News26 Nov 1999


Olympic preparations build up for Australia’s throwers

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Joanna Stone at the 1995 IAAF World Championships (© Getty Images)

More than 30 throwers including some of Australia’s best will step up their Olympic preparations with a week-long camp at the Australian Institute of Sport, Canberra starting Monday 29 November.

Atlanta Olympics silver medallist Louise Currey; 1998 World Cup champion Joanna Stone; and Commonwealth Games gold medallist Debbie Sosimenko are among the Australian contingent using the camp as a vital build up to the domestic season and ultimately the Olympic Games.

The Australians will be in good company. Finland have sent out more than 10 athletes and their coaches to train at the AIS during November and December including former World Champion javelin thrower Kimmo Kinnunen, and world junior champions Aki Heikkinen (decathlon) and Olli-Pekka Karjalainen (hammer throw).

Athletics Australia Head Coach Chris Wardlaw said the camp gives Australia’s top throwers as well as aspiring young Olympians and World Junior Championships contenders the opportunity to see where they are at in training and where they can still improve.

"This Olympic preparation camp is an important step for our throwers in the lead-up to the Olympics and a great chance for our younger athletes to learn off some of the best coaches and trainers in the world," he said.

"We have set the program to focus on all aspects of training and competing from video analysis, nutrition, mental preparation, throwing and weight lifting techniques, injury prevention, and conditioning."

The camp will commence on Monday with a presentation from one of the world’s leading experts on planning, periodisation, and short and long-term training and performance programming, Dr Istvan Balyi from Canada.

Other sessions will be taken by AA Team Doctor Chris Bradshaw, AA Sports Psychologist Jeff Simons, nutrition expert Ben Desbrow from the AIS, World Championships team coach Rudolph Sopko, and Finnish throws coaches.

The camp has been organised by AA High Performance Manager Lawrie Woodman, National Throws Co-ordinator John Zanfi and Paul Smith from the Queensland Academy of Sport.

Athletics Australia for the IAAF

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