Six local athletics deliver medal-worthy performances at WA Combined Athletics Championships in Perth

Six Mid West athletes had a remarkable outing at the weekend’s State Combined Championships, with all local athletes collecting medals in Perth. Decathlete Reuben Chapman and heptathlete Shiloh O’Reilly both delivered extraordinary efforts to lock down gold medals in their respective divisions. In the under-17s, O’Reilly gave a stunning performance across all seven of her disciplines to score a personal best 3566 points, surpassing the national qualifying score of 3200. She finished top-three in six of her events, finishing first in high jump and long jump, where she leapt 4.77m to secure one of her four personal bests. Midwest Academy of Sport sent three athletes, with Chapman and Kian Smit contesting the under-18s, while Wynand Neethling competed in the under-20s. Neethling and Chapman recorded 5702 and 5536 points, with both scores good enough to win the weekend’s open division and qualify for nationals. Chapman blitzed it after transitioning from 400m hurdles to decathlon with only three months of preparation. He shone most in 1500m, completing it in 4min. 45sec., the quickest time of all age divisions. A strong overall performance earned Neethling bronze in a competitive field, but his ceiling is much higher after a stumble in the 110m hurdle event saw him drop valuable points. MWAS track and field coach and former State decathlete Gary Clark said he was pleased with the pair’s results on decathlon debut. “Both athletes have a bright future in this multi-disciplined event,” he said. “Neethling contested against four other potential national-level athletes in a tough field and still managed to take out the bronze medal.” Neethling and Chapman will now focus on nationals held in Sydney from April 9 to 12. Smit, a third MWAS decathlete, sustained an ill-timed hamstring and shin injury, but soldiered on to complete all disciplines and come away with under-18s silver. “He showed a lot of courage and with a longer preparation, should improve across all disciplines,” Clark said. “The future looks bright in this multi-sport event, with two other local athletes expected to contest the event next year.” Faelan and Tarlah Smith were also solid and came away with bronze medals. Representing UWA, the Geraldton-born sibling duo competed in the under-15 and under-16s divisions, scoring 3062 and 4007 points respectively.