven carpet bowls: R. Schorback, C. Mackin, N. Eagles, Jason Nitschke, John Nitschke 40; runners-up, D Timmins, P. Dellar, C. Eagles, R. Hovey, Jamie Nitschke, 26.