Weston athlete Matt Rees has done Australia proud at the 2014 Youth Olympics in Nanjing, China, narrowly missing out on a bronze medal in the men’s javelin event.
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Rees threw a personal best throw of 71.50 metres on Monday in the men’s final to finish in fourth place overall – just under a metre behind the bronze-winning throw by Hungarian Mark Xaver Schmolcs (72.40 metres).
Rees threw 70.83 metres on Friday to qualify for the final and said that he went bigger when it mattered the most.
“It was amazing. I was hoping for a third after getting that personal best,” he said.
“I wanted a little bit more but I’m happy.
“I got fourth at a Youth Olympic Games.
“I’m not used to only four throws, we usually have six, so if I had two more something could have happened but I guess the other athletes that didn’t perform that well could have also outdone me.”
The gold medal was taken out by Frenchman Lukas Moutarde with a throw of 74.48 metres, followed by Romanian Alexandru Mihaita Novac on 73.98 metres.
Rees is one of 89 Australian athletes taking part in the games, which will wrap up on Thursday.
The event includes 222 events across 32 sports, with approximately 3800 competitors aged 16 to 18 taking part.
