Double silver for Samuels

NSWIS track & field athlete Dani Samuels has claimed consecutive silver medals at Diamond League events in Italy and England over the weekend.

Competing late last week at the Golden Gala in Rome Samuels took silver with her best throw of 65.47m, just over two metres behind Croatian winner Sandra Perkovic. Samuels’ throw was the second longest of 2015 and was over one metre longer than her previous Diamond League effort in Qatar.

Days later Samuels won another silver medal, this time at the Birmingham Grand Prix in England. With a best throw of 64.89m Samuels was once again edged out by Perkovic, but consolidated second place on the Diamond League discus rankings behind the Croatian.

There was continued success for fellow NSWIS athlete Madeline Heiner over the weekend, with the distance runner clocking her second personal best in just three weeks with an excellent effort in the 3000m steeplechase in Rome.

Heiner stopped the clock seven seconds quicker than her previous best, notching 9:21.56 to finish fifth and become the second fastest Australian of all time behind Donna Macfarlane, before going on to finish eighth in Birmingham in 9:41.28.