Kippy Langat is Wagga's newest national champion after winning gold in the under 16 boys triple jump at the Australian All Schools Athletics Championships in Perth on Sunday evening.
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The 15-year-old led a three-medal haul for the Kooringal-Wagga athletics club as Gerard Okerenyang threw a huge personal best to win bronze in his hammer throw and Godfrey Okerenyang won a relay silver medal but suffered a hamstring injury and fell in his individual 100m final.
Perth, though, was just about perfect for Langat.
With mum Phibian and coach Greg Wiencke watching on, the Wagga High School student leaped 13.96 metres with his first legal jump.
It was a personal best and, as it turned out, Australia's best.
None of Langat's rivals came within half-a-metre and his two subsequent jumps (13.73m and 13.83m) would also have secured gold.
"It felt really good. I got out to a PB and I'd only just come back and recovered from a torn hamstring (suffered at the state championships) so I was happy with what I jumped," Langat said.
"I won by 58cm, which I was really surprised by. I feel really good about it."
Going into nationals, Langat's best was 13.81m. He's looking forward to a Christmas break before aiming for next year's state championships as he looks to break 14 metres.
Langat was almost as excited about NSW teammate Gerard Okerenyang who launched a mammoth 57.64m with his last attempt to snatch third.
"He did really well. It was an eight-metre PB," Langat said. All four of Okerenyang's throws were beyond 50m.
However, his brother Godfrey's carnival ended in heartache. He was fourth in the under 18 boys long jump (7.27m), one centimetre off bronze, on Friday, his NSW team just missed gold in the 4x100m relay on Saturday, and on Sunday, he pulled a hamstring halfway through the 100m final and fell.
"That was not good to see," Langat said, feeling Okerenyang's disappointment.
The NSW team captain got up and hobbled to complete the race but it was a terrible shame.
Okerenyang had won his heat in a stunning 10.64 seconds, to progress as the quickest qualifier.
The winner of the final ran 10.77 seconds.
However, he maintained a positive outlook.
"The hamstring isn't good but I'll bounce back stronger, just like last time," Okerenyang said.
The NSW team flew out of Perth late on Sunday night.
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