By Rhowena Branco
Little Athletics Noosa athlete Amy Brice, 15, knew she was in for some tough competition when she travelled to the Australian Little Athletics Championships (ALACs) at Sydney Olympic Park in April.
Ten weeks before the competition she tore ligaments in her ankle, which meant undergoing intensive physiotherapy and eight weeks with no training before taking her place on the 32-strong Queensland State Team.
In a format unique to ALACs, athletes compete as part of a team as well as individually to earn points for their home state in the Under 13 and Under 15 age groups.
Amy was one of three female Queensland athletes competing in the Under 15 heptathlon, and despite her limited preparation, won gold in the gruelling two-day event, outscoring some of the best youth multi-event athletes in Australia.
The heptathlon consists of seven events: 90m hurdles, shotput, high jump, 200m, long jump, javelin and 800m with athletes accruing points from each performance. Amy’s final score of 4819 points was below her personal best of 5040, but still good enough to set a new Little Athletics Queensland record and claim gold.
Amy began competing and training with Little Athletics Noosa in 2007, and is coached by Rebecca Brice, Ash Brice and Mick Hooper.
“Amy’s scores in each event were well below what we know her to be capable of in this type of competition, due to her injury ten weeks out from the competition,” Hooper said.
“However, it was her determination and fighting spirit that saw her come through with gold and the championship title in the end.”
Amy’s selection on the Queensland State Team continues a proud club tradition with at least one Noosa athlete having been selected to represent Queensland at ALACs each year since 2011.
