This page explains how to nominate for selection in the 12 years and under track and field state teams to compete at the School Sport Australia championships in 2024.

Who can nominate to be selected

To nominate for selection, students must be:

• enrolled at an affiliated school.
• born in 2012, 2013, 2014.

Where and when

Gold Coast, Queensland from Thursday 28 to Monday 2 December 2024.

Travel dates may vary due to flight availability.

Team officials

• Coaches to be confirmed from Little Athletic SA
• Team manager - Kylie Ashworth, Reynella Primary School
• Team manager - Wendy Stimson, Trinity College
• Team manager - to be confirmed

How to nominate for trials

Nomination form and due date to be advised.

You will receive a confirmation email within 2 business days once your nomination has been processed. Your school will also be sent a copy as confirmation of your nomination. Your school has the right to not approve a child’s involvement based on behaviour, attendance and other grounds as determined by the school.

Selection process and criteria

The team is selected to ensure there is a team balance that enables each age group and gender to compete in as many events as possible. Maximum team size must be taken into considerations when selecting the team. Team size is determined by School Sport SA and considers the supervision ratios as set out in the Department for Education guidelines.

The School Sport SA Track and Field Sapsasa State Championships on Monday 16 and Tuesday 17 September are the selection trials. All students wishing to be considered for selection must participate at this event. Students in year 7 who wish to be considered, can nominate to compete as an individual competitor at this event.

• Results from the School Sport SA Track and Field Sapsasa State Championships will be used to select athletes in individual events. Results will be compared to the selection standards which are based on historical averages from the finals of individual events at the School Sport Australia 12 years and under track and field championships (updated annually)
• No other events will be taken into consideration.
• State team officials' observations on the race circumstances such as weather conditions across the championship dates will be taken into considerations. These observations will be noted down if necessary. No external person's observations will be used.
• Relay teams will be selected from athletes who have been selected in the team for individual event(s).
• Meeting the selection criteria and standards does not guarantee selection.
• There is no requirement to select an athlete if they do not demonstrate good behaviour in and out of competition.
• Not all places will be filled per event age/gender due to restrictions on team size. Athletes selected in the team will be given the opportunity to fill vacancies in events through a trial process at trainings.

Combined event selection criteria

To be considered for a combined event athletes must

• indicate on the nomination form in the comments section that they wish to be considered.
• place first, second or third in either the 100m, 800m, long jump or shot put.
• achieve a top 6 finish in at least one other event, preferably in either long jump, shot put, 800m or 100m.

Athletes who are chosen for the combined event may be considered for an individual event providing there is not a conflict in the program with their combined event inclusive of warm up and recovery time. This decision will be at the discretion of the selectors based on the above selection criteria.

Athletes who are selected for individual events and wish to add the combined event as an extra event, the following considerations are taken into account before selection is made

• whether the combined event could impact their time for training and competition in the individual event.
• whether the athlete has a competitive 800m time of 2.20 minutes to 3.10 minutes (inclusive of all genders and age groups)

All athletes will be notified of selection or non-selection within 1 week of nominations closing.

School endorsement

Selection in a School Sport SA state team requires endorsement from the student’s school principal before confirming their place in the team. Therefore, parents are advised not to make any arrangements that incur costs until the school has confirmed that the student fulfils all requirements.

Training and championship expectations

All selected team members will be required to attend all team trainings and a team photo shoot.

Country team members travelling more than 2 hours can negotiate their commitment.

The selected student agrees to attend the competition for the full duration including the opening and closing ceremonies and the educational excursion.

Accommodation, flights, and daily transport

Parents/caregivers who can accompany their child must book and manage accommodation, flights and daily transport for the entire championship.

Should this not be possible then the family will need to negotiate with School Sport SA to arrange appropriate flights, accommodation, meals and daily transport for their child which will be an additional cost. Negotiations must begin within 1 week of the team being announced.

Championship costs

An individual itemised account will be provided for every student selected in a School Sport SA state team.
The anticipated cost to School Sport SA is approximately $600 which includes levies to participate at the championship and any training costs. Walkout and competition uniforms will be approximately $400 depending on the number of items ordered. This will be a separate online ordering process where payment is made directly to the supplier.

Accommodation, flights, meals, daily transport and personal spending money will be an additional cost for families and will not appear on the invoice from School Sport SA

Program and results

See School Sport Australia Track and Field for the program and results as they are available.