How Sally became a true world champion

On December 19, 2000 Sally McLellan was just another aspiring athlete. How things would change.

On December 19, 2000 Sally McLellan was just another aspiring athlete. How things would change.

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HELENSVALE High School sprinter Sally McLellan has age and experience on her side.

The 14-year-old recently returned from her third national athletics titles, picking up gold as the first runner in Queensland’s under-16 women’s 4x100m relay team which stopped the clock at 46.66sec, a national U16 record by half a second.

The time was also faster than the winning times recorded in the U18 and U20 age groups.

McLellan also won bronze in the 200m (24.92sec) and placed fifth in the 100m (12.49) after clocking 12.39 to place second in her heat.

Sally McLellan aged 14 in 2001. Picture: Adam Ward

The blonde flyer placed second in her heat of the 90m hurdles in 13.12m, the third fastest time, but fell over after hitting a hurdle in the final.

The results in Adelaide were promising for the Year 8 student who will get another crack at the U16 age group at next year’s Australian all schools athletics championships.

Coached by Sharon Hannan, McLellan has been involved in athletics for most of her childhood after cutting her teeth at Helensvale Little Athletic Club before switching to Ashmore.

The teenager is in her last year of Little As and trains at the Gold Coast City International Athletics Centre at Griffith University.

Days after returning from the nationals, McLellan was named in the Australian team to contest the Sydney Olympic Youth Festival in Sydney from January 10 to 14. McLellan was selected for the 200m and 4x100m relay.

Also named in the team was Trinity Lutheran College sprinter Charles Wall, 15, and Palm Beach Currumbin hammer thrower Kristy Mills, 16.

Wall, coached by Brian Johnston and a member of Mount Gravatt Athletics Club, competed against 17-year-olds in the U18 age group and won gold as a member of the Queensland U18 men’s 4x100m relay (41.60).

He finished 12th in the U18 110m hurdles (15.10).

Mills, coached by Brett Green and a member of Griffith University Gold Coast Athletics Club, was named in the Olympic Youth Festival team after finishing sixth in the U18 hammer and seventh in the U20 hammer at the nationals

in Adelaide.

Rivermount College 17-year-old Jack Pincott won gold in the U18 pole vault (4.30m) and bronze in the U20 pole vault (4.20m).

Ron Singh, 17, of Palm Beach Currumbin, grabbed silver in the U20 long jump with a leap of

7.01m and jumped the exact same distance to finish fourth in the U18 long jump.

Helensvale’s Tobby Sutherland, 17, won silver in the U18 400m hurdles (53.97).