Craig Reid won Australian Highland Games Championships last weekend and he filed the following report with IronMind.

2010 Australian Highland Games Championships
by Craig Reid

The Combined Scottish Societies of N.S.W. Inc, hosted the 141st Annual Highland Gathering in Sydney on the 7th November.  This event was by hosted the Australian Highland Games Championships for the heavy events and run by Tartan Warriors.

A small field of 6 athletes turned out for this competition.  The numbers were down with Southern Hemisphere athletes missing the competition due to injury, changes in competition focus and travel issues.

A hot humid day greeted everyone - dancers, pipers and heavies alike.  For the heavies, seven events were contested, light and heavy stones, 28-lb weight for distance, light and heavy hammers, caber and weight for height.

Young Ryan Phillips in only his second full games led the competition with wins in both stones and the 28-lb weight for distance.  The hammers were split between Phillips and veteran Craig Reid, with all throws very close.

Unfortunately for the young gun, he injured his back and come the caber he fell from the competition.  Reid took the caber, with New Zealand’s Mick Cottrel following and the big Luke Reynolds coming in third.  Reid took the money on the big challenge caber.

In the WOB event, the humidity had taken its toll and taken the energy of the athlete.  With four finishing on 14’, the event was decided on countback, with Kiwi Cottrel and Aaron Monks taking joint first.

Overall, the championships went to Reid,with Phillips in second, Cottrel in third.  A number of the athletes will now move on to Waipu for the New Zealand Heavy Events on 1 January 2011. 

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