Page 3 - BBHAC Winter 2016-17 Gazette
P. 3

President’s Profile  3
        This year’s President 2017/18 Nick Brooks






                                So we have yet another
          A promising athletics career   president born in 1958
          sadly curtailed through injury   following on from Bill Foster,
          and a lifelong involvement in   and this one from an illustrious
          rugby with a local Club are just   Blackheath Harrier family.
          some of the features of this year’s   Nick Brooks is perhaps one
          president’s life, as well as be-  of the most likely of heathens
          longing to a distinguished Club   to assume the ultimate office
          family. This president hopes that   in the Club. His grandfather
          he will be accepted as president   George Brooks was Club
          but should have no concerns on   President in 1972, and he would
          that score.           have been so proud to see his
                                grandson in this role. His father
                                Gordon is a Club member and   talent spotted by Graham
                                Vice President and former Club   Botley on his visits to local
                                Chairman and his brother Andy   schools where he focused on
                                was a Club member during his   middle distance. Yet despite this
                                teenage years.          he had aPB in the high jump of
                                A natural born athlete he had   1.89m often beating Gordon
                                an active childhood playing   Hickey to the Club high jump
                                rugby for Langley Park Boys   championship, one of many PBs
                                School, and also basketball   although mainly on the track
                                where he went on to gain   (800m best of 1.47.01) and many
                                County honours. He was also   of which were reasonable good
                                an all-rounder at athletics until   distance PBs.
                                he joined Blackheath in 1973,   It was on the track therefore
                                                        that he made his mark. After
                                                        finishing 8th in the 800m as
                                                        junior boy he went onto win
                                                        the intermediate boys 800m in
                                                        1975, and then was picked for
                                                        the home schools international
                                                        which he also won. The
                                                        following year he won the senior
                                                        boys 800m breaking the record
                                                        at that time ahead of Garry
                                                        Cook. From this formative
                                                        period of his athletic career he
                                                        developed the tactic of running
                                                        from the back and relying on a
                                                        good finish, using a 160-yard
                                                        tight board track indoors.
                                                        By 1976 he was attracting a lot
                                                        of interest from US universities
                                                        and following the southern
                                                        800m race which was shown
                                                        on TV (where he finished 2nd
        Nick tracking New Zealand’s John Walker at the AAAs qualifying   to Peter Browne and broke
        round over 800m in 1980 where he ran 1.49.4.    1.50 for the first time), David
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