Kerr, Hobbs, Whelpton, And Walsh Shine At 2025 International Track Meet

The Summer Circuit delivered an afternoon of world-class athletics to Nga Puna Wai in Christchurch as the 2025 International Track Meet saw New Zealand’s top athletes rise to the occasion in front of an electric home crowd. A massive crowd greeted top Kiwi and international athletes as they lined up for the second to last meet on the 2025 Summer Circuit.

Olympic high jump champion Hamish Kerr delivered a flying 2.30m clearance on his second attempt to secure the top spot in Christchurch. His 2.30m effort puts him sixth on the world rankings for the World Athletics Indoor Championships in Nanjing, with the top 12 on rankings in the men’s high jump qualify.

Kerr’s series included first-time clearances at 2.15m, 2.20m, and 2.24m, before taking three attempts to get over 2.27m.

With only Italy’s Gianmarco Tamberi having cleared the automatic standard of 2.33m in the qualification period, Kerr’s result is a significant step toward securing his spot to begin his defence of his 2024 World Indoor gold medal.

An ecstatic Kerr shared that his 2.30 clearance was unexpected. “It was a bit of a surprise to be honest, the form has been coming online but quite not that quickly… The crowd was amazing, it was so cool to see everyone out here.”

“It’s a long season ahead, with September (World Athletics Championships in Tokyo, Japan) being the big goal this year. It will still be good to show a bit of form early doors with Nanjing on the cards.”

New Zealand’s sprint queen Zoe Hobbs showcased her class, taking convincing wins in both the 60m and 100m.

In the 60m, Hobbs clocked an impressive 7.13 seconds, but with an illegal +3.0m/s tailwind. Ella Connolly (AUS) was second in 7.32.

She followed up with another commanding performance in the 100m, stopping the clock at 11.23 seconds into a -0.8m/s headwind. Connolly was again runner-up in 11.67, with Veronica Shanti Pereira (SGP) close behind in 11.68.

Fresh off breaking the New Zealand resident record at the Sir Graeme Douglas International in Auckland, Christchurch local Tiaan Whelpton thrived in front of a home crowd, storming to victory in the 100m with a wind-legal 10.27 seconds. With a slight +0.2m/s tailwind, Whelpton was well clear of Japanese sprinters Naoki Inoue (10.46) and Yuhi Mori (10.47). In the 60m, Whelpton put down another strong performance with a 6.78s performance to claim the wind. Into a blustery headwind clocking - 3.1m/s, the time is impressive and adds to his rich run of form.

New Zealand shot put great Tom Walsh continued his return to competition, producing his best throw of the afternoon on his opening attempt, reaching 21.10m. The three-time World Championship medallist is steadily working back to top form following injury and will look to build momentum heading into the international season.

As the Summer Circuit continues, all eyes now turn to the upcoming Jennian Homes New Zealand Track and Field Championships, in Dunedin form the 6th-9th of March.

Tickets are available now: https://athleticsnz.flicket.co.nz/events/8becdb92-1841-4a3d-9054- a04b5ea23682

ITM Results available: https://www.athletic.net/TrackAndField/meet/580290/schedule

Livestream replay: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jbXJ2vABZe0

About the International Track Meet

The ITM is a key meet on the Summer Circuit and is a World Athletics Continental Tour Bronze meeting. Allowing top kiwi athletes to earn valuable rankings points towards qualification for major championships.

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