Eloise Wellings – who has competed at the Olympics and is one of Australia’s finest middle-distance runners – knows a lot about what makes a great athlete. And it isn’t just times, training, distances or winning.

Ms Wellings was the guest speaker at the Newington College Athletics Breakfast, an event held for boys who will compete in the AAGPS Athletics Championships at Sydney Olympic Park tomorrow.

Ms Wellings gained an international reputation for sportsmanship when, after completing the 10,000m event at this year’s Commonwealth Games, she and two other Australia runners waited to applaud a competitor from Lesotho who was still running five minutes after the race had been won.

The Australian girls were the only runners who stayed on the track to congratulate Lineo Chaka on completing of one of the most physically demanding events at the Commonwealth Games.

Ms Wellings urged boys to think about every aspect of being an athlete as they go into this weekend’s AAGPS championships.

The College is hoping for a big crowd of supporters at tomorrow’s carnival. The meet kicks off at 9am.