Athletic qualifiers named

Press, 11 April 1987, Page 32

Athletic qualifiers named

PA Wellington Five athletes have been named by the New Zealand. Amateur Athletic Association as automatic qualifiers for the world track and field championships in Rome later this year. They are: John Walker and Peter O’Donoghue (both Auckland) in the 1500 m, Gavin Lovegrove (Waikato) javelin, Simon Poelman (Auckland) decathlon and Anne Audain (Auckland) in the 10,000 m. The N.Z.A.A.A. secretary, Mr Barry Meyers, said that the five, whose travelling

costs were being paid by the International Amateur Athletic Federation, would compete on the European circuit before the world championships begin on August 29.

Walker bettered the 3min 37.5 s qualifying standard in August, 1986, with a 3min 35.745, while O’Donoghue clocked 3min 34.9 s in Australia last month.

Lovegrove’s winning 79.60 m effort at the New Zealand track and field championships in Wellington in March pushed him over the 79m standard. Poelman, the bronze

medallist at the Edinburgh Commonwealth Games, has several performances over the 7900 decathlon standard, the most recent being his record-breaking 8366 at the national championships in Christchurch last month. Audain also has several performances under the 33min qualifying standard and showed out impressively over 16km earlier this week in the United States with a world-class 52:31 behind Australia’s Lisa Martin.

Mr Meyers said that the remainder of the athletes to compete in Europe would be announced later this month.