Athletics world championships begin

The 2015 IAAF Athletics World Championships kicked off in Beijing over the weekend, with NSWIS athletes faring well in the opening days of competition.

Runner Anneliese Rubie was the standout competitor from the early rounds in the Olympic stadium as she clocked a new personal best of 51.69 seconds to secure passage to the semi-final of the women’s 400m.

With her efforts Rubie notched a Rio 2016 qualifying time and became the first Australian woman to secure a spot in a world championships semi-final since Catherine Freeman in 1999.

“It’s as good as they say out there. The track is lightning fast, the stadium is amazing and it’s hot. The conditions are perfect. I had an absolute ball. I executed my race almost perfectly. I didn’t want to leave the race thinking there was anything left in the tank, and I’ve definitely done that,” Rubie said to Athletics Australia after the race.

“I want to improve in the next round. I think I am in even better shape. To be honest, I’m stoked regardless. It’s just a bonus after only getting in to the championships late.”

Fellow NSWIS athlete Dani Samuels progressed to the final of the women’s discus despite a scare in the qualifiers. Samuels’ best throw came in at 62.01m to be ranked eighth in the eight-woman field.

Runner Madeline Heiner narrowly missed out on the final of the women’s 3000m steeplechase after clocking 9:30.79 in the qualifiers. Heiner missed out by 0.56 seconds, with her time being good enough for the final in four of the last five world championship events.

Rounding out the NSWIS results from early in the competition was Josh Ralph, who clocked 1:48.90 in the heats of the men’s 800m but was unable to progress to the final.