Olympic Harriers athletes shine

Athletes from Olympic Harriers performed with distinction for their colleges at the New Zealand secondary schools athletics championships in Whanganui recently.

Coaches Alastair Leslie and Amanda Goldsmith had a raft of athletes in the junior (under-16) and senior grades. Among the high achievers: Izzy Hegan won the junior girls 800m and was second in the 1500m.

Phoebe van Boheemen, from Tawa, won the junior girls road race for Queen Margaret College.

Tessa Hunt was third in the junior girls 800m and 1500m.

Kelsey Forman was second in the senior girls 2000m steeplechase.

Alisha Gilchrist was fourth in the senior girls 3000m.

Josh Nairne, from Paremata, was fourth in the junior boys’ 400m in a personal best time and was part of the St Pat’s Town senior boys 4x400m relay team that finished third.

Ben Murdoch was second in the junior boys high jump.

Islam Khaled-Abbas was in the vic- torious 4 x 100m Wellington College junior boys relay team.

Phoebe van Boheemen’s efforts were notable because she had only recently returned from injury.

She had a top cross- country season, beating Kelsy Forman, a member of the New Zealand secondary schools cross- country team.

Van Boheemen was in the junior grade at nationals and so was not eligible for the team.

Her goal is to make the national team next year.