Sydney University have been crowned the 2013 Athletics AUG Champions. In what will be remembered as one of the most dominant performances in the history of the event, Sydney University Athletics Club (SUAC) were crowned both the men’s and women’s champions winning 29 medals (18 gold, four silver and seven bronze); breaking three AUG records; one NSW record; three club records and having 12 team members selected on the Green and Gold team – another record for the event.
The day four highlight and the performance of the meet was the win by SUAC in the men’s 4x400m. SUAC lined up against the University of Melbourne and having lost to them earlier in the week in the medley relay there was a fair amount of hype and friendly banter surrounding this race. Each team boasted a world championships representative – SUAC with Josh Ralph and Melbourne with Alex Roe.
SUAC led off their relay with the dominant sprint athlete of the games, Jin Su Jung. Jung had never run a 400m relay but stood up as he had all week and changed the baton over to Jack Hiscox just a few metres down on the Melbourne leaders. Hiscox, the youngest male member of the SUAC team (having just turned 18), ran a big leg for the ‘all whites’ but earlier had won the silver in the 800m and faced a fresh and red hot Melbourne athlete who had opened a bigger lead for Melbourne.
Next for Sydney was the World Uni Games bronze medalist in the 400 hurdles Ian Dewhurst. He was up against the 800m world championship semi-finalist Alex Roe. Dewhurst took some ground in the middle of the race but Roe fought back over the home straight, each athlete running similar splits for their legs in a quality duel. Roe handed the baton over to the last Melbourne runner with a 15m lead. Joshua Ralph ran the last leg for SUAC; he had won the 800m just 90min before and there were some question marks over whether this would take the sting out of his legs. At the 200m mark Ralph had clawed just a metre back, and Melbourne looked the winners. Ralph then started to move into his work, at 100m the lead was 8m, at 50m the lead down to 3m, at 5m Ralph hit the front, turned to his teammates in the stand, flashed a cheeky smile and celebrated a famous victory. The boys smashed the AUG record by more than 4 seconds running a 3.10.92 with Ralph splitting 45 seconds for his 400m leg. Undoubtedly one of the best ever relay races at a Uni Games!
In the women’s 4x400m SUAC were racing against the clock looking to lower the AUG record they had set 12 months earlier. The SUAC team consisted of Ella Nelson making her 400m debut; Jenny Blundell (the standout female competitor of the games); Emily Ryan also on debut; and World Championships representative Anneliese Rubie. The girls hit the front early and opened a huge lead in very windy conditions, and when Rubie got the baton the AUG record was in real danger as she crossed the line in 3.49.80 – lowering the previous record by four seconds.
In other events Jin Su Jung won the men’s 200m smashing his personal best by 1.4 seconds to win in 21.48. Jin took his personal medal tally at the games to four gold and one silver medal, making him the standout male athlete of this championship. In the women’s 800m Jenny Blundell ran a dominant 800m to win the women’s 800m. Blundell was the outstanding female athlete of the games winning four gold medals. In the women’s 200m Ella Nelson was the winner by a big margin and took home four gold medals, whilst competing as a team member in every relay and taking gold in each. Emily Duve was third in the 200m, taking her medal tally to one gold and one bronze.
In the women’s 5000m, Milly Clark was the winner taking her medal haul to two gold and a bronze. Nat Archer was also third in the 5000m running a personal best for the distance.
In the women’s javelin Crissie Grunn defended her 2012 title with a clear win, with Eilish Sheerin taking the bronze. Josh Ralph won the 800m taking his medal tally to three gold and a silver, with Jack Hiscox taking the silver medal in the 800m to take home one gold and three silver medals. Hugh Williams went to the front early in the men’s 5000m and held on to win this event. Andrew Giltrap picked up the bronze in the javelin adding it to the silver he picked up in the hammer earlier in the Games.
The final point score for the championship saw the SUAC women with 216 points, and RMIT in second with 67 points.
The men scored 169 points with Melbourne Uni in second place with 114.
SUAC had 12 athletes selected in the Green and Gold team – a record number for any University at an Australian Uni Games.
Jin Su Jung: 100m/200m/4x400m
Jack Hiscox: 400m/4x400m
Josh Ralph: 800m/4x400m
Ian Dewhurst: 4x400m
Michelle Jenneke: 100m hurdles/100m
Ella Nelson: 200m/Medley/4x400m
Anneliese Rubie: 400m/Medley/4x400m
Jenny Blundell: 4x400m/Medley
Milly Clark: 3000m Steeple
Emily Ryan: 4x400m
Liz Clay: 100m hurdles
Emily Duve: Medley relay
SUAC Medalists:
Jin Su Jung: five gold – 100m/200m/4x100m/4x400m
Silver – medley
Jenny Blundell: four gold – 800m/1500m/4x400m/Medley
Ella Nelson: four gold – 200m/4x100m/4x400m/Medley
Josh Ralph: four gold – 800m/4x100m/4x400m
Silver – medley
Jack Hiscox: four gold – 4x400m
Silver – 400m/800m/Medley
Milly Clark: three gold – 5000m/3000 Steeple
Bronze – 1500m
Anneliese Rubie: three gold – 400m/4x400m/Medley
Emily Duve: three gold – 4x100m/Medley
Bronze – 200m
Michelle Jenneke: two gold –100m/100m hurdles
Ian Dewhurst: two gold – 4x400m
Silver – Medley
Larissa Pasternatsky: two gold – 4x100m/Medley
Andrew Giltrap: two silver –hammer
Bronze – javelin
Chrissie Grunn: one gold – javelin
Hugh Williams: one gold – 5000m
Chamath Herath: one gold – 4x100m
Emily Ryan: one gold – 4x400m
Hannah Gibbs: one gold – 4x100m
Jacqui Fry: one bronze – shot put
Jordan Mulhearn: one bronze – 5000m walk
Nat Archer: one bronze – 5000m
Eilish Sheerin: one bronze – javelin
See www.facebook.com/SUACinfo for photos and information about SUAC in our 135th anniversary year.
