Fourteen year old Vashti Williams from Trundle is a rising star in the sport of Javelin. Vashti has been throwing the javelin since before she could even walk through the school gates, spending her afternoons learning and training alongside her three older siblings.

Although athletics and sports has been a part of Vashti’s life from such a young age, it wasn’t until she was thirteen that she actually started to see herself as a good javelin thrower.

“At around thirteen, everything changed; those childhood goals suddenly shifted into reality. By the time I was at an age to compete in javelin, I already had over seven years of training, understanding rules and techniques of the sport.

“Parkes Little Athletics opened up totally new opportunities and competitions that I was able to compete at and work my way from the bottom of my age group when I began, to now being one of the top throwers in my age group at competitions,” said Vashti.

Vashti has recently competed at some major competitions, representing NSW on the national stage in April and then competing at the Oceania Athletics Championships in Darwin, representing Australia where she won a Bronze Medal in the Women’s U16 Javelin.

“I honestly never thought I would see myself throwing a javelin at places like Perth, Brisbane and definitely not Darwin! My debut on the National stage in Perth last year (2025) was the hardest experience out of the three. Being my first National competition, I didn’t know what to expect.”

After throwing over a 2m pb, Vashti was proud to come home with a bronze medal.

When competing at Nationals in Brisbane this year Vashti said, “I did what I could on that day and reflected on what I could have done to change my outcome and then put that into practice preparing for Darwin, where I received a bronze medal.”

“The Oceania Championships were by far my favourite competition to this day. Just the atmosphere and the encouragement from everyone around in all the events was such a great feeling,” said Vashti.

At every competition Vashti sets herself a standard that she tries to meet, it is never to beat someone else, it is only to better herself.

“My long-term goal will always be to represent Australia at the Olympics. My future goal for this year is to consistently be throwing over 40 metres and continue to better myself in all areas of my throwing technique and to keep positive.”

Most weeks Vashti trains after school on four days at a local oval and participates in weekend sports. Coming up in September Vashti hopes to compete in the CHS State competition, followed by All Schools at the end of September. Little Athletics will then begin and most weekends of November she will have an athletics carnival, which will prepare her for the Country Championships, Little Athletics Regionals/State and then shortly after the Nationals.

 

As the athletes stood in the shed on Saturday morning at 7am, with a cool breeze at their backs, anticipation was high for the start of the inaugural Parkes Athletic (PA) Games. The briefing was quick but crucial, with the organisers outlining the day’s schedule, the require­ments for each event and the scoring process. Over 80 athletes and 20 volunteers disperse to prepare for the first events. It was clear this event would be a mix of competition and camaraderie.

The five events for the day consist of stationary skiing, running, tyre flips, athletic movements, olympic style weightlifting, gymnastic movements and high aerobic output. The crowd of athletes and lo­cal supporters cheers’ echo as athletes in each event and category push themselves throughout the day to their limits, fuelled by adren­aline. By the time the last event finishes late in the day, the athletes have tested their physical capabilities, are thoroughly exhausted yet completely euphoric.

A huge congratulations to all the teams for their incredible perfor­mances and sportsmanship. Special shout-outs to the podium win­ners in each category—your hard work and dedication truly shone.

The PA Games were a fantastic showcase of talent, teamwork, and community spirit! PA would like to thank each of the key sponsors such as The Worklocker, Littles Power, Standen Building , Special­ized plumbing and excavation, Yakka solutions, EM earthmoving, Laura Jelbart Photography and organisations such as Parkes Shire Council.

“We can’t wait to hold an even bigger and better event and look forward to seeing everyone again next year,” said Emma Montgom­mery of Parkes Athletic.

There were over 100 Western region athletes and coaches who attended the 2023/24 Western Region Academy of Sport Athlete Orientation. 

Held at the Bathurst Charles Sturt University Campus on the weekend of October 21st and 22nd, the event marked the commencement of the athletics, basketball, cycling, future stars, golf, high performance, hockey and triathlon programs. 

Saturday started out with a psychological education session by Dr. Gordon Spence, who worked with athletes, coaches and parents to discuss the topics of mental toughness and energy management. 

Dr. Spence showed how good energy management helps build resilience in the face of pressure that can result from performance setbacks and accumulated success. Those in attendance discussed the physical, emotional, cognitive and spiritual/meaning factors that support sustained high performance and what choices can help establish positive behaviours. 

Following Dr. Spence was a presentation from WRAS Programs and Strength and Conditioning Manager Dan Bunyan. Dan delivered an overview of strength and conditioning, common misconceptions within the strength and conditioning industry and an overview of the programs WRAS athletes will undertake throughout their scholarship period with WRAS. 

Athletes worked through a series of strength, power, fitness and movement tests with the assistance of Charles Sturt University Exercise Science Strength and Conditioning Interns. 

Media training provided an opportunity for our athletes to understand how to contact and feel confident talking with media outlets and use social media skills to optimise their online presence. With 7 News Central West in attendance, several of our athletes took the chance to practice these skills and gain practical experience in being interviewed. 

Brandon Martin (2014 lone star WRAS graduate) and Holly Simmons (local athlete) ran a mentoring session with the athletics and future stars programs to discuss the importance of opportunities for personal development available outside sporting pathways. 

Western Region Academy of Sport basketball, hockey and triathlon squads all hold their first team training Sessions. 

Upon reflecting on the orientation weekend WRAS Executive Officer, Candice Boggs was positive about this year’s cohort ‘It is always great to host the athletes, squad staff and parents for orientation to commence the WRAS season. It’s a great opportunity for all athletes, parents, and coaches to come together as WRAS sets the scene for what’s ahead with each of our programs.’ 

‘Looking across the athletes in attendance over the weekend, there is tremendous talent throughout every program. Under the guidance of the very knowledgeable and dedicated WRAS coaches these athletes are in for a great program ahead.’ 

Registrations are officially open and cost $60 for tots and $100 for U6 and over. You can use kids active vouchers when registering.

More than just an athletics club. We are about Friendships,whether you bring a buddy with you or the friendships made within the club or other events. Did you know that Little Athletics is for everyone. The whole family can join in the fun, there literally is something for everyone to enjoy and excel. We have 2 upcoming come & try nights in September.