By Charlene Gatt
TEN young athletes from the western suburbs have been honoured for their ongoing dedication to the sport by qualifying for the coveted AVIS-07 squad.
Four athletes from Western Athletics made the cut, while two from Keilor Little Athletics Centre, Williamstown Athletics Centre and Keilor St Bernard’s also joined the ranks.
The athletes joined 85 other competitors for the squad’s first training session at Olympic Park on Saturday, where the group was taught basic warm-up techniques as well as strength and conditioning drills.
A joint venture by Athletics Victoria (AV) and the Victorian Institute of Sport (VIS), the squad was introduced in 2005 to foster the talents of young athletes and provide them with the tools to continue the sport later in life.
Athletes nominate themselves for the squad, and are required to be around the national qualifying standard in their pet events to be up for selection.
The training sessions will take on a more events-specific approach in the coming months, when athletes will be working on skill development in their pet events.
The athletes will also be provided with their own AVIS uniform, and will have easier access to facilities such as massage under the scheme.
AV’s Matt Griffin said the AVIS-07 team is all about encouraging up-and-coming athletes to persist with their goal.
“We use a lot of discretion because the focus of the squad is more on development – we’re looking at a bit more long-term rather than those who are running well or performing well at the moment,” he said.
“We’re happy to accept those that have got a little more long-term potential but are not quite hitting the mark as yet.
“While its all well and nice to be running well at 13, 14, 15, it really means nothing if they don’t do it when they’re senior athletes realising their full potential.
“We get them now and get in their head and particularly their coaches and parents heads that it’s long-term, and we’ve got to look at skill development now rather than actual performance.”
The squad also places an emphasis on involving the athletes’ coaches in the training process to build stronger, more informed athlete-coach relationships.
“It’s the coaches that have got them there and the coaches that are going to take them further so we want them to be involved and to be educated as well,” Griffin said.
Western suburbs athletes selected in the squad:
Elise Aplin (Keilor LAC)
Taleisha Ianzano (Keilor LAC)
Monique Cilione (Keilor St Bernard’s)
David Ireland (Keilor St Bernard’s)
Drake Callum (Williamstown)
David Edwards (Williamstown)
Luke Hart (Western Athletics)
Darren Hart (Western Athletics)
Mitchell Morgan (Werribee LAC and Western Athletics)
Shana Robinson (Werribee LAC and Western Athletics)
