Nicole Morris and Jaiden Ward were very proud to represent the Sunshine Coast at the 10 -12 years Queensland School Sport Track and Field Championships held in very hot conditions in Cairns last week. Nicole competed in the 12 girls shotput and Jaiden in the 12 boys 100m, long jump and he was a member of the Sunshine Coast 12 boys 4 x 100 m relay team.

The best young athletes from all over the state were competing at these championships and we are sure we saw some potential Australian representatives such was the calibre of performances at his carnival.

Nicole put the shot 8.35m and placed in the middle of the field. There were some mighty puts with the winner putting the 3kg shot over 12m!

Jaiden placed 4th in his 100m heat but unfortunately missed out on a place in the semi final. He ran a fantastic time though taking half a second off his best 100m time, running 13.28! His time was the second fastest Sunshine Coast time which was an awesome achievement as Jaiden placed 4^th at the Regional Championships. In the second day of competition he competed in the 12 boys long jump against 34 long jumpers from all over the state. Jaiden hit the board well in every jump, jumping around 4.34m with each jump which was a great effort. He finished mid field so can be very proud of his effort.

Jaiden was the first runner in the Sunshine Coast 12 Year boys relay team and helped them get off to a great start. The baton changes were smooth which was fantastic as the boys had had very limited practise time together. The boys finished third in their heat but when times from the two heats were compared they finished in 5^th place from 12 teams which was a great result.

Mrs Stott was also at these championships as the Sunshine Coast coach for 800m, 1500m and 11 girls relay. The highlight for her was her team winning the gold medal in the 4x100m relay for the second year in a row. She also enjoyed supporting and watching Nicole and Jaiden representing GCC at these championships. We look forward to many more GCC athletes competing at this level in the future.

Wendy Stott