32 ACT athletes headed to the Gold Coast on Thursday 26th April to compete at the 2018 Australian Little Athletics Championships (ALAC). For many this was their first opportunity to represent the ACT at a National Competition so there was excitement in the air as they boarded the plane. Staying on site at Runaway Bay the team headed to the Putt Putt greens on Friday for some friendly competition!

The competition itself was held on Saturday 28th and Sunday 29th April. For the U13 age group this is a team based competition with 2 athletes competing in each event offered. The better the athlete finishes the higher the points they score for the team. For the U15 age group the athletes compete in a heptathlon.

The conditions were not easy with heavy rain, high winds and humidity interchanging throughout the 2 days. The ACT however excelled with approximately 60 performances better than the performance they achieved at the ACT State Championships. Many of these were personnel best! 2 of our athletes won individual medals. Hayden Todd finished 2nd in the 800m with a flying final lap and Joshua Kalozi dipped well at the finish to take 3rd in the 80m hurdles.

The most exciting achievement of the whole team was winning the Dick Healey Trophy for the best performing Small State. There was only a few points separating the ACT and Tasmanian teams after Day 1 of competition so we knew we were in for a fight! In the end the ACT team pulled ahead of Tasmania helped by the fact that we beat Tasmania in all 3 relays which are worth double points. The team were ecstatic to take the trophy back to the ACT!

The team celebrated with a disco on Sunday night before heading to Movie World on Monday with many of the other States. The triumphant team arrived home on Monday night welcomed by their families.

A big thank you must go to our Team Management- Jennifer Bryant, Stuart Todd, Ruud van Scheppingen and Nicole Roberts who not only gave up their time to take the team away but also many hours before hand to prepare. Thank you also to Malcolm Lavender who assisted with coaching throughout the event and at training sessions leading up. Thank you to the many coaches who also assisted at the training sessions leading up to the trip.