THE Wangaratta Little Athletics Centre is gearing up for a massive year of fun and athletic improvement, with the season launch set for tonight at the Bill Eaton Athletic Complex on Appin Street.

After a bumper program last season, organisers and coaches of the weekly program are ready to go around again.

Wangaratta Little Athletics Centre secretary Alicia Canning said the program was perfect for kids from age five to 16 to work on their athletic skills.

“A lot of the skills you learn at Little Athletics – run, jump and throw – are in any other sport that you play, and it’s a great activity to keep fit,” she said.

“If you’re a footy player and you’re not into cricket, you can do Little Aths because it works on your running and your jumping, which goes hand in hand with footy or soccer, whatever your winter sport may be.

“We recognise the kids’ personal bests – it’s not about who wins every week, it’s about their personal bests.

“Did they beat their time from last time, did they throw a bit further, did they jump that bit higher – that’s what we’re trying to encourage.”

Registrations are open for the first two Friday sessions, billed as free come-and-try days, with plenty of training days on the calendar before the first Little Athletics carnival in November.

“We’re around the 40 mark at the moment,” Canning said.

“Last year we had a bumper crowd, one of our biggest nights was nearly 200 athletes, and that’s a lot, but anything around 100 is great and manageable.

“Relays are our first regional event this year, they’re in November in Bendigo, but our big event the competing athletes build up for are track and field carnivals, that’s in February in Shepparton so we don’t have to travel too far for that.”

Today’s season launch and training session begins at 5.30pm at the Bill Eaton Athletic Complex on Appin Street.

For registrations and more information, visit the Wangaratta Little Athletics Centre on Facebook or check out their website http://www.wangarattalac.com.au.