Cowra athlete Patrick Rowston has taken home gold for the second year in a row, winning the Year 8 title at the Australian Athletics All Schools Championships in Melbourne and setting a new personal best in the process.

Patrick received his medal from one of Australia’s rising stars, Gout Gout, the Oceanian 200m record holder, who ran an incredible 20.02 seconds in 2025.

The win marks another major milestone in Patrick’s growing athletics career, which has been shaped by hard work, strong family support and dedicated coaching under Ernie Shankleton in Canowindra.

Patrick’s mother, Melinda Rowston, said watching Patrick win back to back national titles was a proud moment for the whole family.

“We were pretty excited, Patrick’s worked really hard,” she said.

“He works really hard with his coach, Ernie Shankleton, over in Canowindra.”

Ms Rowston said supporting Patrick on his journey has been incredibly rewarding.

“It’s been very exciting watching him get better and better all the time and watching him have good sportsmanship out on the field and to just keep improving and working hard,” she said.

Patrick trains in Canowindra and competes regularly in larger cities, which Ms Rowston said has been one of the toughest obstacles for him.

“The distance that he’s got to travel all the time is a bit of a challenge,” she said.

“He travels to Canowindra every week but also to his clubs in Sydney and then down to Melbourne,” she said.

“Distance is the most challenging for him.”

Despite this, Patrick has continued to excel, consistently pushing himself through training and competition.

With the All Schools Championships now complete, Patrick’s focus turns to the Australian Junior Championships in Brisbane in April.

“He won’t have a rest now over summer,” Ms Rowston said.

“He’ll just continue training for that next one.”

Patrick’s family said they are incredibly proud of both his achievements and his sportsmanship.

With back to back national gold medals and strong momentum heading into 2026, the young Cowra athlete is proving he has a bright future ahead.