The 13 junior athletes, aged between under 9s and under 12s, were eager to have their first taste of a carnival in some time, due to the effects of COVID-19 cancelling those previously scheduled.

"Little Athletics is no different to any other sport, they had to chop and change and do whatever they could to hold a carnival," Mudgee Little Athletics president, Kieren Bennetts said.

Of the baker's dozen, seven achieved a top one or two position, automatically qualifying for the state quest in March.

And, of the 37 events entered by the Mudgee clan, 23 personal bests were achieved.

"Personally, I think they've done really well because we haven't had the opportunity to go to other carnivals and gauge people's performances and have an expectation going in," Kieren said.

"The kids have performed as good as the effort they've put in outside of these carnivals that weren't available. You saw the results from those who dedicated and applied themselves to training."

For those who placed 3rd and 4th in events last weekend, they now embark on a waiting game to see if they have made the next 16 positions to accompany the others to state.

"We have our fingers crossed for the kids who sit on the fringe, hopefully they qualify," Kieren said.

"For the older kids who don't have the opportunity to do a regional carnival, I wish them all the luck. They have just been asked to nominate themselves and Little Athletics will assess the times and results and just invite people.

"In this strange year that we're having, hopefully kids are still able to compete and enjoy themselves."

Results:

We depend on subscription revenue to support our journalism. If you are able, please subscribe here. If you are already a subscriber, thank you for your support.