Top sprinters miss cut for Comm Games

New Zealand top men’s sprint stars Eddie Osei-Nketia and Tiaan Whelpton are both exceedingly quick over 100 metres – just not swift enough to get themselves on to the team for the Birmingham Commonwealth Games.

Neither the Canberra-based OseiNketia nor Canterbury’s Whelpton made the cut for the New Zealand athletics squad of 18 that will head to the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham (July 28-August 8), and Athletics

NZ high performance boss Scott Newman explained it was a cut-anddried omission based on qualifying times.

Osei-Nketia has posted one Commonwealth Games B standard (10.12sec), but required at least two to make the team for Birmingham. And Whelpton, who injured his hamstring in the national 100m final earlier this year, has not dipped under the mark even once.

‘‘You could look at it and say ‘why aren’t they there?’ But they just haven’t run fast enough this summer,’’ Newman told Stuff. ‘‘It’s so tough – top six in the Commonwealth (essentially how the B standard is arrived at) is a really tough criteria in men’s sprints compared to other events where the depth isn’t quite so strong.’’

The 21-year-old Osei-Nketia was the closest to punching his ticket for Birmingham, after already being named conditionally to run the 100m at the world championships in Oregon that precede the Commonwealth Games.

He ran 10.12sec in Brisbane in March, 2021, but his next best performance over the qualifying period was the 10.19sec posted in Adelaide earlier this year.

At a glance

New Zealand athletics team for Commonwealth Games:

Lauren Bruce, Julia Ratcliffe, Nicole Bradley, all hammer throw; Olivia McTaggart, Imogen Ayris, pole vault; Maddison Wesche, shot put; Tori Peeters, javelin; Zoe Hobbs, 100m; Portia Bing, 400m hurdles, *Keeley O’Hagan, high jump.

Jacko Gill, Tom Walsh, shot put; Hamish Kerr, high jump; Connor Bell, discus; Quentin Rew, 10,000m race walk; Geordie Beamish, *Eric Speakman, 5000m; *Sam Tanner, 1500m. * conditional selection

Osei-Nketia’s selection for the world championships comes under different selection criteria, explained Newman – but still requires him to fall within the rankings cutoff of 48 at the end of the selection period on June 26.

He sits at 41 on the Road to Oregon list (which factors out athletes from nations that have already qualified their three athletes), while Whelpton is well back at 61st.

‘‘Eddie has been able to be selected because we’ve got different criteria for the worlds, and because of his age,’’ added Newman. ‘‘We have a clause that allows him to be selected on the basis of being ranked inside the top 40, but because he’s under-23 it’s effectively a development-type selection. But he could still drop out if he doesn’t maintain his ranking.’’

Newman admitted it was tough on the promising Kiwi sprinters because the standard in the Commonwealth is so high, with nations such as Jamaica, Ghana, Nigeria, Canada, Australia and England all producing world-class 100m runners.

‘‘If you look at world rankings for 100m, basically the Commonwealth countries dominate, other than the US,’’ he added.

The New

Zealand team showed a real lack of intent’’.

‘‘We’ve had a bit of a go at each other, which has been good,’’ Kahui said of both verbal and physical shots fired during the week’s preparations in Tauranga.

‘‘The issue at the moment is just being consistent enough, it’s actually showing up and do what we say we’re going to do.’’

Kahui has been bribing everyone he can for spare tickets. His parents and 30 or so of their friends will be there, while a mate from up north has 20 crayfish ready for after the game.

Those will go down well with a Waikato Draught in the company of a couple of familiar faces, notably Chiefs co-captain Sam Cane, who is in awe of what his former team-mate has gone on to achieve.

‘‘An exceptional player, a good athlete, a for

Birmingham is dominated by the field events, with three women’s hammer throwers, two women’s pole vaulters and two men’s shot put exponents among the group. High jumper Keeley O’Hagan and middledistance men Sam Tanner and Eric Speakman will have to meet targets to confirm their spots.

Shot put ace Tom Walsh and hammer thrower Julia Ratcliffe are defending champions in their events, while Hamish Kerr (high jump), Maddie Weshe (shot put), Lauren Bruce (hammer) and Olivia McTaggart (pole vault) are also considered medal prospects.

At a glance

What: Super Rugby Pacific

Who: Chiefs v Force

Where, when: FMG Stadium Waikato, Hamilton; 4.35pm today

Chiefs: Kaleb Trask, Emoni Narawa, Alex Nankivell, Quinn Tupaea, Chase Tiatia, Bryn Gatland, Brad Weber (cc), Luke Jacobson, Sam Cane (cc), Pita Gus Sowakula, Tupou Vaa’i, Josh Lord, Angus Ta’avao, Bradley Slater, Aidan Ross. Reserves: Samisoni Taukei’aho, Josh Bartlett, George Dyer, Samipeni Finau, Mitch Brown, Kaylum Boshier, Xavier Roe, Rameka Poihipi.

Force: Jake Strachan, Byron Ralston, Kyle Godwin, Reesjan Pasitoa, Toni Pulu, Jake McIntyre, Ian Prior, Jackson Pugh, Tim Anstee, Fergus Lee-Warner, Izack Rodda, Ryan McCauley, Santiago Medrano, Feleti Kaitu’u (c), Tom Robertson. Reserves: Andrew Ready, Angus Wagner, Bo Abra, Jeremy Thrush, Will Sankey, Michael McDonald, Richard Kahui, Brad Lacey.

Go to stuff.co.nz for coverage of last night’s match between the Crusaders and Fijian Drua

big man, good on both sides of the ball, and a guy who cares a lot about his team-mates, with an amazing work ethic,’’ is how Cane described him this week.

‘‘At one stage, his rugby career was on the line. To see him go to Japan, look after his body and still be playing, it’s pretty inspiring stuff.’’

Indeed, Kahui, who turns 37 next month, feels in as good a shape as ever. But with his two-year contract up this year, he reveals that is set to be it, as ‘‘weird’’ as that feels.

‘‘I’m counting down these 10 days to what could possibly be the end of my career,’’ he says.

‘‘I haven’t talked about playing again. Physically, I feel great. But I don’t know if I could do another pre-season. So I think I’m unofficially, officially [retiring], if you know what I mean.

‘‘I look back at my career with a lot of fondness, obviously some disappointments in that, but I think everything that’s happened has shaped me in a certain way to get me to this point to be back playing Super Rugby, which I never thought I would again. And really loving it, despite the results.’’

And so with those well-worn boots about to be hung, that will mean no chance of a romantic return to the Mooloos team Kahui holds the most dear of any to his heart.

‘‘I would love to, but it’s more about being a family man now,’’ he says.

‘‘The kids are in school, my son is special needs, so it’s not just as easy as packing up to go. Otherwise I would 100% do it, I reckon.’’

While Kahui has a number of options he’s looking into post-playing – including seriously considering coaching – the tougher decision is just where that might be, with the Gold Coast probably classified as the closest thing to home now.

‘‘After 20 years of playing rugby and moving my family around, planning your weeks for your Saturday night rugby, I’ve got to make some decisions for my family and what’s going to be best for all of us.’’