From the commencement of the 2018/2019 competition season, Little Athletics across Australia is changing the date on which it determines its age groups, to 31st December. This has direct implications for some of our athletes and parents, as well as centres who run Little Athletics activities from week to week.

Here’s a summary of everything you need to know, and information about how these changes may affect you during the upcoming season. To know which age group you will be for the 2018/19 season, please visit the Age Group Identifier.

Age Groups:
The anniversary date in which Little Athletics will determine its age groups, will change from 30th September to 31st December.
Athletes will be in age groups based on their year of birth.

Who’s Affected:
Athletes born between 1st January to 30th September will not be affected.
Athletes born between 1st October to 31st December will bypass one age group e.g. an U10 in the 2017/18 season will miss U11’s, and be an U12 in the 2018/19 season.

Affected U16 Athletes:
U16 Athletes in the 2017/18 season, born between 1st October to 31st December, will miss their final year of Little Athletics.
To ensure affected athletes can still participate with their friends at their centre, Rec Aths memberships are available. Please visit CLICK HERE for more information.
Rec Aths (U18) age group has been included into the 2018/19 State Competitions to enable affected athletes to still compete.

Tiny Tots: Children who are 3 or 4 years of age will participate in the Tiny Tots age group. Children who are only 2 years of age as at 1st October but turn 3 years of age between 1st October and 31st December, will not be eligible to register until their third birthday.
Equipment Specification Changes:
U11 Boys & Girls – 500gm Discus (previously 750gm)
U12 Boys – 2kg Shot Put (previously 3kg)
U13 Boys – 750gm Discus (previously 1kg)
Records: No new records will be established, other than events where equipment specifications have changed.

Centre Athlete Service Awards: Some centres issue “Athlete Service Awards” (e.g. 5 years, 10 years etc) to their athletes. For athletes affected by the age group change, please speak directly with your local centre as the decision to provide the award or not is at their discretion.

ALAC (Australian Little Athletics Championships): Eligibility criteria for the Australian Little Athletics Championships (ALAC) have been adjusted to include athletes affected by the age group change. Please CLICK HERE for more information.

National U15 Camp: Eligibility criteria have been reviewed and adjusted to include athletes affected by the age group change. Please CLICK HERE for more information.
For further explanation of the changes, download the Age Group 2018/19 Season Changes Information Document. If you have any additional questions or concerns, please contact the Little Athletics SA office at 08 8352 8133 or office@salaa.org.au, or alternatively, contact your local centre.