Athletics
19 February, 2026
Horsham athletes soar at regionals
Athletes from Horsham Little Athletics produced incredible performances at the Little Athletics Western Country Region Track and Field Championships.
16 athletes competed at the championships, held at Warrnambool on February 7-8, where the contingent won 16 gold medals between them and 34 overall.
Horsham Little Athletics president Ben Sawyer was very pleased with how the athletes competed.
“We’re very proud of them,” Sawyer said.
“It’s the old cliche, but whenever our athletes go anywhere, they give 100%.
“They work hard, do everything they need to do, and they all have a fair crack."
Sawyer also praised the athletes who competed at their first regional carnival.
“We had a few first-timers competing, and they put on a good show,” Sawyer said.
“They did a good job, as well as our more experienced athletes, who we generally expect to do well.”
Amongst the outstanding performances, Under 11 athlete Jaxon Durack produced one of the performances of the meet, jumping 1.53 metres in the high jump to break a longstanding region record.
Eight Horsham athletes automatically qualified for the Little Athletics State Track and Field Championships after finishing first in their events, or for ranking among the top 24 across all regions in the state.
Jack Sawyer won four gold medals with victories in the 100m, 200m, 400m and the 200m hurdles in the under-13 boys.
Jett Hill won the 200m, 400m and discus in the under-14 boys, and also qualified for the 100m after finishing second.
Benji Jowett (under 14s) took gold in the javelin, the shot put, and the long jump, and will also proceed to the state championships in the 90m hurdles (silver) and 100m (bronze).
As well as his high jump gold, Jaxon Durack won gold in the 200m and triple jump.
Tom Warner won gold in the under-12 boys shot put and silver in the javelin.
Indi Finn won gold in the under-13 girls' high jump and took bronze in the 100m and the 80m hurdles.
Scarlette Williams won gold in the girls under 11 200m, claimed a silver medal in the triple jump and a bronze in the 1500m.
Gretel Blake also qualified for the state championships with silver medals in the 400m and 300m hurdles, a bronze in the 200m, and a second-place finish in the 100m.
Other athletes who won medals were Ariana Ruwoldt (silver in the 60m hurdles, bronze in the long jump), Zoe Warner (bronze in the 60m hurdles, discus, and high jump), Mitchell Sawyer (bronze in the shot put), and Isaac Kelm (silver in the high jump).
The State Championships will be held at Knox Park Athletics Centre on March 7-8.
