Izzi Louison-Roe leaps to NSW title success

The junior also competed on the big stage jumping in the women's high jump at the 2024 Sydney Track Classic on Saturday night, finishing third with a 1.80.

After setting a PB 13.13m in the triple jump to take silver and move to number eight in Australian junior history, Izzi claimed the Open NSW high jump title in a dual with Alex Harrison as both cleared 1.83m.

Izzi's clean sheet to 1.80m would be the difference as both Izzi and Alex cleared 1.83m on their second attempts. Izzi then missed attempts at her 'official' PB of 1.86m, although she has also cleared 1.90m in another competition.

Her open NSW title came after the previous week's junior titles where nearly 1500 of NSW finest junior athletes were in action at the three-day NSW Junior Athletics Championships held at Olympic Park.

The honour of NSW champion was to be hard fought across competition in the under-14 to under-20 events. This championship led to the Australian Junior Championships to be held in Adelaide in April.

On day one, Louison-Roe had a busy day ahead of her speciality the triple jump, scheduled for the Saturday afternoon.

She opened her campaign with a 6.11m in the under-18 long jump defeating arch rival and Commonwealth Youth Games bronze medallists Grace Krause who leapt 5.96m.

Izzi was just 2cm short of her PB and within reach of the world junior standard of 6.20m.

Next up she out gunned the field in the 100m hurdles clocking 14.19. After a rest it was onto the high jump.

Waiting nearly an hour in the sun to start jumping she opened at 1.70m, going on to sail over 1.80m, before some close attempts at 1.85m for the weary jumper.

On Day two of the NSW Junior Championships, Izzi achieved her key World U20 Championships qualifier.

After threatening the standard all summer, Louison-Roe finally hit the World U20 Championships triple jump standard of 12.90m with a jump of 13.02m. She backed it up with another three leaps over 12.80m.

"I was so happy to finally get it legal," said Izzi, who had leapt a wind assisted distance of 13.39 in December in Perth.

"In January I wasn't doing as well as I wanted to do.

"After nationals in December I had a bit of a break and then I was a little rusty, but I've got back into it now."

It is a long season for juniors who can start competing mid-year in school carnivals and are still going 10 months later in April.

"I have to tell myself, breaks are good," she said.

Two young Sutherland Athletics Club members also posted World U 20 Championship Qualifiers - hurdler Jasynta Lampret 14.16 (0.8) PB, and Telaya Blacksmith who broke her U20 T20 200m record with 26.36.

It was previously a 27.62.