Press Releases for
January, February & March 2015
31/03/15
Helen Godsell returned from the European Masters
Indoor Championships at Torun in Poland as a double European Champion and a
World Record Holder. Competing in the over 60s age group the Blackheath &
Bromley athlete set a seasons best of 8.76 to win the 60 metres. She
followed this with another seasons best in the 200 metres as she won the
silver medal in 29.70.
Finally she was part of the winning 4x200 metres team.
They won by over 13 seconds in 2.02.39 which is a new World Record.
She was not the only Club member to win gold as Tom
Phillips was part of the Great Britain team that won the mens over 60s 4x200
metres relay. They finished over three seconds clear of Germany. He also
took 5th place in both the Mens over 60s 60 and 200 metre finals in 8.10 and
27.09.
Roger Michell was 6th in the 3000 metre walk in
16.28.17 and also 11th in the 5000 metre walk in 28.16.0
Lorraine Ugen produced the furthest long jump by a
Briton this year, although it was wind assisted. Competing at the Texas
Relays in Austin she leapt a massive 6.96. Jonathan Ilori produced a
distance of 15.46 in the triple jump.
The Club finished in 22nd place in the mens Southern
12 stage road relay at Milton Keynes. They did start very strongly as Alex
Bruce Littlewood came in 4th on the opening stage, a long leg. His time of
24.11 proved to be the 11th fastest long leg of the day.
He passed to Phil Sesemann who moved the team up to
second place with a time of 15.43. This was the 6th quickest short leg of
the day.
From there the Club began to drift back down the
field. However, Under 20 Will Fuller clocked a very good 16.01 on leg 6,
12th fastest of the day, as did Richard Webb (16.22) and Birmingham
University student Will Ruiz (16.52).
The team have now qualified for the National 12 stage
at Sutton Coldfield next month. The women do not need to qualify for the
National 6 stage event which takes place at the same venue. This is just as
well as they did not have team in the Southern.
Plenty of other runners were in action at various
other venues. At the Paddock Wood Half Marathon Alex Gibbins finished in 5th
place in 73.58 with Ritchie Leccia 6th in 74.09, Danny Brewer 14th (75.41)
and Gareth Evans 19th (76.42) also making the top 20. Carole Penlington was
114th in 86.12.
Fintan Parkinson was 2nd in the Cranleigh 21 in
2.06.53 with Kev May 10th in 2.12.31. Sarah Belaon was 108th in 2.48.27 and
Lisa May 156th in 2.57.08.
24/03/15
Blackheath & Bromley athletes Jessica Keene and Henry
James Cowie represented England Schools at the Home Countries Cross Country
International in Dublin. They secured their selections after their
performances in last weekends English Schools Championships in Blackburn and
continued their top class form in Ireland.
Over a 4km course, Jessica finished in 10th place in
the Intermediate Girls race in a time of 14.30. Two years ago the
Chislehurst and Sidcup Grammar schoolgirl ran for her country in the Junior
age group.
Henry, who attends Dartford Grammar School, was 6th in
the Junior Boys race in 13.23 also over 4km.
This time last year Alex Bruce Littlewood was based in
Ireland. Now back in the UK and living in Berkshire he ran for his company
in the Reading Half Marathon. On his debut at the distance, he finished in
13th place in 66.20 a very good time on what is an undulating course.
The Club’s Closing 5 Yacht Handicap race took place at
Hayes marking the end of the Winter season. Safety concerns over the road
section of the traditional route meant a change of course for this year but
this did not discourage 50 runners from starting the race. With the slowest
starting first and the fastest last Maz Turner won the race with Andrew Pino
second and John Turner third.
Fastest man of the day was Fintan Parkinson in 29.34
followed by Tom Desborough 30.19 and Gareth Evans 31.19. Easily the quickest
woman was Yasmin Austridge who timed an impressive 32.45 ahead of Sarah
Belaon 36.32 and Amy Leach 36.36.
This was the final Bennett Cup race of the season and
the overall winner of this 9 event handicap series which has taken place
over the Winter months was Will Slack on 369 points with Ian Montgomery
second on 344 and Finton Parkinson third on 341.
Another Yacht handicap was taking place at Enfield
where the third of this years 5 mile League walk races took place. Peter
Hannell had the 16th best time with 54.33 but this gave him 32nd in the
handicap. David Hoben was the 20th quickest with 56.43 and was 29th in the
handicap.
Indoors Brunel captain Mark Cryer cleared 3.70 in the
pole vault at his university’s open throws and jumps meeting.
Following on from the Closing 5, the Club AGM took
place at the Clubhouse at Hayes with the highlight being outgoing President
Dick Griffin introducing his successor. It is Dave Cordell who will be no
stranger to anyone.
He joined the Club in 1981 to run marathons at which
his best time was 3.02. However, he is better known for his work as a
volunteer. He is a director of BHHQ and Norman Park Track Management and is
the Head of House and Social at the Club.
If that were not enough, he also serves on the Kent
County Executive and Cross Country Committees and in the last couple of
years has been named both Kent Official of the Year and Volunteer of the
Year.
He also gives invaluable support to the Club’s
athletes as he takes the Club tent to venues throughout the year. Having
been a milkman for three years he has no trouble in getting there early to
secure the best pitch.
17/03/15
It has been another busy week for the athletes of
Blackheath & Bromley as they have achieved success from International to
National to County level on country, road and track.
Alex Bruce Littlewood was selected to represent
England at the Home Countries International in Antrim. The race included a
number of Kenyans in the field as it was also an IAAF International Permit
Meeting and Alex finished in 12th place, a good effort since he has been
troubled with a knee injury in recent weeks. He timed 34.03 for the 10km
course.
Two of the Club’s youngsters have also achieved
International selection following their performances at the English Schools
Cross Country Championships at Blackburn. Jessica Keene finished in 7th
place in the Intermediate Girls race and represents England at the Home
Countries International in Dublin next weekend. Two years ago she ran for
the Junior Girls team. She will be joined in Ireland by Henry James Cowie
who also finished in 7th place in the Junior Boys race. This is his first
International selection.
Niamh Bridson Hubbard had another fine run as finished
in 10th place in the Senior Girls race. Samantha Leighton was 148th and Ana
Myers 172nd.
Will Fuller continued his recent good run of form as
he finished in 23rd place in the Senior Boys race and was part of the
winning Kent team.
Jessica Keene’s performance was the highlight of the
Intermediates age group, but Yasmin Austridge had another top class race as
she finished in 13th place. Kent totally dominated the team race with all
six scorers finishing in the top 19 places to win the team title by 168
points, a huge margin. Naomi Kingston, who was representing London finished
in 113th after suffering a heavy fall, and Gen Allen closed in 230th.
For the boys Joss Barber had his best run of the
Winter to finish in 19th place and help Kent pick up silver medals.
Henry James Cowie’s 7th place in the Junior Boys race
was remarkable as he has been competing both indoors and outdoors recently
most notable winning the National Indoor 800 metre title, and he has also
been doing multi events. His efforts helped Kent to finish in 6th in the
team race while Michael Eagling and Angus Harrington representing Surrey
were 87th and 91st respectively.
For the girls Mille Smith was an excellent 19th to
help Kent to 3rd place medals. Sophie Hoare and Yasmin Marghini were 87th
and 249th for London.
Meanwhile at the Kent Indoor Championships at Lee
Valley the Club’s athletes picked up 14 gold medals and set three
Championship Best Performances as well as claiming seven silver and five
bronze.
Good sprinting in the senior age group saw Duayne
Bovell win the 60 metres in 7.07 and Luke Smallwood the 200 in 22.88, with
Duayne 3rd in 23.29. Jessica Jones took the womens 800 metre title and it
was silver for Jackie Montgomery in the pole vault, despite being an over
50.
Best performance in the under 20s age group came from
Louis Mascarenhas who won the shot with a throw of 15.40. More field success
came in the vault as Helena Coleman set a new best of 3.50 for gold and
Sonia Woolhouse took silver with 2.50; while Max Hodson made it a full set
up medals for the Club’s vaulters as he won bronze in the mens event with
3.40.
On the track there were victories for Natalie Jones in
the 200 in 26.24 and for Leah Everson in the 400 with 61.53.
Divine Oladipo set a new Championship Best Performance
as she won the under 17 womens shot with a distance of 13.94. Gold too went
to Anastasia Davies as she timed 8.97 in the 60 metre hurdles and she also
won bronze in the triple jump with a leap of 10.60, one place behind Toyin
Orelaja who took silver with 10.67. Magda Cienciala won bronze in the 60
metres in 7.94.
Most successful age group of the weekend was the under
15 girls with five golds. Karina Harris won the triple jump title with a CBP
of 10.52 and also took the long jump with a leap of 4.91. Two golds were
also won by Grace Scopes who was first in the 300 metres in 44.18 and the
800 in 2.29.34. The third CBP of the weekend came from Eloise Locke who won
the shot in 13.11 which moves her to No 1 in the UK U15 Girls Rankings. with Eve Keith second in 11.69.
Mhairi Brooks won silver in both the 60 and 200 metres
in 8.18 and 27.07 as did Lauren Goddard in the 300 in 44.97. Myles Xavier
missed out on second on countback in the long jump as he leapt 4.96.
With the London Marathon fast approaching the Club
runners continue to be busy on the roads. Peter Tucker won the Dartford Half
Marathon in 72.49 with Richard Byford 44th, Graham Hollingdale 57th and
Jamie Muir 94th all making the top 100. Sarah Belaon was the first woman for
the Club in 134th in 99.00.
On the track Peter Hannell finished in 10th place in
the Steyning Slater/Bryce Track 10km at Horsham. He timed 68.03 with David
Hoben 12th in 71.49.
The Club were well represented in the organisation of
the Bromley Primary Schools cross country championships at Crystal Palace.
Some of those competing are already competing for the Club or in the Bees
Academy and among them were Sam Reardon who won the year 6 boys race and
Thomas Penlington who was second.
10/03/15
Dina Asher Smith and Serita Solomon achieved
outstanding success at the European Indoor Athletic Championships in Prague
with Dina winning silver in the 60 metres and Serita bronze in the 60 metre
hurdles.
Not only this, the Blackheath & Bromley athletes also
ran faster than ever before in every race in which they competed with Dina
equalling the British record and Serita producing the fourth fastest ever
time.
Both athletes are from Orpington and both have been
competing for the Club since the age of 11. It was a proud moment for the
athletes, their families, coaches, Club and all who have been associated
with their development.
Serita was first in action on the Friday morning. She
won the heat of her 60 metre hurdles in 8.03, improving her best by one
hundredth of a second. It was bound to be tougher in the semi final but she
rose to the occasion winning her heat in another new best of 7.95.
Going into the Championships the former Coopers
schoolgirl was the 10th ranked of the competitors. By reaching the final she
had already exceeded expectation but there was still more to come. A finely
timed dip finish saw her claim the bronze medal in 7.93, her third personal
best of the day and the fourth fastest ever by a Briton.
Having celebrated her 25th birthday five days
previously, it was a perfect belated present. “I’m proud of my performance.
It’s such an amazing feeling when your dreams come true. I’m feeling
extremely blessed and thankful.”
Coached by her mother Michelle Bovell it has not
always been an easy ride to the podium. In 2014 she missed out on a place in
the Commonwealth Games 100 metre hurdles final by one thousandth of a
second. In 2013 she was somewhat controversially not selected for the World
Championships despite having the IAAF qualifying time and, as she has
progressed to Senior level, she has suffered serious injuries to both of her
achilles tendons which necessitated surgery and being in plaster.
Injury brought an end to Dina Asher Smith’s outdoor
campaign last Summer when a hamstring problem caused her to pull up in the
final of the 200 metres at the European Championships. She did skip the
Sainsburys Games in Birmingham recently as a precaution but, if this was at
the back of her mind in the Czech Republic, it didn‘t show.
As the former Newstead Woods schoolgirl lined up for
her heat on Saturday morning, back in Bromley at Norman Park Track, her
coach John Blackie gathered a mass of youngsters in the modular building to
watch on television. These were members of the Bees Academy for under 11s
which was where Dina started and perhaps among those viewers are some more
International stars of the future.
They will certainly have been inspired as the 19 year
old Kings College student blasted to victory with a new personal best of
7.10 to put her third on the UK all time list. This made her the equal
second fastest qualifier.
It was the same again in the semi final on Sunday as
not only did she dominate the race but she also ran 7.10. Again she was the
equal second fastest qualifier for the final with Dafne Schippers of the
Netherlands, the European Outdoor 100 and 200 metre champion, who remained
the favourite.
It promised to be an exciting final. A lightning start
from Dina saw her in the lead before the tall strong Schippers stormed
through to take the title in 7.05 the fastest time in the world this year.
But Dina held her form in a blanket finish to win silver in 7.08 which
equals the British record. It is also the fastest ever time by a teenager
and the equal third quickest in the world in 2015.
She was obviously delighted with her performance “I
wasn’t expecting to equal the National Record. I'm over the moon. The time
is a bonus.”
Back home at the Clubhouse at Hayes a gathering of
more senior Club members, friends and families were equally ecstatic, her
performance being the perfect way to help digest their fine Sunday lunch.
The two now prepare for the outdoor season, encouraged
by their achievements this Winter, and no doubt their Clubmates will be
inspired by their efforts.
Still on the International scene Matthew Jones
represented the Wales Under 20s team in the Welsh Athletics Indoor
International at Cardiff. He finished in fourth place in the 400 metres in
50.44.
While keeping their eyes on the happening s in Prague
many Club members were furthering their own athletic careers by competing in
the Inter County cross country championships at Cofton Park in Birmingham.
Gaining selection to represent the County is an achievement in itself and
there were some outstanding individual performances.
In the Senior Mens race Alex Bruce Littlewood was the
first runner home for Kent in 15th place leading the team to silver medals.
They won gold in the nine to score. Second Claimer Graham Rush was first
home for Cambridgeshire in 45th, two weeks after finishing in 17th place in
the Nationals.
Will Fuller was 26th in the National but he was even
higher in Birmingham closing in 22nd with Will Ruiz 65th. For the women
Samantha Leighton was 79th and Anna Myers 101st. Club member Richard Holt
coaches the winner of the race Phoebe Law.
Like the Senior men, the Kent team picked up runners
up medals in the Under 17 womens race in no small part due to the efforts of
Jessica Keane and Niamh Brisdson Hubbard who finished in 11th and 14th
places. They actually tied with winners Surrey but lost out on countback
with the team with the highest last scorer winning. Joss Barber was 46th in
the mens race with Marco Arcuri 113th.
Yasmin Austridge produced a remarkable performance in
the under 15 girls race. She lost a shoe at the start of the race but worked
her way through the field to finish in 12th place and score for the winning
Kent team. Naomi Kingston closed in 33rd with Millie Smith 53rd. Naomi’s
placing helped her to finish in 4th place in the Cross Challenge which has
been running all Winter.
Highest placed Club finisher on the day was Peter Guy
who had an outstanding run to finish 10th in the under 13 boys, just one
place ahead of Rowan Fuss who has had an excellent first year on the
country. Joseph Georgiades had another good run to finish 71st as Kent
picked up bronze medals. Rosanna Allen was 96th in the girls race with
Jessica Neal 112th.
A number of the Club’s more senior athletes were also
enjoying National success at the British Masters Indoor Championships at Lee
Valley winning six gold medals. Barbara Terry claimed three of these in the
over 65s age group where she won the shot in the indoor arena with a
distance of 7.79. Moving outdoors she won the hammer with 22.67 and the
Weight with 9.79.
It was another successful couple of days for Helen
Godsell as she collected a full set of medals. She won the 60 metres in
8.85; took silver in the 200 in 29.91; and bronze in the 400 in 74.39.
The vaulters added to the celebrations with two more
victories. Allan William secured the mens over 60 title with a clearance of
3.40 and Jackie Montgomery composed herself after a car breakdown on the
journey to the stadium to win the over 50s title in 2.30.
Clem Leon bagged a couple of silvers leaping 10.02 in
the triple jump and timing 60.87 in the 400 metres. He was also third in the
high jump with a clearance of 1.40. He proved the busiest Club member of the
weekend as he was 4th in the long jump and was also in action in the 60 and
200.
Peter Hamilton took silver in the over 65s 1500 in
5.53.15. Tom Phillips was third in the over 60s 200 metres in 27.47 and 4th
in the 60 in 8.25; and Roger Michell was 4th in the over 65s 3000 walk in
16.34.76.
At the same venue earlier in the week Tom Parker won
the hammer at the Oxford V Cambridge varsity match with a distance of 54.34.
Back at Hayes on Sunday morning Alex Gibbins was the
winner of the Club 10 mile cross country championship. It was a close affair
with less than a minute separating the leading four runners.
No quarter was given and when a passing rider asked
“Would you mind walking as my horse is getting upset?” the answer was “No!
We’re racing” as the lead pack bolted past.
Alex won in 62.24 with Fintan Parkinson second in
62.50, Kev May third in 62.57 and Gareth Evans fourth in 63.06.
First woman was Sarah Belaon in 81.40 with Amy Leach
second in 89.15.
The race incorporated the penultimate round of the
Bennett Cup, a series of handicap races which take place over the Winter
months. Winner on this occasion was Austin Adams with Mike Simms second and
President Dick Griffin third.
One race remains in the series, the Closing 5 on the
21st of March. Will Slack has now moved into the lead and established a 19
point gap. Has he peaked too early? Will he be swallowed up by the closing
pack? Fintan Parkinson is second on 317 with Chris Pike third on 316 and a
further five athletes have scored over 300 points. With 60 points available
in any race everything could change in the grand finale. All will be
revealed in two weeks time with the Club AGM in the evening when outgoing
President Dick Griffin will reveal his successor to the membership.
Elsewhere Tim Nash was second in the Bromley Vets Open
5 at Sparrows Den with Harry Phelps 11th, Rod Harrington 17th and Nigel
Bulmer 32nd.
On the roads Shaun Lightman finished in 10th place in
the Cambridge Harriers Race Walk League over 5km at Bexley. He timed 33.32.
Sadly it appears this will be the last race because of the increasingly
heavy traffic.
Maz Turner was 333rd in the Lydd Half Marathon in
2.16.23 with Adrian Perry timing 2.38.00, John Turner 2.38.18, Angela Powell
3.01.38 and Sue Dowse 3.15.30 in the accompanying 20 mile race.
3/03/15
Dina Asher Smith and Serita Solomon travel to Prague
this week for the European Indoor Championships. Both Blackheath & Bromley
athletes will be up early to compete. Serita is in action in the 60 metre
hurdles at 10.05 on Friday morning with the semi finals and final later in
the day. Dina is on the track on Saturday morning at 10.00 with subsequent
rounds on Sunday.
In the United States Oliver Newport leapt 7.39 for the
long jump at the ACC Indoor Championships at Blacksburg. At the Big 10
Indoor Championships at Geneva, Jahisha Thomas jumped 5.97. In the triple
jump at the SEC Indoor Championships at Lexington Jonathan Ilori was 15th
with 15.05.
Although not large in number the Blackheath & Bromley
athletes won more than their fair share of medals at the England Athletics
Indoor Championships for under 20s, 17s and 15s at Sheffield. The Club now
has four newly crowned champions, plus three runners up and two bronze
medallists.
After winning the bronze medal last year, Kerri
Davidson was crowned National indoor under 20 womens triple jump champion
winning with a seasons best of 12.24, to add to the outdoor title she won
last Summer. She is also the reigning English Schools champion.
In the under 17s age group Molly Scott had a very busy
but extremely successful weekend. She won the 60 metre hurdles in 8.51 with
Isabella Hilditch in third with 8.64, just one hundredth of a second off
clear of fourth.
The 60 metres was even closer where Molly was second
in 7.58 two hundredths off winning but the same time as the third and fourth
placers.
Katie Ann McDonald did not make the final of the 800
having finished 2nd in her heat in 2.19.42, but she made up for this by
winning the 1500 metres in 4.42.16.
In the field new member Divine Oladipo took the silver
medal in the shot with a throw of 14.20.
Parris Johnson and Magda Cienciala both made the semi
finals of the 60 metres; Jamilya Robinson Pascal was 8th in the long jump
with 5.23; and Toyin Orelaja was 15th in the triple jump leaping 10.49.
Second claim member Shaye Emmett was 4th in the pole vault with a clearance
of 3.50.
Henry James Cowie is a National Champion. He won the
800 metres in the under 15s in 2.08.77. The Club got a full range of medals
in this age group thanks to the efforts of Eloise Locke and Eve Keith in the
shot. Eloise was second with a throw of 12.33 and Eve third with 11.65.
Karina Harris was 11th in the long jump with a distance of 4.94.
Many Club members are building up for this years
London Marathon and are racing on the roads in preparation. Peter Tucker was
21st in the Bath Half Marathon in 71.55 with Fintan Parkinson 62nd in 75.24.
Nineteen Club members took part in the Thanet 20 with
Paul Sharpe first home in 11th place in 2.15.18. Carole Penlington was 34th
in 2.23.04 with Graham Hollingdale 48th in 2.28.31, Ian Mongomery 59th
(2.33.37); Steve Pairman 64th (2.34.53), Alexis Tobin 82nd (2.41.18), Sarah
Belaon 83rd (2.41.41); Glen Read 97th (2.44.36), John Turner 107th
(2.47.00), Deniz Mehmed 119th (2.48.29), Gareth Griffin 132nd (2.49.50),
Jamie Muir 138th (2.51.04), Chris Pike 145th (2.52.27), Adrian Stocks 156th
(2.54.30), John Fenwick 164th (2.57.34), Gerry Alger 194th (3.08.26), Dick
Griffin 205th (3.13.16) and Zoe Kingsmell 256th (3.50.34).
The Walkers have also been in action with Roger
Michell and Peter Hannell competing in the Inter Area Masters Championships
at Lee Valley. Roger was third in the 2000 metres in 10.58.93 with Peter 8th
in 12.44.41.
24/02/15
Dina Asher Smith’s Winter had its first blip at the
weekend when she withdrew from competing in the 60 metres at the Sainsbury’s
British Grand Prix in Birmingham. The good news for the Blackheath & Bromley
athlete is that this was only a precaution and that she is still on target
to represent Great Britain at the European Indoor Championships which take
place in the Czech Republic in two weeks time.
The Great Britain squad has now been officially
announced and Serita Solomon will be joining her in Prague having won the
National 60 metre hurdles title last week in 8.04. She finished in 7th place
in Birmingham in 8.21.
The big Club event of the weekend was the National
Cross Country Championships which took place at Parliament Hill Fields. With
representatives in every race there was plenty for the supporters to cheer
with the highlights being team bronze medals for the under 15 girls and the
under 13 boys plus a number of fine individual performances.
Yasmin Austridge who was rewarded for her positive
running with an outstanding 8th place. Behind her in 15th place came Millie
Smith, who remarkably is only a first year in the age group. Naomi Kingston
was next in 38th with Genevieve Allan closing 79th to secure third place for
the team. There was strong back up too with Amy Leach 87th, Kelsi Cornish
98th and Stephanie Taylor 211th.
Last year the under 13 boys narrowly missed out on
medals finishing 5th. Twelve months on they raised their game even higher to
take third. Rowan Fuss led them home in 10th with Peter Guy just 12 seconds
down in 18th. Keir Lundy in 83rd and Joseph Georgiades 84th completed the
scoring quartet followed by Sam Reardon in 138th, Matthew Proctor 149th,
Thomas Penlington 174th, Cameron Swatton 209th, Jake Leng 253rd and Ethan
Kitteridge 307th.
It was not such a successful day for the Senior Men
who had finished in the top 20 the previous five years. On this occasion
they closed in 44th with Alex Gibbins the first scorer in 247th. Peter
Tucker was 295th, Kev May 353rd, Dan Kennedy 528th, Gareth Evans 568th and
Tim Nash 631st. With Chris Tuck 837th, Andy Lawes 1714th and Nigel Bulmer
1851st they were 37th in the 9 to score.
This was the third year in a row that the Senior Women
did not complete a team. Cath Messent was 609th and Angela Powell 659th but
it was four to score in the team race.
Better news came in the under 20s age group where the
men finished in 6th place. Will Fuller was first home in 26th with Richard
Webb 74th , Will Ruiz 89th and Tom Desborough 124th. This was the highest
team placing since 2003 when the Club were 5th. Their best ever was 3rd in
1993. All these races were at Parliament Hill. Samantha Leighton was 82nd in
the womens race.
After battling most of last year to get back from
injury Niamh Bridson Hubbard’s place on the start line was put in jeopardy
when she slipped on the steps at Bromley South Station and sprained her
ankle. Restricted to aqua running, she not only got to compete but finished
in an excellent 12th place in the under 17 womens race. Similarly Jessica
Keene had missed training because of illness but still managed to place
25th. With Georgina Taylor 120th and Mary Guy 149th the team were 4th in the
team race, their highest position this Century. Jenny Sheasby was 205th.
Joss Barber was a very good 44th in the mens race with James Crawley 218th.
The under 15 boys finished in 19th place with Coleman
Corry 101st, Michael Eagling 118th, Oscar Hussey 142nd, Callum Myatt 261st,
Charles Andrews 282nd, and Lewis Stickings 290th.
More promising performances came in the under 13 girls
race with the squad led home by Jessica Neal in 60th. Rosanna Allan was
120th, Morgan Squibb 138th, Zoe Austridge 213th, Lauren Goddard 312th and
Caitlin Prifti 393rd as the team finished in 18th.
The youngsters team managers award for the girls was
shared jointly by first under 13 finisher Jessica Neal and under 15 Amy
Leach who improved over 100 places from the previous year. Rowan Fuss took
the boys award for his 10th place in the under 13s race, This was his first
National and he still has another year in the age group.
Back indoors in the United States, Jonathan Ilori set
a seasons best of 15.49 in the triple jump at the Missouri Collegiate
Challenge. At the Alex Wilson Invitational at Notre Dame, Jahisha Thomas
also set a seasons best as she leapt 5.95 in the long jump. She also timed
8.90 for the 60 metre hurdles.
A number of Club members were competing for their
Universities at the BUCS Championships at Sheffield. Highest placed was new
first claim member Robyn Pettit who was 7th in the high jump with a leap of
1.69. Samantha Milner was 9th in the shot with a throw of 11.74 and Mark
Cryer was 10th in the long jump with 6.65.
Matthew Jones and Krystal Galley made the semi finals
of the 400 as did Rachel Dickens and Natalie Jones in the womens 200, while
Ellie Duffy Penny competed in the qualifying round of the shot.
At the Midlands Open Meeting in Birmingham Becky
McLinden ran 59.26 for the 400.
It has been a busy couple of weeks for the Masters. At
the South Of England Masters Championships at Lee Valley two weekends ago,
Helen Godsell won gold in both the 60 and 200 metres in times of 8.86 and
30.05. It was gold too for Jackie Montgomery as she won the over 50s pole
vault with a clearance of 2.40.
Tom Phillips was 5th in the over 60s 60 metres in 8.39
and picked up third in the 200 in 27.85. Clem Leon was 4th in the over 55s
60 metre hurdles in 11.78.
Last weekend at the same venue it was the Southern
Counties Vets AC Championships and it was business as usual for Helen
Godsell as she won the 60 and 200 metre titles in times of 8.91 and 30.30.
Most bemedalled athlete of the day, however, was Clem Leon who won the over
55s 60 metres (8.64), 200 metres (28.75), 400 metres (62.63) and high jump
(1.50). He was also second in the long jump with 4.26.
More golds came for Jackie Montgomery who won the over
50s pole vault with 2.51; Peter Hannell the over 70s 3000 walk in 19.26.60;
and Barbara Terry the over 65s shot with 8.09. Peter Hamilton was runner up
in the over 65s 3000 metres in 12.45.75 and Tom Phillips was 3rd and 5th in
the over 60s 60 and 200 metres in 8.38 and 27.93.
At the Vault London competition at Sutton, Christina
Moore and Helena Coleman both cleared 3.33 while second claimer Shaye Emmett
soared over 3.53.
Again at Lee Valley Rowan Fuss warmed up for the
Nationals by timing 4.39.09 at the Middle Distance Open on Wednesday. At an
open for under 15s and under 13s Mhairi Brooks and Antonia Alapafuja ran
8.17 and 8.36 respectively for the 60 metres.
On the roads Alex Bruce Littlewood and Phil Sesemann
were in action last Thursday in the Armagh International 5km. In a classy
field Alex was 21st in 14.23.08 and Phil 23rd in 14.24.28. Alex has had a
knee injury recently and so was unavailable for Parliament Hill while Phil
is making good progress after missing most of last year with injury.
Mark Steinle finished in 17th place in the Tunbridge
Wells Half Marathon in 80.13. Carole Penlington was 73rd in 87.28 with
Alexis Tobin 192nd (94.58), Adrian Perry 244th (96.46), John Barlow 467th
(1.44.17) and Kieth Duffy Penny 493rd (1.45.33).
Shaun Lightman finished in 15th place at the Enfield
League 5 mile walk at Lee Valley. He timed 52.07 with David Hoben 26th in
57.59. The previous week David had been in action in the Leicester 15 Mile
race where he was 6th in 3.04.15.
17/02/15
It was an outstanding weekend for the athletes of
Blackheath & Bromley at the Sainsbury’s UK Indoor Championships at
Sheffield. Dina Asher Smith, Shannon Hylton and Serita Solomon all won gold
medals with Dina and Serita gaining automatic selection for the European
Indoor Championships in Prague next month. To add to the celebrations
Shaunagh Brown and Cheriece Hylton picked up silvers and Zara Asante bronze.
As second fastest in the World this year, Dina came
into these Championships as the clear favourite to take the 60 metre title
in her first year as a Senior athlete. She didn’t disappoint cruising
through her heat in 7.33 seconds before stamping her authority on the
competition by winning her semi final in 7.14.
She was a hundredth of a second slower in the final
but still won by nearly two tenths of a second from Swansea’s Rachel
Johncock. Her victory was all the more impressive as she had been suffering
with a cold. The Kings College student now prepares for the European Indoors
and will no doubt be in contention for a medal. She is currently second
ranked in Europe behind Holland’s Dafne Schippers.
Like Dina, Serita Solomon hails from Orpington. There
must be something in the water of the River Cray as she too claimed her
first Senior title, in the 60 metre hurdles, having been runner up in 2014, and qualified for Prague.
She won her heat in 8.15 just three hundredths outside her recent personal
best.
The fireworks came in the final as she lined up
against Corby’s Lucy Hatton who has run 8.06 this year, one hundredth shy of
the British qualifying time for the Europeans. Serita rose to the occasion
winning the race, setting a new best of 8.04 and booking her place to the
Czech Republic. She is equal seventh fastest in Europe this year.
It was a marvellous weekend for the Hylton twins
culminating in Shannon winning gold and Cheriece silver in the 200 metres,
the first time that twins have finished in first and second at a UK indoor
Championship. Both are still Juniors but they dominated their heats with
Shannon winning in 23.74 and Cheriece in 23.87.
They were even quicker in the final as Shannon clocked
a seasons best of 23.69 and Cheriece set a new best of 23.80. This makes
them the second and fourth fastest under 20s in Europe this Winter. There is
no 200 at the European Championships.
Shannon was also 6th in the 60 metres final in 7.53.
Cheriece and Grace Sheppard timed 7.62 and 7.77 in the semi finals, with
Vivien Olatunji running 7.78 in the heats. All four plus Dina are coached by
John Blackie at Norman Park track in Bromley.
Shaunagh Brown continued her remarkable record in this
competition as she finished in second place in the shot for the fourth time
in the last five years. She set a seasons best of 15.55.
Zara Asante continued her excellent Winter winning the
bronze medal in the triple jump. Not only did she win a National medal, the
reigning Scottish outdoor champion set a personal best as she leapt 13.00.
Jermaine Olasan set an indoor best of 7.38 to finish in 5th place in the
long jump and it was 5th also for Dan Putnam in the 200 metres final in a
time of 22.02. He ran 21.67 in qualifying. Luke Smallwood ran 48.00 in the
heats of the 400.
Elsewhere indoor Jonathan Ilori leapt 15.18 in the
triple jump at the Tyson Invitational at Fayetteville. Jahisha Thomas
produced a distance of 5.68 in the long jump and also ran 9.05 in the 60
metre hurdles. Molly Scott won the under 17 womens 60 metre hurdles title at
the Scottish indoor Championships in Glasgow in a time of 8.70.
Closer to home, there was plenty of success at the
Surrey Championships at Carshalton. Kertis Beswick won the senior mens 60
metre hurdles in 8.54 and Javari Cameron was third in the long jump with a
distance of 6.47. Kerri Davisdson won the under 20 womens event with 5.40.
Stefan Amokwandoh was just two centimetres off his best as he won the under
20 mens triple jump with a distance of 14.81.
Adeyinka Adeniran timed 8.69 to finish 4th in the
under 17s 60 metre hurdles and he also ran 7.48 for the 60 metres.
At the Brunel Jumps and Throws meeting Mark Cryer
leapt a seasons best of 6.79 in the long jump while under 20 Jon Pairman set
a personal best of 2.72 in finishing third in the pole vault.
Despite fielding over 60 runners for the annual Mob
Match against Ranelagh at Hayes the Club were still outnumbered by the
visitors who ran 66. The result was that Ranelagh won with 3122 point to
B&Bs 3664.
Alex Gibbins was first home for the Club in 4th place.
He timed 49.20 for the testing 7.5 mile course. Kev May in 5th and Fintan
Parkinson 8th also finished in the top 10 with Peter Tucker 12th, Marco
Arcuri 13th, Andy Rayner 18th, Dan Kennedy 19th and Tom Desborough 20th.
First woman from the Club was Amy Leach in 65th with
Sarah Belaon 67th and Sally Haffenden 107th. Nick Kinsey won the Harry Sheer
Trophy as the first over 50 to finish.
The race incorporated the latest round of the Bennett
Cup, the handicap series which takes place over the Winter months. Winner on
this occasion was Bertie Harrington with Dave King second and Kevin May
third.
After seven of the nine races the places are as close
as ever. In fact Will Slack and Fintan Parkinson are joint top on 283 points
just nine clear of third placed Chris Pike. A further six athletes are
within 30 points of the leaders which means there is everything to play for
in the final two races which are the Club 10 on the 8th of March and the
Closing 5 on the 21st of March.
On the roads Scott Overall continued his preparations
for this years London Marathon by winning the 26.2 Valentines 10km at
Chessington in a time of 30.21. Peter Tucker will also be running London and
he was 4th in 33.12 before rushing off to run in the Mob Match against
Ranelagh.
Peter Hannell finished in 8th place in the Cambridge
Harriers Race Walk League at Bexley. He timed 31.42 for the 5km course.
Shaun Lightman was 10th in 34.25, taking the race more sedately after
illness.
10/02/15
It has been a busy week for athletes of Blackheath &
Bromley at home and abroad, on the country, the roads and indoors.
Serita Solomon improved her best for the 60 metre hurdles at the Guglindoor
meeting at Linz in Austria. She timed 8.11. In the 60 metres Kieran Daly
also set a new best as he ran 6.82 and 6.83.
Over in the United States, Oliver Newport set a
seasons best of 7.49 in the long jump at the Doc Hale VT Elite Meeting at
Blacksburg. Meanwhile, competing at the Frank Sevigne Husker International
at Lincoln, Jahisha Thomas leapt 5.82.
Back in the UK, Zara Asante has been having her best
ever indoor season and at the Birmingham Games she leapt 12.89 in the triple
jump, her second furthest ever leap indoor or outdoors.
In the 400 metres Luke Smallwood timed 47.92 in the
final having run 48.16 in his heat. Under 20 Matthew Jones timed 50.47.
At the Inter University match at Lee Valley, Krystal
Galley ran 59.35 for the 400; Mark Cryer recorded 6.48 in the long jump; and
Samantha Milner threw a seasons best of 11.76 in the shot.
It was a very successful day for the Club at the last
Kent Cross Country League match of the season at Swanley. As well as the
many fine individual and team performances on the day, being the last match,
awards were also made for overall winners for the Winter season.
The Senior men had their biggest turn out of the season with 2012 Olympic
marathon runner Scott Overall winning the race to celebrate his birthday two
days early. Leeds University student Phil Sesemann travelled back to compete
and was rewarded with third place and with Alex Gibbins in 14th and Ritchie
Leccia 21st they were 2nd in the four to score team race. They were also
runners up in the 12 to score race and in both the 4 and 12 to score for the
season.
Carole Penlington finished in third place in the
womens race leading Sarah Belaon (9th) and Sara Elmquist (13th) to team
victory. They were second overall in the three to score for the season.
Anna Myers enjoyed, not only victory in the under 20s
race but she is also the Kent League champion for the season and part of the
winning team. On the day Samantah Leighton took 2nd, Emma Rowland 4th, Sonia
Woolhouse 5th and Chloe Haffenden 6th which meant that Emma and Chloe were
third and 4th overall for the season.
Kelsey Fuss is also the overall Kent League champion.
She finished in second place on the day in the under 17 womens race and with
Mary Guy in 6th and Charlotte Rhule 9th they finished second in the team
race. However, they won the team race for the season .
More success came in the mens race as the squad
finished third for the Winter. On the day James Crawley led the team home in
15th place with Bertie Harrington 16th, Will Pope 18th and Scott Bulmer
19th.
In the under 15s age group Yasmin Austridge was second
in the girls race and overall runner up. With Millie Smith in 4th, Genevieve
Allen 5th and Amy Leach 12th they won both the team race on the day and the
2014 - 15 League title. Millie was 3rd overall for the season.
The boys finished in third place for the season and were led home on
Saturday by Coleman Corry in 9th place. Oscar Hussey was 17th and there was
good packing behind as Frankie Scrivener was 27th, Callum Myatt 30th ,
George Pope 32nd, Charlie Andrews 34th, Charlie Scrivener 36th and Lewis
Warren 40th.
Most successful age group of the day were the under
13s with both the boys and girls squads winning on the day and claiming
their overall titles for the season.
Rowan Fuss won the boys race by 20 seconds from Peter
Guy with Joseph Georgiades 5th and Kier Lundy 8th. Good strength in depth
saw Leo Braden finish 14th, Robert Sucking 17th, Cameron Swatton 18th and
Ben Gardiner 28th. Peter was the overall Kent League champion.
Imogen Meers was first for the girls in 5th place with
Jessica Neale 6th and Gracie Horton 10th. Lily Tappenden in 13th and Zoe
Austridge in 19th also made the top 20 with Niamh Milmo in 22nd, and
debutants Abigail Leaves 26th and Caitlin Prifti 27th.
There was no doubt which Club won the Royal Bank Of
Scotland Silver Salver for the best overall results in the under 13 to under
20 girls age categories. Blackheath & Bromley won all four age groups to
take the title.
The Youngsters team managers awards for the day went
to Mary Guy for her highest ever placing and to Coleman Corry for his fine
run in the under 15 boys race.
The Club will now focus on the National Cross Country
Championships which take place at Parliament Hill Fields on the 21st of
February.
On the roads, Sam Barnes was 27th in the Chichester
10km in a time of 33.12. Roger Michell finished in third place in the
Midland Road Walk Championship over 10km at Stourport. He timed 1.02.20 to
secure the bronze medal.
David Hoben was 10th in the London 10km Road Walking
Championship at Hillingdon. He clocked 1.13.47.
3/02/15
Dina Asher Smith produced the third fastest ever time
by a British woman over 60 metres at the Karlsruhe IAAF Permit Meeting in
Germany.
The Blackheath & Bromley athlete won this top class
International meeting in 7.12 the same time as she ran as in her heat. Her
time was the same as European 100 and 200 metre champion Dafne Schippers
recorded in the heats. The Dutch woman lined up against Dina in the final
but was disqualified for a false start.
The time is just 4 hundredths of a second off the
Jeanette Kwakye’s British record of 7.08 and, still a teenager, Dina has
plenty of time to break it.
Training partner Shannon Hylton has also been on
International duty. She was part of an England squad which competed in the
Vienna Indoor Meeting in Austria and she won her 200 metre race in 23.81.
The previous week Mark Cryer represented Britain in an
International Combined Events match against France and Spain in Nogent,
France. He finished in 8th place in the heptathlon with a score of 4578
having produced performances of 7.44 (60), 6.28 (long jump), 10.32 (shot),
1.81 (high jump), 8.79 (60 hurdles) 3.60 (pole vault) and 2.51.03 (1000).
Two of the Clubs athletes were in action at the
Ireland Indoor Games at Athlone. Luke Smallwood timed 47.97 in the 400 while
in the womens event Becky McLinden clocked 58.62.
In the States the indoor season is in full swing with
most of the Club’s university athletes in action. At the Armory Track
invitational in New York, Jonathan Ilori leapt 15.47 in the triple jump.
Louisville student Oliver Newport reached 7.32 in the long jump at the
Indiana University Relays meeting at Bloomington. The previous week at the
Iowa Big 4 Duals meeting at Ames, Iowa State University student Jahisha
Thomas timed 8.60 and 8.74 in the 60 metre hurdles as well as clocking 25.65
for the 200 metres.
More students were running for their respective
Universities at the BUCS Championships at Brighton. In the mens short course
race Phil Sesemann, representing Leeds University finished in 9th place with
Will Ruiz (Birmingham) 85th. In the long course event Georges Vacharopoulous
(Warwick) was 128th while in the womens race Kate Curran (Cambridge) was
36th and Amber Reed (Keele) was 324th.
These will soon be joined in further education by some
of the youngsters who competed in the South East Schools Inter County Cross
Country races at Reigate. Will Fuller had a fine race in the Senior Boys
contest finishing in second place. Together with Richard Webb in 22nd and
Tom Desborough in 32nd, they helped Kent to first place in the team race. It
was second also for Niamh Bridson Hubbard in the Girls race while Samantha
Leighton was 34th despite a heavy fall.
Jessica Keene was 5th in the Intermediate Girls race
with Yasmin Austridge 8th, Genevieve Allen 23rd, Carlotta Weitzel 48th and
Amy Leach 52nd
Biggest Club turnout was in the Junior boys race where
Henry James Cowie was 4th , Angus Harrington 17th, Coleman Corry 21st,
Michael Eagling 23rd, George Pope 62nd and Callum Myatt 86th.
For the girls Emilie Penlington was 48th , Grace
Scopes 85th, Lily Tappenden 89th and Alice Prentice 93rd.
The Club suffered a heavy defeat in the annual mob
match against South London Harriers at Coulsdon. Outnumbered, the match was
scored on 26 a side with the hosts winning with 536 points to B&Bs 934.
First home for the Club was Fintan Parkinson in 2nd
place. Dan Kennedy in 6th, Luca Ercolani 11th, Neil Ayrton 14th, Andy Tucker
16th, Mark Skelly 18th and David Beadle 20th also made the top 20. Carole
Penlington was the leading woman to finish in 23rd overall. Sarah Belaon was
37th and Anne Cilia 72nd.
Luca Ercolani won the Ponsford Pewter for the first
over 40 to finish.
The race incorporated the latest in the Bennett Cup
series, a nine event handicap which takes place over the Winter months.
Winner on this occasion was Glen Read with Nigel Bulmer second and David
Beadle third.
After six events Fintan Parkinson leads on 254 points
but his lead is small as Ian Montgomery is just six points behind on 248 and
Chris Pike, Barry Wetherilt and Will Slack are joint third on 244.
Back indoors the Clubs sprinters were out in force at
the London Indoor Games for Seniors and Under 20s. Tremayne Gilling (6.78),
Kieran Daly (6.83) and Duayne Bovell (6.97) all went under 7 seconds for the
60 metres while Ismael Smith John timed 7.27, Vivien Olatunji 7.80 and Grace
Sheppard 7.90. Rachel Dickens won the 200 in 24.98 and Leah Everson timed
60.45 in the 400.
Kertis Beswick ran his first race over the Senior 60
hurdles and timed a useful 8.47. In the field Jackie Montgomery cleared 2.54
in the pole vault and Jon Pairman 1.71 in the high jump.
27/01/15
Serita Solomon was in impressive form as she
represented Great Britain in the Sainsbury’s Glasgow International match at
the Emirates Arena. In the four country contest against Scotland, Germany
and France, the Blackheath & Bromley athlete won the 60 metre hurdles in a
time of 8.13. This was a new personal best and easily the fastest by a
Briton this year.
In France one of her UK Womens League team mates
Mariette Terisse Hilborne showed she is fast getting back to her best after
the birth of her second child as she cleared a seasons best of 3.73 in the
pole vault at the Perche Elite Tour meeting at Rouen. Further afield in
America, Jonathan Ilori had his first triple jump competition of the year at
the Rod McCravy Memorial meeting at Lexington, Kentucky. He leapt 15.25 and
he also jumped 7.14 in the long jump.
The big Club event of the weekend was the Southern of
England Cross Country Championships at a location well remembered by Club
members.
Stanmer Park in Brighton was the venue at which the
Clubs Senior Men won the Southern title in 1986 for the first time in its
History heralding the start of a golden age of middle distance running at
the end of the last Century. A further seven titles were claimed in the next
twelve years; and Jerry Barton, Mark Steinle, Tim Dickinson, Spencer
Newport, and Dave Taylor all won the individual trophy.
While the Club’s team performance in 2015 was more low
key, the performance of Alex Bruce Littlewood showed that he is well capable
of joining the aforementioned list of winners. He finished in an outstanding
fourth place, missing out on a medal by the narrowest of margins. Alex
Gibbins in 86th, Kev May 195th, Gareth Evans 203rd, Danny Brewer 247th and
Dan Kennedy 290th, completed the scoring as the team closed in 17th.
Carole Penlington led home the womens squad in 64th
place. With Sarah Belaon in 113th, Jenny Neal 155th and Cath Messent 268th
the team finished in 24th place.
The Club did not complete teams in either of the under
20 although there were some good individual performances. Will Fuller was
26th in the mens race with Will Ruiz 55th and Tom Desborough 59th. Samantha
Leighton finished 38th in the womens event.
If ever an athlete needs some inspiration while out
injured they need look no further than Niamh Bridson Hubbard. Niamh has only
begun racing again after being out since last April but she has returned
better than ever. She finished in 4th place in the under 17 womens race.
Jessica Keene had another fine run to finish 6th in her first year in the
age group and with Georgina Taylor 32nd and Joanna Clowes 87th they were 4th
in the team race.
Joss Barber had another good run in the mens race to
finish in 19th. The team came 10th with Marco Arcuri 46th, James Crawley
116th and Bertie Harrington 138th.
The Club did win two sets of team medals on the day.
The under 15 girls won bronze with Yasmin Austridge leading the scoring
quartet home in 11th place. Naomi Kingston took 22nd, Millie Smith 24th and
Genevieve Allen 43rd.
Henry James Cowie was first for the boys in 42nd place
with good back up from Angus Harrington (54th), Coleman Corry (89th) and
Oscar Hussey (101st) securing 10th in the team race.
The other medals came from the under 13 boys.
Excellent runs from Peter Guy in 7th and Joseph Georgiades in 12th together
with strong support from Keir Lundy in 49th and Robert Suckling in 56th
secured bronze medals. The girls just missed out despite a strong set of
performances. Sophie Hoare in 16th and Yasmin Marghini 18th both made the
top 20 with Jessica Neal in 37th and Rosanna Allan 38th completing the
scoring quartet.
With so many good performances, particularly in the
younger age groups, and the knowledge that some athletes were unavailable
for Brighton, the Club looks forward to the National Championships at
Parliament Hill next month.
Back indoors a number of youngsters were in action at
the London Indoor Games for under 17, under 15 and under 13 athletes. They
achieved much success, not least new member Divine Oladipo, who has recently
joined the club from Cambridge Harriers. She threw the shot 14.06 which is
nearly a metre and a half further than any other under 17 athlete in the
country this year.
Jamilya Robinson Pascal won the long jump with a leap
of 5.15 and Molly Scott was a class apart in the 60 metre hurdles as she
clocked 8.76 and 8.78 in her two races. Pleasingly Anastasia Davies set a
new best of 9.08 in the hurdles and also leapt 10.64 in the triple jump.
There was also some promising sprinting from Molly
Scott, Magda Cienciala, Nicole Farmer, Parris Johnson, Oliver Richer,
Elizabeth Ibidunni and Ryan Poyroo.
In the under 15s Eloise Locke won the shot with a
throw of 12.42 while Mhairi Brooks ran a pb of 8.23 in the 60 metres. Under
13 Eva Stephanou ran 2.49.45 in the 800 metres.
Given the success of the Clubs athletes in the last
year it was perhaps no surprise that a number would be recognised by the Ron
Pickering Memorial Fund which issues grants to promising athletes in full
time education. Matthew Blandford, Kieran Daly, Kerri Davidson, Cheriece
Hylton, Shannon Hylton, Vivien Olatunji, Bailey Stickings and second claimer
Izzy Jeffs have received funds to assist with the costs of training shoes,
kit, travel and accommodation.
The Club does not just enjoy success amongst its
youngsters so is was pleasing to note that the UK Masters Rankings recently
published in Athletics Weekly show Allan Williams as the top over 60s pole
vaulter in 2014 with a clearance of 3.50.
Fellow master Peter Hannell finished in 11th place in
the Steyning 15km road walk race in one hour 40 minutes and 45 seconds.
Club member Terry Brightwell passed a significant
landmark recently as he ran in his 200th parkrun.
20/01/15
Serita Solomon is a double South Of England Senior
indoor champion. The Blackheath & Bromley athlete won both the 60 metres and
60 metre hurdles titles at the Area Championships at Lee Valley.
Having represented England in the hurdles at the
Commonwealth Games last Summer, she was the favourite for this indoor
hurdles title and did not disappoint. Opening with 8.31, no one else in her
heat went under 9 seconds. Her victory in the final was equally emphatic as,
unchallenged, she was just two hundredths of a second off her best with
8.18.
Things were a bit closer in the 60 metres flat but she
still prevailed with a remarkably consistent set of times. She won her heat
in 7.52, improved to 7.50 in her semi and then took the gold medal in the
final with the same time just three hundredths clear of the runner up.
Having won the silver medal in the 200 in her first
year in the age group in 2014, Rachel Dickens went one better in 2015 to
take the title in 24.80.
Zara Asante was close to adding a fourth gold to the
Club’s senior haul but she had to settle for silver in the triple jump with
12.86 just 12 centimetres behind the winner. It was a seasons best and her
second furthest leap ever.
Becky McLinden ensured the Club’s athletes had a medal
of every hue as she finished third in the 400 metres in 60.00.
Matching Serita’s achievement in the under 20 age
group Shannon Hylton took both the 60 and 200 metre titles as the Club’s
sprinters dominated.
Not only did Shannon win the 60 metres in 7.46 but
twin sister Cheriece was second in 7.60; Maya Bruney made a most welcome
return from injury to take bronze in 7.64; and Vivien Olatunji was 5th in
7.75.
The twins completed a double double in the 200 with
Shannon clocking 23.98 for victory and Cheriece second in 24.26. These are
the first and third fastest times by under 20s in the country these year and
Shannon is also second on the Senior lists. She is the fastest under 20 over
60 metres and fourth in the seniors.
Meanwhile in the field Louis Mascarenhas took the shot
title with a throw of 15.59, a new personal best and the second furthest in
the country this year. Stefan Amokwandoh claimed the triple jump title with
a leap of 14.39; and Kerri Davidson picked up silver in the womens event
with a distance of 11.89.
Many of the Clubs younger runners were in action at
the Kent Schools Championships at Wilmington. Many featured quite
prominently not least Niamh Bridson Hubbard who continued her racing
comeback by finishing 2nd in the Senior Girls race. Anna Myers in 4th and
Samantha Leighton in 7th also made the top 10 with Will Fuller 4th in the
boys race.
Four Club members featured in the top 10 of the
Intermediate Girls race with Jessica Keene 2nd, Yasmin Austridge 5th, Gen
Allen 6th and Kelsey Fuss 10th. Joss Barber was 4th and Marco Arcuri 8th in
the boys race.
Having won the South Of England indoor 800 metre title
last week, Henry James Cowie moved outdoors to win the Junior Boys race.
Millie Smith was second in the girls race with Emilie Penlington 8th and
Imogen Meers 10th.
Jessica Neal and Morgan Squibb were 5th and 6th in the
year 7 race.
Shaun Lightman finished in 16th place at the Enfield
League 5 mile walk. He timed 53.14.
Showing that athleticism provides a basis for success
in all Sport, former Club member Dominic Parsons finished in fourth place in
the skeleton at the World Cup in Konigssee in Germany. He was just ten
hundredths of a second off a medal.
13/01/15
Mark Cryer came away with four personal bests from the
England Athletics Combined Events Championships at Sheffield. The Blackheath
& Bromley athlete scored his highest ever number of points in the indoor
heptathlon as he finished 7th in the National Championship with 5038 points.
In achieving this total he set personal bests in the
60 metres (7.28), shot (11.43) and 1000 metres (2.40.33).
He also cleared 3.71 in the pole vault, 1.85 in the
high jump, leapt 6.78 in the long jump and clocked 8.58 in the 60 metre
hurdles.
Other Senior athletes have been in action around the
World. In America, Jonathan Ilori leapt 7.02 in the long jump at the Border
Battle meeting in Iowa. He also timed 7.15 for the 60 metres. In France,
Mariette Terrisse Hilborne cleared 3.46 in the pole vault at the meeting at
Clermont-Ferrand. At the open meeting at Loughborough, Samantha Milner threw
10.80 in the shot.
The South Of England Indoor Championships for under
17s and under 15s took place at Lee Valley and the highlight for the Club
came in the under 15 girls shot. Eloise Locke won the contest with a throw
of 12.72 and Eve Keith was second with 11.32.
The Club’s other win of the weekend was also in the
under 15s as Henry James Cowie took the 800 metre title in 2.09.42. Karina
Harris missed out on a medal by one centimetre as she was 4th in the long
jump with a leap of 4.
Anastasia Davies took a well earned bronze medal in
the under 17 60 metre hurdles. Setting personal bests in the heat and semi
final she improved to 9.12 in the final. Jamilya Robinson Pascal was 6th in
the long jump with 5.03 and also reached the semi final of the 60 metres
having timed a seasons best of 8.36 in the heats.
The 60 metres in this age group saw the Club’s biggest
representation of the weekend. Parris Johnson did not contest the final
after setting a new best of 7.84 in coming second in her semi. Olivia Richer
also set a best of 8.14 in her heat before finishing 5th in her semi and
Nicole Farmer ran a seasons best of 8.43 in the heats.
Outdoors, Shaun Lightman continued his return from
illness by finishing in 8th place in the Area Championships. He timed 66.07
at the SWRA 10km Walk Championships at Sutcliffe Park. Peter Hannell was
12th in 67.59.
The Club enjoyed a narrow victory in it’s mob match
against Beckenham Running Club which was incorporated in its Open 10km cross
country race and Veterans Championships at Hayes. They scored 1538 points to
the visitors 1564 to secure a win by 26 points.
First home for the Club was Peter Tucker in 2nd place
in 38.43 with Fintan Parkinson 4th , Kev May 6th, Tom Desborough 7th Tim
Nash 9th and Marco Arcuri 12th. First woman was Carole Penlington in 20th
with Jenny Neal 46th and Maz Turner 97th and they won the over 35, over 45
and over 55 Club Championships respectively.
Winner of the mens over 40s title was Kev May, Tim
Nash took the over 50s, Andy Lawes the over 60s and Mike Richards the over
70s.
The race also incorporated the latest race in the
Bennett Cup, a series of nine handicap races which take place through out
the Winter Season. First on this occasion was Bryan Donnelly with Andy
Tucker second and Nic Corry third. After five events Andy Lawes leads on 205
points just three clear of Will Slack with Ian Montgomery third on 200. A
further eight athletes have over 190 points so there is still everything to
play for.
Georges Vacharapoulos, representing Warwick
University, finished in 37th place in the Birmingham League Division Two
match at Nuneaton.
6/01/15
Blackheath & Bromley achieved great success at the
Kent County Cross Country Championships at Hythe with team wins in four age
groups, silver in another, and bronze in two other. They also had five
individual medallists.
However, these all came in the younger age groups. In
contrast Kent AC won both Senior titles as well as the 12 and 6 to score
events despite barely featuring in the younger age groups. So while the Club
is proud of the achievements of its youngsters, action is needed to improve
at Senior level.
First home in the Senior Mens race was joint team
Manager Danny Brewer who finished in 20th place. With Peter Tucker in 22nd,
Gareth Evans 24th, Kev May 49th, Fintan Parkinson 50th and Ritchie Leccia
63rd the Club finished in 5th place in the team race. First home in the
Senior womens race was Lisa May in 20th place with Jenny Neal in 25th but
without a third runner there was no team placing.
There was better news for the women in the under 20s
race where the Club had four finishers and picked up silver medals. Kate
Curran led home the quartet in 4th place with Anna Myers 7th, Samantha
Leighton 8th and Shauna Paice 9th.
Illness and injury left Thomas Desborough as the only
starter in the mens race and he had to drop out due to a recurrent hip
problem.
Perhaps the best news of the day was the performance
of Niamh Bridson Hubbard in the under 17 womens race. She has been out
injured for some time but bounced back to win a bronze medal just one place
behind the Club’s first finisher Jessica Keene. With Kelsey Fuss in 4th
place they won the team gold and showed good strength in depth with Joanna
Clowes 8th , Georgina Taylor 10th and Mary Guy 14th.
More medals came in the mens race as Joss Barber in
6th, Marco Arcuri 7th, Alek Wiltshire 22nd and Will Pope 27th came 3rd in
the team race supported by James Crawley in 28th and Bertie Harrington 29th.
It was a similar story in the under 15s age group
where the girls won gold and the boys bronze. The girls victory could not
have been any closer. Yasmin Austridge was first home in 4th with Naomi
Kingston 6th and Kelsi Cornish 7th. This gave them the same points score as
Tonbridge but B&B won courtesy of having the higher placed third scorer.
Encouragingly Millie Smith in 8th and Genny Allen in 9th also made the top
10 and Amy Leach was 22nd and Carlotta Wietzel 25th.
First home for the boys was Angus Harrington in 11th
place one ahead of debutant Lewis Mills. Henry James Cowie in 18th and
Callum Myatt in 20th completed the scoring to secure third place with Oscar
Hussey 25th, George Pope 27th, Coleman Corry 28th, Lewis Stickings 30th and
Charlie Andrews 37th.
Most successful age group of the day were the under
13s with two team golds and individual medals of each colour. Rowan Fuss
dominated the boys race to finish 27 seconds clear of the field. Birthday
boy Joseph Georgiadis picked up the bronze medal while team victory was
secured with Peter Guy in 5th and Keir Lundy 12th. In fact 8 athletes made
the top 20 as Ben Gardiner was 15th, Thomas Penlington 16th, Robert Suckling
17th and Leo Braden 19th with Cameron Swatton 30th, Ethan Kitteridge 38th
and a brave Sam Reardon, who limped home with an injury, in 49th
Emilie Penlington had a fine run to win silver in the
girls race and with Jessica Neal in 6th and Rosie Allen 7th they took the
team title. They were admirably supported by Lily Tappenden 14th, Alice
Prentice 16th, Morgan Squibb 25th, Gracie Horton 26th, Niamh Milo 30th, Zoe
Austridge 40th and Lauren Goddard 56th.
At the Berkshire Championships at Hungerford Common,
Jordan Folk had a fine run to win the bronze medal in the Senior Womens
race. There was also an impressive win for Yasmin Marghini in the under 13
girls race at the Middlesex Championships at Alexandra Palace.
It may be only the first week of 2015 but the Club has
the fastest male and female 60 metre runners in the country so far this
year. World Junior 2014 100 metre champion Dina Asher Smith heads the womens
lists with the 7.23 she timed at the Metaswitch Games at Lee Valley. This is
just one hundredth off her best ever time and so represents an impressive
start to the season. Former England 100 metre champion Tremayne Gilling tops
the mens list with 6.80, also achieved at Lee Valley.
In fact the Club has four athletes in the womens top
10 with Serita Solomon 2nd 7.52, Shannon Hylton 4th and Cheriece Hylton 7th.
The twins are both still under 20s and their 7.59 and 7.66 place them first
and third in the junior lists.
Others in action in the sprints at Lee Valley included
Vivien Olatunji (7.78) and Grace Sheppard (7.86) plus the evergreen Helen
Godsell who clocked 8.91 as an over 60.
There were some promising performances in the under 17
60 metre hurdles where Isabella Hilditch timed 8.86, the fastest in the
country this year, and Anastasia Davies 9.42. Anastasia also contested the
triple jump where she leapt 10.34. Toyin Orelaja went even further going out
to 10.68. These are the first and third biggest jumps of the year in the
under 17 age group. Jamilya Robinson Pascal won the long jump with a
distance of 5.19.
Highlight of the open meeting at Windsor was the
performance of Zara Asante in the triple jump. She won with a leap of 12.69
a distance that she only bettered outdoor once last Summer and that was wind
assisted. Others in action included first year senior Reece Young in the 60
metre hurdles. He timed 8.28 while Mark Cryer ran 8.44. Mark also leapt 6.60
in the long jump.
These good performances promise much for the indoor
season and then the Summer ahead and the Club’s strength in youngsters track
and field was emphasised by the 2014 rankings published recently in
Athletics Weekly.
In the under 20s Dina Asher Smith is British number
one in the 100 and 200 and also second in the 400 metres. Shannon Hylton is
second in the 200 and there is also a one-two in the mens discus with
Matthew Blandford heading the lists with 55.88 to Louis Mascarenhas 53.95.
The duo are also 5th and 7th in the shot with 15.58 and 15.53 respectively.
Cheriece Hylton is third in the 400 and also 7th in
the 200 while sister Shannon was also 5th in the 100. Kertis Beswick is
equal 6th in the 110 hurdles with 14.16.
The Club is well represented in the jumps with Kerri
Davidson 4th in the womens triple jump with 12.48 and Stefan Amokwandoh 5th
in the mens with 14.83. Oliver Newport is 4th in the long jump with 7.41.
Back on the track Kelsey Fuss is 9th in the 1500
metres steeplechase having timed 5.01.4. She was an under 17 and remarkably
under 15 Katy Ann McDonald ranks 6th in the under 20 800 metre list with
2.06.47.
This time also sees her top the under 17 and under 15
lists and Kelsey’s steeplechase time is the third quickest by an under
17.Katy is also 4th in the under 17s 1500 having timed 4.23.72 and Jessica
Keene is 8th with 4.29.69.
James Whiteaker heads the mens javelin with his
astonishing British record of 77.12 and he was only a first year in the age
group. Bailey Stickings reward for a fine season is to be ranked third in
the 400 hurdles with 54.05 while Isabella Hilditch is 6th in the womens 300
hurdles in 44.12.
Katy Ann McDonald 1500 time is the quickest by an
under 15 and she also ranks 2nd in the 3000 metres with 9.56.71. This age
group also enjoyed great success in the throws in 2014. Eloise Locke is 4th
in the javelin (40.41) and 5th in the shot (10.51); while Victoria Wiltshire
is 4th in the hammer (50.73) Eve Keith 9th in the discus (33.19) and James
Lancaster 9th in the boys hammer (49.41).
Magda Cienciala is 6th quickest over 100 metres in
12.29 and Karina Harris 7th in the triple jump with a leap of 10.89.
Highest ranked in the under 13 age group is Rowan
Fuss. His Club record of 4.29.64 places him second while Peter Guy is 4th in
the 800 with 2.13.22. Tajera Baldie features three times in the girls lists
as she is 3rd in the 75 metres and shot with 9.8 and 10.49, and also 5th in
the 150 metres in 19.5. Tom Mills makes two appearances as he is 6th in the
pentathlon with 1594 points and 9th in the javelin with 39.13.
With such talent in its ranks it is easy to see how
the Club were able to finish runners up in both the Upper and Lower
Divisions of the UK Development League and the junior womens team qualify to
represent the UK in the European Champions Clubs Cup for Juniors in Turkey
in September. With two high profile additions already this Winter, the Club
will be looking to exceed their achievements of 2014.
