Frenzy caps huge run of athletics

SATURDAY night’s 5km Frenzy at Lar Birpa in Flora Hill caps a huge weekend of field and track action for Athletics Bendigo Region at its Retreat Road home.

Athletes will vie for a share of the glory and prizemoney in the graded 5000m races at Saturday night’s meet.

The Jack Davey 5000m championship for Bendigo athletes is also decided in the elite men’s and women’s classes at the A.L. Parker Electrical-sponsored classic.

A year ago it was Bendigo Harriers’ Nathan Stoate and University’s Abbey Reid who took honours.

Third in what was the fifth edition of the 5km Frenzy behind Logan Janetzki from Glenhuntly, Stoate returns for another gruelling test across 12 ½ laps.

Stoate contested last Saturday night’s Invitational 3200m at the Bendigo Gold Nugget Bendigo Gift meet at Tom Flood Sports Centre.

Athletics Bendigo life member and field and track fanatic Paul Rance has generously chipped in with prizemoney for the fastest Athletics Bendigo member in the men’s and women’s 5km Frenzy races.

At 96-years-young, Jack Davey keenly follows athletics and will be trackside for Saturday’s racing.

One of Victoria’s top distance runners in the 1950s, Davey ran the six-mile at the 1950 Empire Games in Auckland and is in the Bendigo Sports Star of the Year Basil Ashman Hall of Fame.

The Empire Games are now the Commonwealth Games.

One of the leading hopes for Bendigo in this edition of the 5km Frenzy will be University’s Avery McDermid who has a personal best of 14:15.

A huge weekend for Athletics Bendigo begins with Friday night’s Memorials at Lar Birpa.

Three new events have been added to the program which starts at 5.45pm.

Highlights will be the Sally Conroy Memorial 200m, and the Richard Kitt Memorial 1600m.

Both are run under handicap conditions.

Fastest seeds for the 200m are Eaglehawk’s Felix Burgess and Wendouree’s Charlie Sullivan.

The Richard Kitt field includes Bendigo Harriers’ Anne Buckley, Geoff Jordan, Hunter Gill and Rebecca Soulsby.

A Masters 120m for those in the 40-plus category will be run.

For the field enthusiasts there will be a long jump handicap and shot put handicap.