Leah Belfield is the second fastest New Zealand woman over both 100 and 200 metres.
Leah Belfield is the second fastest New Zealand woman over both 100 and 200 metres.
Te Awamutu sprinter Leah Belfield has put herself into contention for a place in the New Zealand relay team as she continues her form the United States.
West Texas A&M University sophomore has continued in the outdoor season where she left off in the Indoor season with fast times over both 100m and 200m.
Her times have her ranked in the top three in the US, and get her to the NCAA finals, but they are not recognised in the world IAAF system under which NZ operates.
However, that all changed at her Conference finals in Kingsville, Texas, this month, despite the track having a reputation for being slow because of its tight bends and soft surface.
She faced, at one point, a schedule of running in the finals of the 4x100m relay, followed by the 100m final an hour later and the 200m final 40mins after that, and potentially a 4x400m relay soon after that.
She was in the winning 4x100m team and second in the 100m – running 11.48 seconds – making her the second fastest New Zealand woman over the distance behind Zoe Hobbs. Her time was also the fifth fastest ever by a New Zealand woman.
Belfield then repeated the effort in the 200m. She won in another personal best – 23.65s – again, placing her second on the current New Zealand sprint list behind Georgia Hulls.
Next up is the Outdoor Finals to be held in Allandale, Michigan, where Belfield will compete in the 100m, 200m and relay – against the top 24 in Division 2 across the country starting tomorrow.
