Krepp set to don the green and gold in Germany

Krepp, 18, was selected in an Australian under 20 squad for the Bauhaus Junior Gala in Mannheim, Germany, in June.

“It’s my first time putting on the green and gold and representing Australia, so it’s a great opportunity,” he said.

Krepp was one of 13 promising Australian athletes invited to the European tour, which also includes a warm-up competition in Karlsruhe.

His 55.67-metre discus throw at the Victorian country athletics championships ensured he was eligible.

“I got an email about a week ago to go and I was pretty surprised,” he said.

Krepp has put his football career with Warrnambool and District league club Dennington on hold as he prepares for the biggest competition of his fledgling career.

“I had to stop football and concentrate on athletics from now on,” he said.

“Basically I am at the VIS (Victorian Institute of Sport) most weekends from now on.

“I am doing weight training and bulking up again. I stripped a lot of weight off due to running

“I am weighing in at 85 kilograms at the moment. I’d like to get to 90kg and gain a lot more strength.”

Krepp, who stands 180 centimetres, said the competitions at Karlsruhe and Mannheim would be tough.

The former South Rovers footballer will compete in shot put and discus at the Karlsruhe meet and focus solely on discus at Mannheim.

“I’d like to get into the top five at least,” Krepp said.

“It is going to be my first international competition, so it’s going to be a bit intimidating, so I will be very nervous as well, especially going up against Germany. That is where most of the good throwers come from. I’d say they’d be six-foot-five (195cm) and 130kg.”

Athletics Australia junior high performance manager Sara Mulkearns said Krepp was too old for next year’s world junior track and field championships and this trip would provide him with a chance to compete at a high level.

“It’s a really good time for him and it’s his first international experience,” she said.

Mulkearns said Australia had taken teams to the Bauhaus Junior Gala since 2011.

She said 20 countries would be represented at the Mannheim event on June 29 and 30.

The Karlsruhe competition is on June 22 and 23.

Krepp and his Australian teammates will fly to Italy on June 13 and spend a week at the AIS European training centre before the two competitions.

Krepp knows he will eventually have to choose between athletics and football.

“I’d like to stick with athletics but I’d like to play for the Doggies at the end of the season,” he said.

“I don’t want to let them down.”