Trinity Grammar School is world athletics champion

The Aussies have proven themselves to be a bit too good again with Sydney’s Trinity Grammar School crowned the International Schools Federation (ISF) World Schools Athletics Champion 2019, ahead of Spain in second place, and Chinese Taipei who finished third, in the two-day international championships which were held in Split, Croatia on 15 and 16 May 2019.

Trinity secured its spot in the World Championships having won the Intermediate Boys Division at the National Schools Knockout in Adelaide in 2018.

The School sent a team of six students (Connor Murphy, Year 12; Jonathan Titmarsh, year 11; Ethan Brouw, Year 11; Ethan Bateman, Year 11; Theo Kidd, Year 10; and Laud Codjoe, Year 10), to represent Australia and compete at the ISF World Schools Athletics Championships.

The six boys competed in a maximum of two individual events and a medley relay, with the aim to score as many points as possible based on times or distances. Nine individual events and the relay all counted towards the final point score.

“During the two-day competition, every team member performed out of their skin,” said former Triple Jump Olympian and Trinity Director of Track and Field, Andrew Murphy. Highlights included: Jonathan Titmarsh - World Schools Gold Medalist in the High Jump - 2.11m; Connor Murphy - World Schools Gold Medalist in the Triple Jump - 14.99m; Ethan Brouw - World Schools Silver Medalist in the 800m - 1.54.62s; Theo Kidd - World Schools Silver Medalist in the 110m Hurdles - 14.12s.

“It was a nervous few hours as we waited for the relays to begin. We’d calculated that we had approximately a 20-metre buffer ahead of Spain and China so when Ethan took the baton for the final leg within five metres he just had to hang on. Spain had a 48 second 400m runner so it wasn’t easy, and at one point with about 150 metres to go, it looked like Spain might stretch the lead, however Ethan dug deep and closed the gap and we went through the line knowing we had claimed the crown of World Schools Champions,” continued Andrew

With a total score of 832, The boys from Trinity Grammar School set the highest point score in their division in competition’s 46-year history.