The 21-year-old saw off a quality field to win the feature event, the Lovelock Mile, and claim the $600 prize at Aorangi Stadium in Timaru on Saturday.
Bremer, of Hill City-University, ran 4min 10.32sec to win the event from former Otago runner and two-time champion Daniel Balchin, of New Brighton, who finished in 4min 11.22sec. It was a field that also included impressive Canterbury runners Ben Musson and Nick Moulai, who clocked in at 4min 12.75sec and 4min 19.84sec respectively.
Bremer has continued on from an impressive 2016 in which he won silver in the 800m at the national championships, as well as the Otago senior men’s 10km road race title.
Otago competitors Jared Monk and Kirk Madgwick, both of Hill City-University, finished sixth and seventh respectively. Alexandra’s Rhian Ward finished eighth, while Geoff Anderson and Robert Homan were 16th and 17th.
Meanwhile, Otago athletes impressed in the long jump. Paralympic champion Anna Grimaldi (Taieri) jumped 5.22m to finish second in the women’s event, trailing winner Tegan Duffy by 11cm. It was the 19-year-old’s best jump since the Rio Paralympics. Gore’s Emma Hopcroft finished third with 5.20m.Taieri’s Felix McDonald was second in the men’s competition. His leap of 6.53m was enough to edge Matt Walsh, who jumped 6.50m. Canterbury’s Jesse Bryant proved the clearcut winner though, the former schoolboy star jumping 6.85m as he continues his return to the sport. Jacob Granger, also of Taieri, jumped 6.16m to finish fifth, while North Otago’s Schuyler Orr was ninth with 5.71m. Orr also ran 11.34sec to finish third in the 100m won by national silver medallist Scott Walker in 10.93sec.
In the women’s high jump, Taieri’s Hannah Ashton and Canterbury’s Anastassia Naylor both jumped 1.55m but Ashton had to settle for second on countback. Ashton also finished second in the long jump, with 4.67m.
Mike Scholten (Taieri) threw 43.01m to finish second in the men’s hammer throw, although he was well off winner Fergus Speirs (South Canterbury) who won with 49.38m.
Hill City-University’s Fiona Centers ran 12.49sec and 25.40sec to finish third in the women’s 100m and 200m respectively. Christina Ashton (Taieri) finished fourth in the 100m in 12.62sec and second in the women’s 100m hurdles in 15.21.
