Hooker Honoured with Athletics Team Captaincy

WAIS pole vaulter Steve Hooker was named team captain of the Australian Olympic athletics team, alongside Australian walker Jane Saville. The announcement was made at a team dinner in Hong Kong this week and was widely applauded by the team.

Speaking to Athletics Australia, Hooker commented that he’s learnt a lot from senior athletes in the past and hopes he can provide the same support for younger athletes. “I think I can make a difference by being there for my teammates to listen and to talk to them… We definitely need to pull together as a team and support each other to do well.”

Hooker is a promising contender for a medal in the 2008 Beijing Games, named by Athletics Australia as one of Australia’s three main medal hopes for track and field. The track and field program commences today (Friday) at the Bird’s Nest Stadium in Beijing.

The Beijing Games will be Hooker’s second Olympics, after competing in Athens in 2004. The Games are yet another outstanding addition to his international resume, which already includes a gold medal from the 2006 Melbourne Commonwealth Games and the 2006 World Cup in Athens and a bronze from the 2008 World Indoor Championships in Valencia.

Fellow captain Jane Saville will be competing at her fouth Olympic Games, an achievement that only five other Australian track and field athletes have accomplished.