LAURIETON Public School athlete Scarlet Monk has beaten the state’s best to bring home a swag of medals.

Scarlet competed at the NSW Primary Schools Sports Association (PSSA) State Athletics Championships held at Sydney Olympic Park Athletic Centre from October 23-24.

More than 2200 students representing 900 schools took part.

Prior to the State Championships, Scarlet had already made a name for herself at Lower North Coast and North Coast Athletics Carnivals, where she was crowned Senior Girls Multi-Class (MC) Champion.

Participating in six events at the State Championships – long jump, shot put, discus, 100m, 200m, and 800m – Scarlet showcased her versatility and skills across a range of disciplines.

In the Senior Girls MC races, Scarlet clinched first position in the 800m, second place in the 200m, and finished third in the 100m, where she also broke the T25 record.

Scarlet’s T25 classification has been determined by Athletics Australia, based on her Cerebral Palsy diagnosis.

She also emerged victorious in the Senior Girls MC Long Jump competition, where she set a new record in the T25 category.

Scarlet will now compete at the School Sport Australian Track and Field Championships in Sydney from November 28 to December 2.

Scarlet’s success is even more remarkable considering the challenging circumstances she has had to overcome since birth.

Born prematurely alongside her twin sister Violet, Scarlet faced life-threatening health issues including multiple brain bleeds and a broken neck.

Scarlet’s parents, Sam and Louise Monk, expressed immense pride in their daughter’s accomplishments.

“Scarlet has always participated in sporting events,” said Louise.

“She loves it and is good at it.”

Louise also reported that Scarlet was “excited” and “pleased” by her performances.

“However, she was a little disappointed with her third placing in the 100m, as two years previously she placed first,” said Louise.

Scarlet attends therapy sessions three days a week, including speech, pilates and occupational therapy, and loves to maintain her fitness by staying active.

MC competitors are divided into several groups of classifications, covering five impairment categories: Deaf and Hard of Hearing, Vision Impairment, Intellectual Impairment, Physical Impairment and Transplant Recipients.

Categories are labelled with a letter, followed by a two-digit number.

The letter is used to describe the event, eg T = Track.

The first digit tells you the category of impairment and the second digit tells you the degree of impairment, the lower the second number, the greater the degree of impairment.

The MC classification system allows athletes with disabilities to compete in athletic events based on specific impairment categories.

This year’s state carnival hosted 109 students in MC events, the largest number on record.

By Kim AMBROSE