Seven Western Australian athletes travelled to Runaway Bay in QLD last week for the Australian Youth and Junior Super Sprint Championships, held as part of the Super Sprint Race Weekend from 14-18 December 2023.
Over four thrilling days, competitors engaged in a variety of multisport events, including the Le Mans race, Aquathlon, Mixed Relay, and the highly anticipated Super Sprint Finals on Sunday.
The team of WA travellers included Joshua Neervoort (Fremantle Triathlon Club), Connor Fraser (Bunbury Triathlon Club), Billie Mincham (Fremantle), Luke Williams (North Coast Triathlon Club), Will Cramsie (North Coast), Joshua Fletcher (Exceed Triathlon Club), and Ivan Nagel (EFS Triathlon Club).
Age categories for the event were Junior (15-18 years), Junior B (15-16 years), and Youth (13-14 years).
Day one, Thursday, was the Aquathlon. For our Junior athletes this consisted of an 8 lap swim course (400m) and a 4 lap run course (1500m). For our Youth athletes it was an 8 lap swim (400m) and 2 lap run (800m).
- Luke Williams – 3rd (Youth)
- Joshua Neervoort – 8th (Junior)
- Joshua Fletcher – 18th (Junior)
- Ivan Nagel – 29th (Junior)
- Connor Fraser – 49th (Junior)
- Will Cramsie – 68th (Junior)
Unfortunately, an injury prevented Billie Mincham from racing throughout the race weekend.
Day two, Friday, was the Le Mans, with Junior Athletes taking on a 400m run, 6km cycle and 400m run. Our Youth athletes competed across a 400m run, 4km cycle and 400m run.
- Luke William – 13th (Youth)
- Josh Neervoort – 4th (Junior)
- Ivan Nagel – 9th (Junior)
- Joshua Fletcher – 18th (Junior)
- Will Cramsie – 24th (Junior)
- Connor Fraser – 49th (Junior)
- Billie Mincham DNS
A severe electrical storm and heavy rain caused day two to be cut short just before noon.
Day three, Saturday, was a test of endurance for our WA athletes, with the Super Sprint race format.
Race 1:
Juniors took on the challenge of a 300m swim, cycle 6km, and 1.2km run. Youth completed a 200m swim, 4km cycle and 800m run.
- Luke Williams – 4th (Youth)
- Joshua Neervoort – 5th (Junior)
- Ivan Nagel – 9th (Junior)
- Joshua Fletcher – 22nd (Junior)
- Will Cramsie – 30th (Junior)
- Connor Fraser – 33rd (Junior)
- Billie Mincham DNS
Race 2:
In a challenging day of back-to-back racing, Juniors completed a 1.2km run, 6km cycle and 300m swim. Youth raced in an 800m run, 4km cycle and 200m swim.
- Luke Williams – 4th (Youth)
- Joshua Neervoort – 11th (Junior)
- Will Cramsie – 30th (Junior)
- Connor Fraser – 33rd (Junior)
- Joshua Fletcher – 36th (Junior)
- Ivan Nagel – 37th (Junior)
Day four, Sunday, got down to the nitty-gritty with the Youth and Junior finals. This race was a 300m swim, 8km cycle and 1.6km run.
Competing in the Junior C Male Final from WA was Will Cramsie and Connor Fraser. Will Cramsie put in a mammoth effort to claim third place, with Connor Fraser placing tenth in the race.
In the Junior A Male Final, Joshua Neervort, Ivan Nagel and Joshua Fletcher raced their hearts out to place 8th, 9th and 16th (respectively) in the race.
In a fiercely contested Youth A Men’s Final, Western Australia’s Luke Williams secured the gold and the title of 2023 Australian Youth Champion.
For the complete results from the weekend’s racing, please click here.
A huge congratulations to all Youth and Junior athletes who competed. We are very proud of your team spirit, passion for the sport and how you represented WA on the national stage. It’s fantastic to see all athletes supporting one another to be the best they can be.
Thank you so much to our Pathway Lead, Janine Kaye, for everything she has done in preparation for this weekend. Janine puts her heart and soul into supporting WA State Team athletes, and our athletes performance is a testament to her dedication and encouragement. Her support across race weekend was invaluable.
Thanks also to the athlete’s parents, supporters, and clubs for everything they have done to help ready these athletes for the next steps in their triathlon journey, and support them along the way. We can’t wait to see what the future has in store for Luke, Billie, Josh N, Josh F, Will, Ivan, and Connor.