Benalla Little Athletics competitors at the Bendigo Region Track and Field competition. Benalla Little Athletics @ Bendigo regions. Feb 7 and 8 2026.
Benalla Little Athletics enjoyed a brilliant weekend at the recent 2025-26 North Central Region Little Athletics Track and Field Carnival, boasting its highest representation in some time and yielding superb results across the two-day competition.
Isabelle Lawlor and Elsie Cavill will represent Benalla Little Athletics at the state championships in March, following solid performances at the North Central Region carnival in Bendigo recently.
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With hundreds of kids from across the region competing at the Lar Birpa Athletics Complex in Bendigo on February 7 and 8, Benalla’s eight-strong contingent — the most athletes the club has had in years — all did well, with four athletes qualifying for the Little Athletics State Track and Field Championships in March.
In hot and testing conditions, Benalla’s under-11 female competitors excelled, with all three competitors in the category earning a spot at the state championships.
Max Yuen-Francis earned runner-up finishes in both the 400m and 800m events on the track at Bendigo, as well as the triple jump, which has seen him qualify for the state championships.
Elsie Cavill snared gold in the 400m event to book her spot at states, where she will also compete in the 1500m event after finishing fourth at Bendigo, while Isabelle Lawlor will be joining her at the next level having cleared the bar for qualification into high jump, having cleared 1.17m to finish fourth in Bendigo.
Josie Yuen-Francis will line up at the state championships after claiming third spot in the shot put at Bendigo.
Josie Yuen-Francis impressed in the under-11 shot put, too, finishing third in Bendigo with an effort of 7.04m to earn her spot at the state championships.
Max Yuen-Francis will be joining the trio at Knox Park Athletics Centre in Melbourne on March 7 and 8, having qualified for two events following a superb outing in Bendigo.
Elsie Cavill in action on the track at the North Central Region carnival in Bendigo.
Competing in the under-13 boys category, Yuen-Francis finished second in the 400m and 800m events, as well as the triple jump, with his results in both the 400m and triple jump impressive enough to advance to the state championships.
Harriet Donnelly ran strongly to finish second in the under-12 girls 400m at Bendigo.
Alongside the four state qualifiers at Bendigo were a number of other impressive results from Benalla athletes, with Eleanor Donnelly finishing second in the under-10 girls’ 400m, as did Harriett Donnelly in the under-12 girls’ 400m, while Patrick Lawlor and Matilda Donnelly each earned big personal bests across a number of events.
Eleanor Donnelly claimed second spot in the under-10 girls’ 400m event at the North Central Region carnival in Bendigo.
The Benalla athletes will next be in action for the Little Athletics State Track and Field Championships across March 7 and 8 at the Knox Park Athletics Centre in Melbourne, with the best under-9 to under-17 athletes from across the state set to compete.
