Australia may have crowned a new 2000m steeplechase champion, but the title still remains in Ballarat.
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Fourteen-year-old Harry Sharp won the under-16 race at the Australian Athletics Championships in Sydney on Saturday with a personal best time of 6.07min.
The young Wendouree Athletic Club member came from behind to claim victory in one of his favourite events by more than 20-metres.
“It was pretty special,” Sharp said.
“All the hard work and training was put into that and it all paid off.”
Sharp said he was sitting in second place for majority of the race until the last two hurdles, which were the water jump, when he picked up the pace and took the lead.
“I just thought, ‘I’ve got to get over this hurdle and just sprint for the line and I could actually win this’,” he said.
Coach Neville Down said he had been concerned about how Sharp would fare with a heavy program of events.
Sharp also placed fifth in the 3000m event and sixth in the 1500m event.
“I knew Harry was fit and running well but it did cross my mind to pull him out of the 1500m,” Down said.
“Especially since his best event, the steeple, was his last event.”
But the coach was full of praise for the St Patrick’s College student, who became the 14th athlete Down has coached to a national title.
“His commitment to training is first rate, he is always attentive and thorough in his preparation and his determination is admirable,” Down said.
“Harry is a beautiful mover and he has had the pleasure and benefit of training with two other brilliant athletes in Sam Williams and Nicholas Fidler.”
Coincidentally Fidler won the same event last year.
It caps off an impressive 2016/2017 track and field season for Sharp, who has won all major meets and improved his personal best time by more than 17 seconds in less than four months.
In more national championship news, Jemma Peart took bronze in the under-17 5km racewalk with a time of 25.58min, while sister Alanna Peart earnt silver in the under-16 3km racewalk with a time of 14.51min.
Their cousin Rachel Tallent took silver in the 10km open racewalk with a time of 46.24min.
Meanwhile Katherine Dowie received bronze in the under-20 3km steeplechase with a personal best time of 10.53min.
