NATIONALS DAY 7 SUM UP: THE FINAL HURRAH!

The final day of the Australian Athletics Championships at the Sydney Olympic Park Athletics Centre has arrived. It's hard to believe that this is going to be my final Nationals post for the year. Mark my words, I've been crying myself to sleep over this as I'm sure you have, but we have to remember that Nationals wouldn't be the climactic, illustrious championship we all know and love, if it occurred 365 days a year. So without further ado, let's get into the final sum up of a championship, where the Tigers have left an indelible mark, on the entire culture of Australian Athletics.  

That face you make when you know coach is going to see a bomb drop.

The Open's Boys 200m Finals encapsulates the essence of what Athletics is all about: blood, sweat and tears being shed, to form part of the history of this classic event. Who needs an engraving on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, when your name can be immortalised in Australian athletic track time records. Alex Hartmann was very aware of this sentiment, demonstrating today that he' still go the moves with perfect stride length, an explosive start, and enough speed endurance to make even the fastest land animal of earth (The Cheetah Btw) sneer jealously. Alex ran brilliant times of 20.69 in prelims, and then 20.68 to win the gold medal during the final.

Alex has now won five National 200m Championship titles in a row. A spectacular feat. Travis Venema, Alex's coach, was seen screaming triumphantly from the grandstands, pumping his fist so hard into the air, that security had to intervene, for the danger he was posing to the other grandstand observers and himself. Bravo Alex! I know it's not Game of Thrones, but I will still bend my knee to you all the same when next we meet. 

The cause of the brief earthquake that occurred at approximately 2pm.

We also had the fantastic Justin Cavanagh perform in today's Open's Men 200m, running stupendous times of 21.10 seconds in prelims, and then 21.14 seconds during the final to come 6th.   Excuse me while I get a cold drink to calm my nerves. These results have significantly raised my blood pressure, from the unrelenting, incessant,  pride and joy I feel swelling inside me. This is just the beginning for Justin, and subsequently my blood pressure spiking uncontrollably. There will be many more breakthroughs to come in Justin's career. 

"The biggest challenge in these races is looking good, all the way through to the photo finish."

In the Women's U17 Discus Kajsa Shield returned once again to the field. If the discus was capable of conveying human emotions, I think it would have been communicating significant fear, knowing it was about to be sent flying across the field, to the enthralment of onlookers, yet the consternation of it's being. Kajsa threw a distance of 39.16m to win the silver medal. That's an absolutely solid performance. Kajsa has demonstrated at Nationals that she is able to perform under pressure and deliver where and when it counts. Bravo Kajsa, but mind the birds in the sky. Also congratulations to Kajsa's coach and dad Tony, who did such a fantastic job in bringing Kajsa to the level she is now performing in Athletics. 

"Yes Coach. I know I have to throw the Discus."

In the U17 Men's Hammer Throw, we had our very own Jakob Barnett competing. Jakob was able to throw a whopper distance of 44.47m to come 12th in his event. No, you can't get his autograph, unless of course you attend meets to cheer him on. Congratulations Jakob on attaining this achievement, and for pushing yourself to such a high standard of athletic performance all season. Everyone is excited to see you continue to show that anything but innocuous hammer ball, exactly who is the boss. Bravo.  

Jakob demonstrating the stripes of a determined Tiger.

In the Men's Open Javelin Final we had Neil Janse and Oscar Sullivan compete once again. Neil was able to throw a fantastic distance of 70.51m to come fifth, whereas Oscar was able to throw an awesome distance 67.16m. Both these boys have exceptional throwing arms, and are able to bear the weight of these javelin sticks, their dreams, and expectations of the world at large all at once. To that I say, congratulations lads!

Nothing was stopping Janse this time.

Sullivan hoping no birds get in the way.

Naa Anang, our star female competitor in the 100m, Triple Jump, Long Jump, and hair presentation events, returned to settle old scores in the Women's Open Long Jump Final. Naa jumped a staggering 6.88m, attaining a PB, winning the gold medal, and the Betty Cuthbert Award to top it all off. Yep, don't worry, my jaw is agape too. I now need jaw surgery for the dislocation that occurred when I saw the results. Absolutely superb Naa. She is now the first Athlete in Australian history to have snagged the gold in both the 100m, and the Long Jump simultaneously. Two radically different events: One superb athletic mindset. Naa, you are a true Tiger, and the track, and the world would do well to respectfully fear the legacy that you are setting in motion. Absolutely incredible. Also congratulations to Naa's coach Gary, who's been with Naa through every jump, run and achievement. 

Additionally in the Open Women's Long Jump, we had a fantastic performance from Jessie Harper. She soaked in the atmosphere from the Sydney crowd, channeling all the pain, angst and relentless hours of training into one final beautiful moment, where time appeared to stop, freezing into a memory that will forever be embedded in her head, and ours. Jessie jumped a fantastic distance of 6.45m to attain the bronze medal. Congratulations Jessie. Hold my beer, as I need to have a moment of silent contemplation, admiring this result. You have done nothing but impress this season, and we all look forward to watching your future progress in this event. 

Jessie knowing she's bested the sand.

The Open Men's Long Jump also yielded some fantastic results for our Tigers today. Joshua Cowley was out in prime, unforgiving form. The reputation of this boy truly precedes him, but I think, after today it's safe to say that Josh's stellar performance even preceded his exceptional reputation. That's how good his jumping mechanics were, travelling a total distance of 7.79m to win the bronze medal. Is it me or is getting hot in here, with all these bombs being dropped? Surely the Athletics Stadium has been compromised by such explosive phenomena. Congratulations Josh for a brilliant performance today and a brilliant season! I can only imagine what the future holds. 

When explosive ingenuity meets aerodynamic defiance, you get one Josh Cowley.

​We would also like to take this time to give a massive shout out to Stacey Taurima, who has been responsible for coaching Aliyah Johnson, Josh Cowley, Shemaiah James, Jessie Harper and many others. Results, such as exhibited by these athletes do not happen without the execution of a solid training program, and immaculate coaching. Stacey, hats off to you for assembling the Avengers in the ultimate battle against the clock and the measuring tape. What a man! We need to get Marvel Studios to contact you. 

It's a sad time realising that Nationals has come to an end, but we've certainly got some great memories to take away, including Trae making sure that the cameras continually caught a glimpse of his inhumane bulging quads. This is just one example of so many brilliant performances we will remember from this championship.

All of our athletes pushed themselves to the maximum extent during 2018, and their hard work has payed off in massive dividends for 2019. We could't be more proud of our Tigers. Thank you to all the coaches (Travis included, yehhaww!) who have done an amazing job in training our athletes, not to mention friends and family who have provided their undying support for the athletic lifestyle of our Tigers. You are all MVP's! 

Nationals may be over but there is still plenty of upcoming excitement for our team including some of our Tigers competing at the upcoming Uni Nationals Championships, World Relays etc, as well as future gifts and track meets, later during the year. Our Tigers will continue to put on a show, demonstrating a high caliber of athletic performance, but more importantly the Tigers will continue to come together and support each other as a singular unit, a coordinated spirit: a family

Thank you for keeping up with these athletic summaries. It's been a blast reporting the Athletic news with my own unique spin. 

Yours truly, 
Daniel Jebb. ​