Oceania Athletics is pleased to announce Somerset College will host the Oceania Relays in 2023.
Oceania Athletics has taken the opportunity to ensure there is competition for Oceania Member Federations to enhance their relay qualification prospects for World Athletics Series Meets. Opportunities for relay teams to qualify for international competitions are limited in Oceania and with the World Championships in 2023 and World Relays and, in turn the Olympic Games in 2024. The Oceania Relays will play a significant role in assisting Countries to qualify for those competitions.
Somerset College is one of the preeminent schools on the Gold Coast, with outstanding facilities, including a ten-lane Class 2 Internationally certified Track.
Somerset College is equipped with state-of-the-art facilities, including a fully equipped fitness centre, two international-standard indoor courts with sprung floor, an accredited 10-lane synthetic running track, 10-lane Olympic swimming and water polo pool, physio rooms and more.
Somerset College Head of Athletics Coach Scott Walsh said he is looking forward to hosting the Oceania Relays at the College this year.
“We are thrilled to be hosting the Oceania Relays at Somerset College in May and look forward to welcoming the teams to our facilities. It’s such a fantastic opportunity for athletic teams across Oceania, and we encourage the Gold Coast community to get behind the event and to come to spectate and support the teams next month.”
The Oceania Relays will bring the best and fastest of Oceania to Somerset College. Australia, Australia, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, and Samoa have confirmed attendance.
With so much at stake over the next two years leading up to the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, the Oceania Relays play an important stepping stone towards those competitions.
The all-Queensland Women’s 4x100m team that won a bronze medal at the Commonwealth Games will take on some of the fastest women in Oceania.
The Men’s action will see a Samoan team, fresh off a final at the Commonwealth Games, looking to become the first Pacific island team to qualify for World Relays. Currently ranked in the 40s and less than a second outside qualifying for World Relays, they will be hoping to be pushed by the fast Australian and New Zealand teams.
In the 400 relays, Somerset’s own Alex Beck will lead the Australian team. Beck, a Tokyo Olympian and Area Record holder in the Mixed 4x400m, will be running at Somerset College in a race for the first time in a long time.
The Oceania Relays will occur across two days: Saturday, May 6 and Sunday, May 7, with both days beginning at 2:00 pm.
For further information
Tom O’Shaughnessy
competitions@oceaniaathletics.com
+61410136856
