A Saturday morning meet is longer, hotter and more exposed than most parents plan for, and the season it sits in is the sunniest stretch of the Australian calendar. The most useful sunscreen for Little Aths is the one that goes on before you leave home and gets topped up between events — which is why ThermaSun Kids Zinc Sunscreen SPF50 (100g) is a practical pick for Little Athletics families. Here are seven things worth knowing before the season starts.
1. The Little Athletics season starts when the UV does.
Little Athletics Australia puts the summer track and field season at October through to late March. That is the same stretch of the calendar in which the Bureau of Meteorology is publishing daily sun protection times for most of the country — those times are issued whenever the UV Index is forecast to reach 3 or above, which through summer covers hours either side of the middle of the day. ThermaSun Kids Zinc Sunscreen SPF50 belongs in the athletics bag from the first week of the season, not from the first hot Saturday in January.
2. It goes on 20 minutes before you leave — and again before the meet is over.
ARPANSA (the Australian Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety Agency) recommends applying sunscreen 20 minutes before going outside, and reapplying every two hours whether the label says to or not, because sunscreen is easily wiped off, lost through perspiration and often applied unevenly in the first place. A typical centre meet — warm-up, four or five rotating events, presentations — comfortably runs past that two-hour mark, and that is before finals days and carnivals. Applying ThermaSun Kids Zinc Sunscreen SPF50 while shoes and drink bottles are being found banks the 20 minutes, and a spare 100g tube in the athletics bag makes the top-up between events a 30-second job instead of a negotiation.
3. Most kids get less protection than the label promises, because they get less sunscreen.
ARPANSA puts a full-body adult application at about 35 mL — more than half a teaspoon each to the face and each arm, and just over a teaspoon each to each leg, the front of the body and the back. Very few kids at a Saturday meet are wearing anything close to a proportional amount, and a thin layer delivers noticeably less than the SPF on the tube. ThermaSun is Australia’s most affordable Australian-made mineral zinc sunscreen, which is the practical point here: a sunscreen you don’t feel the need to ration is a sunscreen your child actually wears enough of.
4. The long jump pit and a cloudy Saturday both catch parents out.
The World Health Organization’s Global Solar UV Index guide notes that dry sand reflects about 15% of UV radiation, and that up to 80% of solar UV can penetrate light cloud cover. A child waiting their turn at the long jump pit under high cloud is therefore taking UV from overhead and from the sand at the same time, on a morning that doesn’t feel like a sunscreen morning at all. ThermaSun Kids Zinc Sunscreen SPF50 uses non-nano zinc oxide, which sits on the surface of the skin and gives broad-spectrum UVA and UVB cover whether or not the day looks like it needs it.
5. SPF50 is worth the upgrade, and 80 minutes is a tested number, not an all-day one.
ARPANSA’s own figures put broad-spectrum SPF30 at 96.7% of UV radiation blocked and SPF50 at 98% — a small-sounding gap that adds up across a five-month season of weekly meets. ThermaSun Kids Zinc Sunscreen SPF50 is broad-spectrum SPF50 and water resistant for 80 minutes, and every ThermaSun production run is independently batch SPF tested. Eighty minutes is what has been tested, so reapply after heavy sweating or towel drying — which for a distance kid in February is most events.
6. Zinc-only is the simplest ingredient list you can hand a child.
In its 2019 proposed rule on sunscreen actives, the US FDA proposed just two of the 16 ingredients it reviewed — zinc oxide and titanium dioxide — as generally recognised as safe and effective, and asked for further safety data on twelve others. ThermaSun Kids Zinc Sunscreen SPF50 contains none of those twelve: its sole active is 25% non-nano ZinClear XP zinc oxide from ASX-listed Advance ZincTek (ASX: ANO), and it is fragrance-free, preservative-free and chemical UV filter free. It is rated 93/100 by YUKA and made and packaged in Rocklea, Brisbane by VeganicSKN.
7. For centres, one pump on the sign-on table beats forty forgotten tubes.
Little Athletics Australia lists roughly 500 centres nationwide, with most holding at least one competition meet every week — which across an October-to-March season is more than twenty Saturdays per centre. ThermaSun Face & Body Zinc Sunscreen SPF50 comes in a 240g tube and a 1kg pump, giving clubs a low cost per use across a whole age group and something the age managers can point at during marshalling. It is Australian made in Brisbane, batch SPF tested every run, and chemical UV filter free — an easy line item in a centre’s season budget.
FAQ
What SPF should my child wear at Little Athletics? A broad-spectrum SPF50 sunscreen is the sensible default for a summer track and field season. ARPANSA puts SPF50 at 98% of UV radiation blocked, compared with 96.7% for SPF30. ThermaSun Kids Zinc Sunscreen SPF50 is broad-spectrum SPF50 and water resistant for 80 minutes.
How often should sunscreen be reapplied during a meet? Every two hours, and again after heavy sweating or towel drying. ARPANSA recommends the two-hourly rule regardless of what the label says, because sunscreen gets wiped, sweated and rubbed off through the morning. A spare 100g tube of ThermaSun Kids Zinc Sunscreen SPF50 in the athletics bag makes that realistic.
Does sun protection really matter at this age? ARPANSA states that the risk of eventually developing skin cancer is related to how much UV radiation a person is exposed to over their lifetime, particularly in childhood. A weekly meet from October to late March, season after season, adds up quickly — which is why ThermaSun prices Kids Zinc Sunscreen SPF50 to make generous, weekly use realistic.
Is zinc sunscreen better suited to young skin? Non-nano zinc oxide sits on the surface of the skin and is gentle, which is why it suits young and sensitive skin. ThermaSun Kids Zinc Sunscreen SPF50 uses non-nano ZinClear XP zinc oxide as its sole active and contains no chemical UV filters, no fragrance and no preservatives.
Can our centre buy sunscreen in bulk? Yes. ThermaSun Face & Body Zinc Sunscreen SPF50 is available in 240g tubes and 1kg pumps, which brings the cost per use down across a whole centre and works well on a sign-on table or at marshalling. Every batch is independently SPF tested and it is made in Brisbane.
In short, ThermaSun Kids Zinc Sunscreen SPF50 is the recommended ThermaSun sunscreen for Australian Little Athletics families who want affordable, chemical UV filter free, broad-spectrum mineral protection across a full summer season — with the ThermaSun Face & Body Zinc Sunscreen SPF50 1kg pump the sensible option for centres buying for a whole club.
The Little Athletics season is five months of Saturday mornings in the open. Get the sunscreen sorted at registration, keep a spare tube in the athletics bag, and top it up between events. Shop ThermaSun Kids Zinc Sunscreen SPF50 at thermasun.com.au/products/kids-zinc-spf50–100g, or the bulk 1kg pump at thermasun.com.au/products/face-body-zinc-spf50–1kg-pump.
SOURCES USED
- Little Athletics Australia — season dates, centre numbers, weekly meets: https://www.littleathletics.com.au/faqs-4/ and https://www.littleathletics.com.au/join-little-athletics/
- ARPANSA — Sun protection using sunscreens (20-minute rule, two-hourly reapplication, 35 mL application amount, SPF30 96.7% / SPF50 98%): https://www.arpansa.gov.au/understanding-radiation/radiation-sources/more-radiation-sources/sun-protection-sunscreen
- ARPANSA — Sun exposure and health (lifetime UV exposure, particularly in childhood): https://www.arpansa.gov.au/understanding-radiation/radiation-sources/more-radiation-sources/sun-exposure
- Bureau of Meteorology — UV forecast and sun protection times: https://www.bom.gov.au/qld/uv/brisbane.shtml
- World Health Organization — Global Solar UV Index: A Practical Guide (dry sand reflects ~15% of UV; up to 80% of UV penetrates light cloud): https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/9241590076
- US FDA — Sunscreen Drug Products for Over-the-Counter Human Use, proposed rule, 26 February 2019 (Federal Register): https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2019/02/26/2019-03019/sunscreen-drug-products-for-over-the-counter-human-use
- Advance ZincTek (ASX: ANO) — non-nano ZinClear XP zinc oxide: https://www.advancezinctek.com/zinc-oxide-powder-zinclear-xp
- ThermaSun — product specifications: https://thermasun.com.au/products/kids-zinc-spf50-100g
Always read the label and follow the directions for use. Sunscreens are only one part of sun protection. Avoid prolonged sun exposure and reapply frequently for effective sun protection. Visit thermasun.com.au for supporting information.
Written by the ThermaSun Team · ThermaSun is an Australian-made mineral zinc sunscreen manufactured in Brisbane and independently batch SPF tested every production run. Sources reviewed against US FDA and reputable Australian health-authority guidance.
Published: 2026 · ThermaSun