IT'S ALI'S DAY AS HE SPRINTS TO GOLD
Surf Lifesaving Championships at Kurrawa today.
Hendy struggled with the pace and conditions to finish 12th in the 16-man final but Day excelled and won a sprint finish from Australian champion Shannon Eckstein to win his first Queensland title since moving from the NSW south coast six months ago.
Day and Eckstein (Northcliffe) were locked together at the end of the ski leg but the 21-year-old stole a small but crucial break on his more experienced rival when he leapt to his feet first for the sprint to the
line.
Burleigh Heads Mowbray Park's Wade Krieger placed third.
"It's an awesome feeling to win my first Queensland state title; I've won a NSW one (in 2008), now I've won a Queensland one," Day said.
"Shannon and I are such good mates, he had me round to his place for dinner the other night.
"I suppose I've got one up on him now but it's all about respect. It's so good to have him in the race and so good to have Trevor Hendy in the race.
"I was praying to God it wouldn't come down to a run but it did.
"I thought if I could get off early and get into the wade first I was would be a chance and I didn't want to look behind to see where he was.
"I could here the announcers says he was coming up and I thought he'd get past me a grab it. I suppose when you get in those situations you've got to have the killer instinct and try to win; I wanted to win today.
"To beat Shannon and the rest of them, it was a really strong field, is good."
Eckstein had led Day comfortably after the opening swim leg but was slowed by crashing waves in the board leg, allowing to Day to bridge the gap. From there they raced neck and neck to the finish.
Day acknowledged the luck he had during the race but Eckstein didn't want to take anything away from his young rival and paid credit to Day's attitude in training and determination while racing.
For Day, victory was a great lift after the Kellogg's Nutri-Grain Series, when he led into the final race but failed to show his best in the decider, and helped put a health scare last week behind him.
"I was a bit down after the Nutri-Grain series, it was a bit hard to get up coming off six races and never having been under that sort of pressure before leading the series," he said.
"I was in hospital last Friday with a stomach infection - that was just a freak thing, its all right now - I just didn't have the best of weeks I suppose.
"But I've had the best year I've ever had so far and it does put you in really good stead for Aussies."
And while you can take the boy out of NSW, it will takes more than a change of address for Day to get used to being a Queenslander.
"I'm blue and blue, through and through," he said. "This is
the first time I've worn the maroon togs and maroon cap, I don't like doing it.
Hopefully the boys can get a win up this year in the Origin."
Hendy had won his semi-final but struggled with the lift in
pace for the gold medal decider. He got as close as sixth place in the board
leg but then was hit by a wave and lost his board and his chances of a medal
disappeared with it.
"I'm really happy with how the weekend has gone," he said.
"I don't think I'm too far behind the pace of the top competitors."
Northcliffe's Liz Pluimers bagged her customary haul of Queensland championships gold, with six first places over the carnival including today's ironwoman final.
Pluimers broke away from the field in the board leg and extended the gap as many of her rivals were upset by waves in the ski leg.
She finished ahead of Hayley Bateup (Kurrawa) and Brodie Moir (North Burleigh).
Her sights are now on the Australian championships where she has also won a small mountain of gold medals but has yet to claim the ironwoman prize.
"I'll be focused on recovering and then getting my preparation right for the Aussies," she said.
Pluimers also won the open ski race today and the Taplin relay with Kristyl Smith and Courtney Hancock.
North Burleigh pair Alyce Bennett and Brodie Moir was first and second in the women's board final, while Northcliffe's Bonnie Hancock upstaged Kristyl Smith and her sister Courtney to win the open surf race.
The Northcliffe juggernaut was upset, however, in the women's open surf teams when Maroochydore's Dahlas Rogers, Lana Rogers, Miranda Bell and Rebecca Pegg took the gold medal.
The Rogers girls and Pegg were also successful in the under-19 surf teams where they were joined by Alisha Ellwood, while Pegg also won the under-19 surf race.
Jordan Mercer continued her good carnival in the under-19s, winning the board race, while North Burleigh's Gabriella Keid, Hayley Lemarseny and Olivia Hall won the under-19 Taplin relay.
In the men's events, Tate Smith celebrated qualifying for the London Olympics as a kayak paddler this week by winning the open ski race.
Another London Olympian, Ky Hurst who will represent Australia in the open water swimming, surprised many, including himself, by winning a sprint up the beach to take out the open board race by a stride from Currumbin's Sam Gill.
The tables were turned on Hurst in the open surf race when Northcliffe's Dev Lahey cracked a big wave to score his best win in open competition, while Jackson Maynard of Currumbin slipped into second place.
Kurrawa led the way on the sand with victories in all of the
major open disciplines which saw Australian flags legend Melissa Howard take the open flags and beach sprint double.
Howard left Currumbin pair Tara Hawking
and Alee Whiteman to fight out the
sliver and bronze in the sprint while in the flags it was North Burleigh's Brooke Grono who had to settle for
silver and Catherine Donaldson
(Kurrawa) the bronze.
In the men's events it was the returning eight-time national flags champion Simon Harris who showed his younger
rivals he still had the power and the pace to edge out club mate Ben Mispelhorn with Mooloolaba's Thomas Reiken third.
Mispelhorn led another Kurrawa quinella when he beat Ben Mitchell and Conor
Loughnan (Mooloolaba) to take out gold in the open men's sprint. Loughnan
backed up to win the under-19 sprint.