Australian team for Osaka finalised

[AS]

http://www.athletics.com.au/fanzone/380 ... hamps_team

MEN
100m Patrick Johnson (AIS), Joshua Ross (NSW)
200m Patrick Johnson (AIS), Joshua Ross (NSW)
400m John Steffensen (WA), Sean Wroe (VIC)
800m Jeffrey Riseley (VIC)
1500m Mark Fountain (VIC)
1500m wheelchair Kurt Fearnley (NSW)
5000m Craig Mottram (VIC)
3000m steeplechase Youcef Abdi (NSW)
Pole vault Paul Burgess (WA), Steven Hooker (WA)
Shot put Scott Martin (VIC)
Long jump Chris Noffke (QLD)
Javelin Jarrod Bannister (QLD), Joshua Robinson (QLD)
20km walk Luke Adams (AIS), Jared Tallent (AIS)
50km walk Nathan Deakes (AIS), Chris Erickson (VIC), Duane Cousins (VIC)
4x100m relay squad Adam Miller (AIS), Joshua Ross (NSW), Aaron Rouge-Serret (VIC), Matt Shirvington (NSW), Tim Williams (VIC)
4x400m relay squad Dylan Grant (QLD), Kurt Mulcahy (NSW), Mark Ormrod (AIS), John Steffensen (WA), Sean Wroe (VIC), Clinton Hill (AIS)

WOMEN
100m Sally McLellan (QLD)
800m Tamsyn Lewis (VIC)
1500m Lisa Corrigan (ACT), Sarah Jamieson (VIC)
10,000m Benita Johnson (VIC)
100mH Sally McLellan (QLD)
400mH Jana Rawlinson (NSW)
3000m steeplechase Donna MacFarlane (TAS), Victoria Mitchell (VIC)
Pole vault Alana Boyd (QLD), Kym Howe (WA), Vicky Parnov (WA)
Long jump Bronwyn Thompson (QLD)
Discus Dani Samuels (NSW)
Heptathlon Kylie Wheeler (WA)
20km walk Jane Saville (NSW)
4x100m relay squad Sally McLellan (QLD), Crystal Attenborough (NT), Fiona Cullen (QLD), Preya Carey (NSW), Melissa Kay (TAS), Melanie Kleeberg (QLD)

The selectors have done the right thing and added younger athletes who only have Bs but would benefit from the experience before Beijing...

[AS]

A story that also notes the narrow miss by one more team member - reigning WJ and Uni Games LJ gold medallist Robbie Crowther:

http://www.theage.com.au/news/sport/cro ... 28197.html

[AS]

Inspired by pela's assessment of the Swedish squad (http://mb.trackandfieldnews.com/discuss ... hp?t=27242), here's my take on the Aussies' prospects:

Favorites (?):
Steven Hooker - been in as good a form as any in Europe. Can he handle the pressure?
Nathan Deakes - as always is under an injury cloud, but the WR is still his and he handles heat well.
Jana Rawlinson - comeback from pregnancy has seen her winning a lot more than she loses. Question is what Halkia and Pechonkina are up to and whether the USA-nians can re-find form.

Top-3 chances:
Craig Mottram - always in with a sniff
Paul Burgess - seems to have slightly less competitive mettle than Hooker, and has had injury problems coming in
4x400m men - do tend to lift and will be around the 3.00 mark. Steffensen has a big leg in him. Depends whether lesser lights can support him and Wroe.
Sarah Jamieson - has scope to figure in the finish if she races smart (which she doesn't always do). Also has had some fitness concerns

Top-8 hopes:
John Steffensen - will be a shock if he doesn't make the final again. Unlikely to split USA squad though
Scott Martin - young thrower on improve who likes the big meets
Jarrod Bannister - another young 'un. Threw a good 83m effort in Europe
4x100m men - always a chance
Luke Adams - has finished 5th and 10th at last two WCs
Sally McLellan - has run fast on this track. Will need to be at best however.
Tamsyn Lewis - has returned to 1.59 form of 2000, might squeeze in if all goes very right.
Donna MacFarlane - very good racer, might even challenge for a medal
Kym Howe - a 4.60+ vaulter should be in the mix
Bronwyn Thompson - would be a medal prospect but for horrid run with injuries
Jane Saville - always a chance
4x100m women - young team on the improve.

Any thoughts?

[AS]

136 page media guide to Aussie team (and history of WC performances by Aussies) available for download here:

http://www.athletics.com.au/news/media_ ... edia_guide

Be warned, it is close to 6MB...

[AS]

Pat Johnson has been dropped from the relay squad despite running the individual sprints (and therefore presumably being seen as our #2 sprinter):

http://www.theage.com.au/news/sport/joh ... 39428.html

[Speedster]

Wasn't dropped, he was never in the squad. Refused to train with the team from media reports.

[Vault-emort]

Patrick was excluded from the relay when the team was first announced, months ago, but what I don't understand is why they ran him in the Aussie 4x1 team in the London SGP? Why have him as part of that team if they weren't going to add him to the squad?

[spear_chucker]

Dani Samuels will make the top 8....she's been throwing very well at training.

[AS]

Dani Samuels will make the top 8....she's been throwing very well at training.

Alas she just missed a finals spot with a few folks going past her in the 3rd round. Still good work for a junior to be mixing with the big women and throwing so close to her PR in such conditions...

So far, McLellan and Adams have been the pick of the Aussies and Rawlinson and Howe look good. Others have disappointed...

[AS]

Some stories in the poor showing of the Aussies in Osaka, including a lengthy discussion of the relays:

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/st ... 22,00.html

http://www.theage.com.au/news/sport/rel ... 61585.html

[kamikaze7]

I read somewhere that Australia T&F gets funding to the tune of $6.3m per year. All this funding is certainly not producing the requisite results. Which makes the performance of some of the smaller or poorer nations even more impressive.

[AS]

Some insights into the fragile mind of Australia's top 100m man:

http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/story/ ... 22,00.html

Refreshingly honest at least...