A great performance in the recent national championships has earned LU student Emma Wilson a trip to Samoa for the 2019 Pacific Games.
The 20–year-old third year Bachelor of Commerce student, majoring in Accounting and Finance, threw over 44 metres to place fourth at the New Zealand Track and Field Championships in Christchurch in March, and was selected for the New Zealand senior team for the Games.
“Definitely excited to be selected for the team after the New Zealand Champs,” she said.
“The games are during a two-week period with a lot of other sports and an opening and closing ceremony.
“Athletics is over the last week of the event in Samoa and this is the first time New Zealand has been invited to compete. I'll be heading over with eight other athletes and staying in a games village with athletes and team officials from other countries and sports.”
Emma hails from Southland and competes for her home club Winton during the summer season, as well as her home province.
She only picked up the hammer about four years ago.
“I started throwing hammer as a bit of a laugh at weekly competitions and have been doing it since.”
She said training in Christchurch had been a challenge until new athletics complex Ngā Puna Wai opened recently.
“There were only a couple of places in Christchurch where we could throw, even then it was limited to quiet times of the day. Luckily fitting training around studies is easier now as the track is close to Lincoln.”