but he need some parents to help him. On 27 November 1965, six clubs were formed. They were run by parents with Billingham as an overall manager. By the end of the 1965/66 season, more than 200 boys and girls were competing regularly across nine clubs, and more than 500 had tried out at least once. The first Geelong championships were held in March 1966 over the long weekend. There was another meeting in March 1966. John McGlynn, an executive from the Ford Motor Company, suggested that there was a need to encourage other clubs from areas outside Geelong to start up. By September 1966, there were clubs in Geelong, Belmont, Newtown, Lara, Corio YMCA and St Thomas. They were all based around local high schools. In May 1967, the Victorian Little Athletics Association (VLAA) was formed. By 1969, there were 39 clubs in the VLAA. The first Western Australian meet was in February 1968 at Perry Lakes Stadium. In March 1968, a Western Australian association was formed. Competitions in New South Wales started in October 1968. In 1972, the Australian Little Athletics Union (ALAU) was formed in Perth. Victoria, New South Wales, Northern Territory and Western Australia were the founding members. Tasmania, South Australia, Australian Capital Territory and Queensland joined shortly afterwards. Current In the 2013/14 season, Little Athletics had more than 100,000 athletes and approximately 500 centres. Every year, there is a national championship for athletes under 13 years old, in which each state has a team of its best athletes. In July 2014, Jetstar announced a two-year sponsorship deal with Little Athletics Australia (LAA), which saw the Australian airline becoming the first naming partner of LAA. In September 2017, Coles signed with Little Athletics Australia, becoming its major partner. References External links Little Athletics Australia, includes links to individual state associations Athletics in Australia Children's sport 1964 establishments in Australia Sports organizations established in 1964