Hunter's Big Hopes
Newcastle Herald
Tuesday July 23, 2002
Herald journalist NEIL GOFFET profiles the 11 Hunter athletes competing at Manchester.
KARYNE DI MARCO (athletics) Karyne was born in Whyalla, South Australia, but moved to Newcastle where she did the majority of her schooling before moving to Sydney to pursue her athletics career.
The 24-year-old was previously coached by Dave Puller but is now working with Lawrie Barclay at the NSW Institute of Sport.
At the Sydney 2000 Olympics, Karyne made the qualifying round with a best throw of 65.38m, but she threw a personal-best 65.71 this year and is ready for the best meet of her career. MATTHEW HELM (diving) Originally from Adamstown, Matthew trains in Brisbane but is still looking forward to a wave of support from his Newcastle family and friends.
The former Broadmeadow High School student is a platform specialist, and the 10m platform will be his main event. But he will also compete in the 3m springboard event at his debut Commonwealth Games.
MARTIN KELLY (judo) Martin is confident he can win gold in Manchester.
The Australian champion for the past 12 months in the 100kg judo division, he is not making idle threats.
A student at the University of Newcastle, Martin erased some of the bitter memories of missing the Sydney 2000 Olympics when he gained selection in the Commonwealth Games team.
In the past 12 months he has achieved some outstanding results, including a fifth placing at the Italian Open and third at the East Asian Games.
NICK MORONEY (high jump) Originally from Tamworth, Nick is now a proud Novocastrian and at the age of 29 is in some of the best form of his lengthy career, which started back in 1990.
The son of 1956 Olympic long jumper Michael Moroney, Nick has won the Australian championship in 2000, 2001 and again this year by equalling his personal-best jump of 2.25m.
Nick's career highlight was a sixth place at the international championships in 1998 with a jump of 2.18m. In February this year Nick won the high jump at the Telstra A Series meet at Glendale Athletics Stadium. JACQUIE MUNRO (athletics) Jacquie holds the record of being the fastest junior hurdler in Australian history and is on track for a medal in Manchester.
The 20-year-old set a personal-best time of 13.12sec, the fifth-fastest 100m hurdles time in Australian history and the national under-20 record, on July 14, 2000.
It took here more than 12 months to equal the mark again in her bronze-medal performance at the World University Games in Beijing last year.
Jacquie trains under hurdles coach Fira Dvioskina and Matt Shirvington's sprint coach Michael Khmel.
JUSTIN NORRIS (swimming) The Stockton superfish is set to contest the busiest individual race schedule of any male on the Australian Commonwealth Games team.
Justin will start with the 200m butterfly and is an excellent chance of picking up gold as the Commonwealth-record holder and No.1-ranked swimmer.
He will follow that with the 100m breaststroke, 400m individual medley and 200m IM, where he is ranked second in the Commonwealth.
The final event on the program for the Sydney Olympics bronze medallist is the 200m breaststroke, where he is ranked third.
JAMIE PITMAN (boxing) Jamie is one of the shining lights in the 12-man Australian boxing team for the Games.
The Aussie squad had their final preparation for the Games in France two weeks ago when they took on the Cuban team.
Cuba won all 12 bouts, but Jamie was one of only two Aussies to go the distance.
He turned 21 on July 18 but is a seven-year veteran of the amateur boxing scene and has won more than 100 of his 130 fights.
He was named the most outstanding boxer in the light-middleweight division at the Australian titles this year.
YVETTE RODIER (swimming) YVETTE could be the new darling of the pool with her gold-medal-winning smile and strong work ethic that is admired by many, including her team-mates.
She trains at The Forum under former Olympian Donna Procter and is tackling the same event Procter did at the 1990 Commonwealth Games in Auckland, the 400m individual medley.
Procter, 33, collected a bronze in the 400m medley and covered the distance in 4min 47sec. If her charge does the same time, she is almost guaranteed a medal in England.
ELIZA STANKOVIC (wheelchair athletics) Eliza will make her Commonwealth Games debut in Manchester and is thrilled to be there, even if she does have to compete against wheelchair legend Louise Sauvage.
Eliza rated Sauvage and Chantelle Petitclerc as her greatest threats but said they would also take the limelight off her leading into the 800m wheelchair event.
Eliza secured her place in the Australian track-and-field team when she finished second to Sauvage in a close 800m final at the national titles.
JULIE TOWERS (hockey) Julie will figure prominently in the Hockeyroos' charge towards a gold medal in Manchester to go with the one she claimed when the Australian women were victorious at the Sydney 2000 Olympics.
The talented striker made her international debut in March, 1997, in a Test series against Germany and celebrated her 100th match for Australia last year.
ALISON BROADBENT (netball) Born and bred on the Central Coast, Alison now calls Newcastle home and is at short odds to bring another gold medal home to the Hunter.
The 27-year-old defender, who plays for the Sydney Swifts in the Commonwealth Bank Trophy, has fought her way back from two knee reconstructions to play five Tests for Australia.
© 2002 Newcastle Herald
