After a weekend of Australia’s best young athletes competing for team and individual glory, last night saw the conclusion of the 2023 Coles Australian Little Athletics Championships. Selected based on individual performance at State level, top-performing Little Athletics athletes across Australia between the ages of U13 to U16 years competed at the annual competition that ran from Friday 21st April until Sunday 23rd April at Lakeside Stadium in Melbourne.

Structured by varying age groups, this year’s Coles Australian Little Athletics Championships consisted of three championship events – the Australian Teams Championships, the Australian Combined Events Championships, and for the first time the Australian Junior Athletics Championships.

Across the weekend, there were a number of significant records broken by athletes as outlined in the following:

• Little Athletics NSW athlete Harry Keats, U13 Boys 800m (Time 2:03.31) – Pending Coles Australian Little Athletics Championships Meet Record & Pending Australian Best Performance
• Little Athletics NSW athlete Sophie Polkinghorne, U13 Girls 1500m Race Walk (Time: 6:21.41) – Pending Coles Australian Little Athletics Championships Meet Record & Pending Australian Best Performance
• Little Athletics VIC, U13 Boys 1000mts Medley Relay (Time: 2:12.72) – Pending Coles Australian Little Athletics Championships Meet Record

CEO of Coles Little Athletics Australia, Myles Foreman says, “We are exceedingly proud of all our athletes at this year’s Coles Australian Little Athletics Championships, which has showcased all their exceptional hard work over the past year in preparation for the competition. With several new records broken and a doubling in the number of athletes participating following the introduction this year of the new Australian Junior Athletics Championships for U14 athletes we are looking forward to further expansion next year in Adelaide with the introduction of U15’s to the Australian Junior Athletics Championships”.

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While in previous years, the Coles Australian Little Athletics Championships has only included team-based championships where athletes are scored and awarded in their state teams, this year’s introduction of the Australian Junior Athletics Championships allowed athletes the opportunity to compete individually.

Open to Multi-Class athletes, those with physical or cognitive disability, across the three age championships, Coles Little Athletics Australia is committed to ensuring sporting events are inclusive and can be enjoyed by all.

Trophy winners of the Australian Teams Championships (U13 & U13-U14 Multi-Class athletes) are as follows:

• Trevor Billingham Trophy – Highest points score: Little Athletics NSW
• Alan Triscott Trophy – Points adjusted score: Little Athletics VIC
• Dick Healey Trophy – Highest points score between ACT & TAS: Little Athletics TAS

The trophy winner of the Australian Combined Events Championships (U15) is as follows:

• Life Members Trophy – Highest points score: Little Athletics QLD

Key winners of the Australian Junior Athletics Championships (U14 & U15-U16 Multi-Class athletes) are as follows:

• Championships Shield – Highest performing State/Territory: Little Athletics NSW

The Coles Australian Little Athletics Championships are an important event not only for the Coles Little Athletics community but for the wider sphere of Australian sport as it helps to challenge and nurture the country’s future sports stars. With many of Australia’s sporting heroes previously involved in Little Athletics, the sport’s values and training helps to set up Aussie kids for future success.

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