Danny Corcoran's resignation from the helm of Athletics Australia to take up a new role with the Melbourne Rebels franchise is a blow to the fragile sport that is only just re-finding its feet in a competitive sporting world.

Corcoran has done a good job in a tough gig. For starters, AA is not running at a $1.3 million annual deficit, as was the case when Corcoran took over. Thus while not exactly rolling in cash or sponsorship offers, AA has achieved a credible degree of financial stability under Corcoran. More noticeably, however, the high performance program has improved out of sight. The Beijing Olympics were the best for Australian Track and Field since 1968, while the most recent World Championships, World Indoor Championships and the 2006 Commonwealth Games were also the most successful ever.

This new and prospering high-performance regime is exemplified by the number of exciting events to look forward to at the Australian Track and Field Championships starting in Perth on Friday.

Steve Hooker has recently returned from Doha with the title of World Indoor Champion to add to his current titles of Olympic Champion (and record holder) and World Champion. The recently revamped Perth Athletics Stadium is Hooker's home track, and with the men's pole vault final scheduled to take full advantage of the Fremantle Doctor, the extra tail wind may just give Hooker the runway speed he needs to knock off Sergey Bubka's longstanding pole vault world record of 6.15m.

Can he do it? Hooker and those close to him certainly believe he can, and thanks to the Western Australian government, he has 100,000 reasons - the size of the winner's cheque - to prove the believers right (and the doubters wrong). My only question mark? Hooker's best performances come time and time again in the face of adversity. He thrives on the pressure of final attempts (think Beijing) and doing the impossible (jumping with a torn groin to win last year's World Championships). Will the tail wind, home ground support, lack of serious competitors, new stadium, relatively uninterrupted preparation and home track prove all too perfect?

Also standing to benefit from the Fremantle doctor is a world-class field in the men's long jump. Like Hooker, Fabrice Lapierre has also returned from Doha a World Indoor Champion. Lapierre, who also finished fourth at the 2009 World Championships (behind young talent Mitchell Watt who won bronze) has his sights firmly set on Jai Taurima's national record. Watt, like Lapierre, is pre-selected for Delhi, but will not compete due to injury. Instead, watch out for the in-form Chris Noffke and AIS based Robbie Crowther. Noffke won the Melbourne Track Classic last month and Crowther, despite battling injury, has a natural brilliance and could surprise.

World Champion discus thrower Dani Samuels is also in scintillating form. Watching Samuels throw a discus is an art-form. She brings agile speed and power to the circle that allow her lighter frame to overpower her heavier opponents.

On the track, the men's 400m promises a good race. Ben Offereins, racing on his home circuit, is the in-form athlete, winning the two most recent Track Classics (Melbourne and Sydney). He has knocked off Sean Wroe both times, Wroe being the more internationally acclaimed and experienced athlete of the two. Add to the mix Beijing semi-finalist Joel Milburn, who despite some not blisteringly fast performances this season, cannot be discounted to pull one out when it counts. And then there's 2006 Commonwealth Games Gold Medallist John Steffensen. Recovering from back surgery, Steffensen is yet to compete this season. If he had his way, he would also rest through the nationals to ensure proper rehabilitation. But (correctly) citing the depth of quality in the 400m field, the selectors have refused to guarantee Steffensen selection in the 400m in Delhi if he sits out and three others all run under the A qualifying time (as is likely). Expect to see him on the dais.

Despite some genuinely exciting athletics action to look forward to, it is worth noting that Corcoran cannot claim all the credit for the coming of age of our Hookers, Sally McLellans and Samuels. Hooker has been in the sport and battling away in the background long before Corcoran took over. It was Hooker's risk in moving from Melbourne to Perth to live out his dream, and his subsequent perseverance, as opposed to any AA restructure, that can truly take the credit for his recent run of brilliance.

McLellan has also been in the system long before Corcoran, and has been brilliantly managed by a dedicated coach, as has Samuels. The kudos to AA under Corcoran's guidance is probably better described as its ability to ensure that these athletes did not prematurely quit the sport, but instead rode out the rollercoaster to eventual success. Sadly, this has not always been the case in Australian Track and Field.

We also must look beyond our superstars to truly see the health of Australian athletics. It is here that cracks become evident, a fact admittedly not unique to Corcoran's reign. Many of the fields competing this weekend suggest that, aside from the brilliant cream of the crop, it's not altogether clear there's much else cooking. Samuels is set to win the discus by over 10 metres, Hooker probably won't even enter the competition until all other vaulters have reached their maximum height. There is certainly not the depth of the US college system or many European nations.

At a more social level, participation rates in Australia have risen, although not markedly. Making significant change here is a tough ask. Little Athletics is a separate entity, a significant problem that was highlighted in all reviews of Athletics, as well as the broader Crawford Report. This means AA has no access to the corporate sponsorship dollars dished out to target the little'uns and their parents, nor any clear pathway for athlete development. Some State organisations have had some success in curbing the drop-out rate through innovative programs to bridge the gap between little athletics or school athletics and senior athletics, but this is David performing a Goliath task. With separate coaches associations too, administratively athletics is a scramble of sometimes squabbling multi-coloured pick-up-sticks.

Corcoran has done an admirable job at picking up and uniting some of the sticks, but there is still a long way to go for the lucky new candidate.