AN impressive performance at the NSW All Schools Championships has provided one of Gunnedah's fastest-rising athletics stars the opportunity of a lifetime.
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St Mary's College student Yasmin Thomas claimed third place in the 400-metre sprint at the championships, guaranteeing her a spot at the Australian All Schools Championships later this year.
Thomas said she was surprised with her results at the recent competition.
"My first goal going in was just to qualify for the final and run a time of under one minute in the heat," Thomas told the Namoi Valley Independent.
"Luckily for me, I was able to do exactly that: qualify for the final and shave a second off of my personal best time.
"After that, I was really surprised to run as well as I did in the final.
"I managed to finish third and knock three seconds off my personal best time."
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The result came after Thomas achieved mixed results in the 400-metre hurdles (fourth), 100-metre sprint (seventh) and 200-metre sprint (ninth).
"To be honest, I was really pleased with my result," she said.
"The 400 metres was the race I had put the most focus on in the lead up to the event.
"For all of that to pay off was really special."
Trained by long-time Gunnedah athletics coach Andrew Frend, Thomas will now turn her attentions to the Australian championships on December 6 in Perth.
"I think the next few weeks will involve a lot of really intensive training," Thomas said.
"Andrew is a bit of a hard taskmaster at times, but he knows how to get the best out of me.
"He's always really excited when I perform well, which always makes me feel really good.
"Andrew's always the first to congratulate me if I do something positive.
"I'm pretty lucky to have him as a coach."
Thomas said the 400 metres would now be her "main priority".
"I had started the year doing a lot of hurdles, but I'm pretty keen to make the 400 metres my race," she said.
"I think it's the event that suits me the most, so it will be the main focus for me going forward."