Almanac Athletics: Rabbit in the Vineyard – 11 Days in Perth

 

A Perth Eleven

 

9 athletics moments, a great café, Matt Denny throws long in the U.S.

Recently, I was on assignment for Athletics South Australia at the national athletics championships in Perth for 11 days. What a great experience! Below is a list of (11) standout moments:

 

In no order in particular:

 

Unprecedented: the Gout Gout effect

 

Peter Bol: 800m national record

Bol’s journey is well documented. Three-time Olympian, the ‘false positive’ supplement issue. Now a father, Bol celebrated in the last 20m of the 800m final, arms waving, huge smiles, and still broke the Australian record. A moment of pure joy. The new father setting a new national record on his home track.

800m Open Men Final, 2025 Australian Athletic Championships, Perth 13/04/2025

 

Mixed 4x400m relay

The last event of the championships – state versus state relays are not what they once were in both 4x100m and 4x400m events. Kudos to the host state, Western Australia. Their mixed 4x400m relay team were magnificent! Alanah Yukich, the 2024 Olympic 400m hurdles semi-finalist, had only contested her individual final a little over an hour earlier. Brilliant work: Jeremy Boyle, Alanah Yukich, Adam Kopp and Amielia Rowe, even if you outlasted the Queensland team!

4 x 400m Mixed Relay Team Final, 2025 Australian Athletic Championships, Perth 13/04/2025

 

Women’s high jump – two of the best

The start list included Eleanor Patterson, personal best 2.02m, then Nicola Olyslagers, personal best 2.03m. Both athletes are Olympic medallists, Olyslagers a double silver medallist (2020 & 2024), Paterson bronze medallist in 2024. Having secured her sixth national championship, what absolute quality to watch Nicola narrowly miss her 2.05m attempts on a sunny Sunday afternoon in the final session of competition.

 

Jess Hull – ALL CLASS

Jess Hull – the Wollongong born Olympic silver medallist, first Australian invited to race in Michael Johnson’s ‘Grand Slam Track’ series. Jess flew to Perth from Jamaica, the venue of the first of the ‘Grand Slam’ big money meets. In typical ‘no fuss’ fashion, Hull won both the 1500m and 5000m in Perth.

1500m Open Women Final, 2025 Australian Athletic Championships, Perth 12/04/2025

 

The Gout Gout effect – unprecedented

The prodigy competed in the U/20 100m and the open 200m. By Sunday, the final day of competition, the hype was at fever pitch levels. Security staff were out in numbers, as seats in the grandstand were at a premium. Seasoned athletics types unable to recall such interest in a national championship. Gout delivered: 9.99secs not once, but twice in the 100m, then 19.84secs in the 200m (also wind assisted). Front- and back-page news, even in the Weekend Australian.

The Gout Gout effect.

#gout gout Ht1. 100m U20 Men, 2025 Australian Athletic Championships, Perth 10/04/2025 – YouTube

19.84s! Gout Gout SMASHES Aussie record in Men’s Open 200m final! | Fox Sports Australia

 

Cam Myers – middle distance gun

Cam Myers – 2024 world U/20 1500m silver medallist, at times appears to fly under the radar of the sprinters of the same age. Make no mistake, Myers is quality with a capital ‘Q’ as he showed in Perth with a classy win over a stacked field in the 1500m. Named today to make his senior debut in the upcoming world championships in Japan (September) – Myers is definitely one to watch.

1500m Open Men Final, 2025 Australian Athletic Championships, Perth 12/04/2025

 

The 100m finals

The session of athletics Bruce McAvaney described as the best (domestic) of all time was highlighted by the 100m finals.

The women’s race:

Torrie Lewis (St Peters Lutheran College senior 2021) was the winner by 0.004 seconds – yes, by four thousandths of a second from the local youngster Leah O’Brien, with Stawell Gift winner Bree Rizzo third. Such was the closeness of the race, the result took over three minutes to confirm.

The men’s race:

Rohan Browning, Olympic semi-finalist in Tokyo, proved he is far from a spent force with a 10.01secs win, by 0.005 seconds over Lachlan Kennedy.

Rohan Browning 10.01 100m – 2025 100m Open Final – Australian Athletics Championships

#torrie Lewis 100m Open Women Final, 2025 Australian Athletic Championships, Perth 12/04/2025

 

The Harvest Café:

Upon hearing we were staying in the beachside suburb of Scarborough, a coaching comrade suggested we sample the coffee and other delights at the Harvest Café – a mere two blocks from our comfortable accommodation. The local physiotherapist, who was on duty for the South Australian team, went a step further, eagerly recommending we ‘go top to bottom’ on the menu, confidently stating ‘we would not be disappointed!’ The Harvest Café did not disappoint! Next trip to Perth, there will be further consumption!

 

Seth O’Donnell – men’s 5000m

Many distance running pundits rated Seth O’Donnell’s win in the 5000m as the (distance) race of the championships. As a sprints coach, who am I to disagree? I recall the volume of the crowd increasing over the last three laps of the journey. Then, in the last 400m, when O’Donnell took control, the volume went up several notches again!

 

Matt Denny:

Second longest discus throw of all time (in Oklahoma, not Perth). The major of Allora, Queensland, population: 1205, Olympic bronze medallist Matt Denny, created history of his own on the other side of the planet. Denny threw three personal bests in a week, his best being a mammoth 74.78m effort, bettered only by the Lithuanian Mykolas Alekna, with an incredible (new world record) 75.56m performance. The weight of the men’s discus: 2kg. Absolutely outstanding performance!

Matthew Denny’s oceanic record of 74.78 #discusthrowing #discusthrow #athlete #athletics #shotput

 

Women’s 800m

I managed a seat in the very full grandstand for a few minutes, including this fantastic race. Abbie Caldwell ran a brilliant tactical race to defeat another young gun, Claudia Hollingsworth – who is really the female version of Cam Myers, having just been invited to compete in Michael Johnson’s ‘Grand Slam’ pro league. Australian middle distance running is also on the rise, in both the men’s and women’s events, including cross country.

800m Open Women Final, 2025 Australian Athletic Championships, Perth 13/04/2025

 

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