Last updated
17 December 2015
Press Releases for
July, August & September 2006
26/09/06
Track and field
The Summer track and field season is fast coming to a close but athletes
from Blackheath & Bromley are still producing results of the highest quality.
Chelsea O'Rawe Hobbs was in impressive form in the English Schools Walks
Championships at Derby. Competing over 3000 metres she won the race by over half
a minute in 15.07.70 to be crowned National Champion.
She followed this with a win in the Essex 10km track
championships at Thurrock, her time of 58.41.6 being almost six minutes quicker
than the runner up. This is the 4th quickest time by a woman of any age in the
country this year and the 15 year old is also the 5th fastest over 3000 metres.
It means that along with 5000 metre runner Scott Overall she is the highest
nationally ranked Senior athlete in the Club this year.
At Havering Amir Williamson set a new UK weight throwing
best. Amir's throw of 22.78 improved the previous best by over 40 centimetres a
remarkable performance as he had not intended to compete and did so using
borrowed kit and shoes.
Kelly Davey finished an excellent first season at the Club
with a win and new personal best at the Kent Under 13 Championships at Erith.
She putt the shot 9.08, a distance which is the 8th best in the country this
year.
Runner up was Molly Norris whose distance also places her
in the National rankings but she was not to be denied gold as she won both the
discus and javelin titles with distances of 22.15 and 19.87, the former placing
her 19th in the country this year.
There was a double gold also for Anton Daly as he swept to
victory in both the 100 an 200 metre races while Aaron Lloyd claimed a silver
medal in the 75 metre hurdles.
The Kent veterans championships took place at the same
venue with the Club's athletes achieving eight new Championship best
performances. Four of these came from Barbara Terry who dominated the women's
over 60's throws with her CBP wins in the discus (22.06), javelin (19.54), shot
(9.24) and hammer (25.93).
Beatrice Simpson weighed in with another two in the over
50's discus and hammer contests and Colin Brand rounded off the record breaking
activities with CBPs in winning the over 70's javelin in 38.11 and discus in
36.09. He had to settle for silver behind Clubmate Gordon Hickey in the shot
with Jim Day making it a clean sweep of medals in third. Jim also claimed gold
in the long jump, high jump, 80 metre hurdles and pole vault. Clem Leon and Mike
Martineau also took long jump golds with wins in the over 50's and over 60's
categories.
Back on the track there were wins in the 100 and 200 for
Tom Phillips in the over 50's age group.
The Club enjoyed success in the younger age groups the
previous weekend at the Kent Relay Championships at Deangate winning all the
4x100 metre races in the under 13 and under 15 age groups.
Stephen Cavey, James Aitcheson Labarr, Ozay Booth and Dan
Putnam came up trumps for the under 15 boys with a winning time of 47.3 with the
girls team of Grace Sheppard, Daniella Annon, Katie Vistuer, Rebecca Cook timing
50.7. Julia McHale, Christine Lyston, Amara Jacobs and Sian Duffy grabbed the
under 13 girls title by just on etenth of a second in 55.5 while the boys
quartet of Tunde Salaudeen, Aaron Lloyd, Raphael Maloney and Anton Daly won
their title by half a second in 53.9.
Road Running
The Club's Senior Men's team comfortably qualified for the National 6 Stage
Road Relays by finishing in 7th place in the Nike South Of England Road Relays
at Aldershot. Fastest for the Club was Michael Skinner who timed 18.22 on the
second stage with Jamie Atkinson (18.40), Jon Thorpe (19.54), Joe Mills (19.07),
James Poole (19.27) and Peter Tucker (19.47).
There are no qualification requirements for the women's
team for the National event but they, nevertheless, finished in a very
creditable 12th place. Jennie Butler was the quickest with 14.00 with Shavaun
Henry(14.46), Bryony Proctor (14.23) and Bella Clayton(15.01) completing the
scoring quartet.
Best team performance of the weekend came from the over 50
men who won their age group thanks to the efforts of Peter Hamilton, Tim Soutar,
Ken Daniel and Alan Camp. Alan swept the team into the lead on the closing leg
and in so doing ran the fastest time of the day with 20.56.
In the under 17 men's age group Alex Bruce Littlewood
continued his recent run of good form. The previous Wednesday he set a new best
of 9.12 for 3000 metres and he followed this by bringing the Club home 7th on
the opening stage in 12.32 a time which made him the 14th quickest of the day.
Together with Cameron Ward, Danny Piggott and Robert Evans the Club came 22nd.
Michelle Fewster's 11.34 on the opening leg of the under 15 women's race proved
to be the 16th quickest of the day and with the help of Sophie Gordon and
Rebecca Smith the team finished 9th. The boys team of Stephen Cavey, Hector
Kurtyanek, Julian Ayisi and Philip Sesemann finished in 13th.
Many of these athletes had warmed up for these races by
taking part in the So Clean sponsored Will Bolton Memorial Relays at Sparrows
Den the previous weekend. The Senior Men led from start to finish with Jamie
Atkinson and Joe Mills running the two fastest times of the day. With Alex
Gibbins, James Poole, Dave McKinlay and Peter Tucker all having solid runs the
team won the race by over two minutes and to show that there is good strength in
depth the B team finished in 3rd.
The Senior Women just missed out on victory beaten on an
exciting last leg by one second by South London Harriers. There was some
consoltion in that Jennie Butler ran the quickest time of the day with 15.37.
Bella Clayton, Kate Pratten and Fran Green completed the scoring quartet.
Promisingly for the future a girls team of Michelle
Fewster, Hannah Garcia, Danielle Critchley and Rebecca Smith finished in third
place overall. The event was the first in the 9 race Bennett Cup handicap series
which takes place over the Winter months and the winner in the first round was
Tom Sutton, with Mike Gasson second and Mark Compton third.
19/09/06
Blackheath & Bromley's Junior Women are officially the
third best under 20s team in the whole of Europe as they exceeded all pre match
expectations to finish in third place in the A final of the European Champions
Club Cup for Juniors in Moscow. UK champions in 2005, the squad were predicted
to finish fourth at the very best but a spirited team effort saw them edge Enka
Sports Club of Turkey into 4th place.
This is a remarkable achievement as some teams who take
part can be regarded as Regional teams. For example Moskva Sports Club who won
the competition were "created by the All Russian Athletic Federation in December
2004" to "represent the capital's interests at the international arena"
Underlining the quality of the team performance was the
fact that third place was achieved despite only having one individual win. This
came from the prodigous Shaunagh Brown who won the discus with a throw of 45.28.
She also placed 4th in the shot with a putt of 12.37.
There were silver medals for Serita Solomon in the 100
hurdles with a time of 14.57; for Anike Shand Whittingham in the 100 (12.27);
for Jade Dodd in the javelin (42.78) and for the 4x100 team of Serita, Anike,
Vanessa Nakangu and Amy Godsell in the 4x100 metres. Amy, the English Schools
champion, had earlier picked up a bronze medal in the 200 metres with 25.53.
Others just missed out on places on the podium. Lauren
Blackie was just 4 centimetres off a bronze medal in the triple jump with a leap
of 11.39 and there were fourth places also for AAA's Under 20 champion Victoria
Thomas in the hammer, and for Isobel Ivy in the long jump.
Eventual fourth placers Enka from Turkey, who finished
just two points behind, won more medals than the B & B athletes so the
contribution of the Club's non medallists was crucial in achieving third place
overall. For example Rachel Arnheim scored a vital three points in the pole
vault while the Turkish representative no heighted. Similarly Rebecca Taylor
took part in not only her first ever steeplchase race but one, for the first
time in this competition, that was run over 3000 metres. Again the two points
she scored made all the difference in the final placings.
Bryony Proctor was just a second outside her best in the
1500 as she placed 6th in 4.48.53 and Amy Smith battled in the cold and windy
conditions to place 5th in the 3000 in 10.27.50, virtually the same time as she
had clocked the previous weekend in winning the National Junior League Final at
Derby.
More important points were scored by the two youngest
members of the team, 14 year olds Amy DeMatos and Jessica Matthews who placed
6th and 5th in the 800 and high jump; and from Katie Murray (400 hurdles) and
Rebecca Syrocki (400) who were both suffering with chest infections.
Rebecca was not able to take part in the 4x400 but Katie
joined Katrina Cosby, Vanessa Nakangu and Sarah McLellan to help the team to 5th
place in a useful 4.00.63 and ensure that captain Clare Cooper, who was unable
to compete through injury, could lift the coveted third placed trophy.
Importantly the Club had a number of reserves to call upon
should problems arise and the vocal support of Rachel Blackie, Emily Godley,
Lauren Smith, Anna Smith, Flo Clark, Jade Castell Thomas, Catherine Chambers,
Ella Fisher and Sarah Coombs together with the Enfield & Haringey men's team,
who also placed third in the Men's Final, ensured all athletes in action had the
encouragement they deserved.
Taking part in such a prestigious event would not have
been possible without a significant amount of sponsorship and fund raising and
the Club were most grateful for the financial assistance provided by UK
Athletics; Emcor UK, and Aqua Pura plus the generous support of individuals too
numerous to mention.
Key also was the hard work of a number of people at the
Club in particular Brendan McShane, Jean Blackwell, Brian Power and Andy
Frankish and the tireless support of all the athletes coaches.
Significantly, of those who competed in Moscow, only
Victoria Thomas will not be eligible to compete in this age group next year so
there is every possibility that in 2007 the team could do as well or even
better. The venue for next years final has not yet been finalised but will
inevitably mean another major exercise for the Club to fund and administer, but
on last weekends performance one that is well worth the effort involved.
12/09/06
Blackheath and Bromley are NATIONAL JUNIOR LEAGUE
CHAMPIONS.
Over the weekend Blackheath and Bromley put out a strong
team of talented young junior athletes to challenge the likes of rivals Enfield
and Haringey and Shaftsbury Barnet Harriers, and the gifted athletes excelled to
win by 16 points.
It was the first year the boys and girls competitions were
combined in points, and the girls also won their competition allowing them a
place in the European final next year. Brendan McShane- Team manager commented
"The athletes were justly rewarded for all their hard-work over the past
athletic year."
First places and gold medals were rewarded to many of the
athletes including Scott Huggins in Pole Vault who vaulted an impressive 4.60m,
Stuart Harvey in Javelin who won his competition by almost 13 metres. Double
gold medals were achieved in the Long Jump by James Thomas Lindor 7.08m and
Jeremy Odametey 6.85m.
The Williamson brothers Amir and Alistair lived up to
their expectations by obliterating their competition in the Hammer with throws
of 65.59m and 60.35m. The boys 4 x 4 400m relay team placed 2nd with a time of
3.20.70. Alex Littlewood and Sam Simpson both U17's achieved 3rd place in their
event, the men's 2000 steeplechase.
The women's competition was equally successful with
Victoria Thomas and Rachel Blackie achieving golds in the women's Hammer. Katie
Murray and Sarah McLellan (an Under17) won 1sts in the 400m Hurdles with times
of 62.95, and 66.84. Jade Dodd won the Javelin with an admirable throw of
43.64m. Amy Smith got a 1st in the 3000m and her B-string Sarah Coombs achieved
2nd place.
Further wins came from Bryony Proctor, Anike Shand
Whittingham and Katrina Crosby (an Under17) Silver medals came from a talented
Serita Soloman, another Under17 who has just returned from an injury, with a new
Club Under 17 and Under 20 100 hurdles record of 14.14, and from Rebecca Taylor
and Florence Clark. Jean Blackwell - the girls team manager wrapped up the long
weekends efforts by commenting "the girls excelled themselves today with P.B's
for most."
Last years efforts are being rewarded by the girl's trip
to the European final in Moscow this coming week, and evidently this has had an
impact on this weekends efforts.
Match result: 1 Blackheath and Bromley 502; 2 Enfield and
Haringey 486; 3 Shaftsbury Barnet Harriers 446; 4 Birchfield Harriers 397; 5
Gateshead Harriers 384.5; 6 Windsor, Slough, Eton and Hounslow 371.5; 7 Trafford
AC 333; 8 Notts AC 243.
The Junior Women travel to Moscow on Thursday to represent
Great Britain in the A Final of the European Junior Champion Clubs Cup where
they meet the champion teams of Russia, Serbia, the Czech Republic, Italy,
Turkey and Estonia.
Last year Britain’s representatives Woodford Green with
Essex Ladies finished in 6th place to just avoid being relegated to the B Final
and Blackheath and Bromley will be hoping to improve on this performance.
Meanwhile Dwayne Grant travels to Athens along with fellow
Internationals Marlon Devonish, Mark Lewis Francis and Dwayne Chambers to
represent Europe in the 4x100 metres at the IAAF World Cup in Athletics. The
Europe team face Africa, America, Oceania, Asia, USA, France, Russia and hosts
Greece.
Montell Douglas has been rounding off her Summer season
with some successful outings on the European circuit. On the 1st of September
the Blackheath & Bromley athlete was in Germany at the Stadionfest Konigs where
she won the 100 metres in 11.64. It was then on to the Netherlands for the Arene
Games where, despite a strong headwind, she timed 11.72 to win the 100 metres.
Also in action abroad has been Chelsea O'Rawe Hobbs. She
was selected to represent Great Britain in an International walks competition in
Germany. She finished in 12th place in 26.38 and, although not a personal best,
the experience has seen her return with renewed enthusiasm for her event.
Shaunagh Brown was in outstanding form at the UK School
Games in Glasgow. She won the Under 17 discus by nearly six metres with 45.75.
There was a medal too for Rachel Arnheim as she finished 3rd in the pole vault
with 3.36. Richard AlAmeen was 4th in the hammer with 53.97 and James Alaka won
the guest 100 metres in 11.13 before helping the South East team to victory in
the 4x100 in a time of 42.48.
A number of the Club's juniors were selected recently to
compete for the South of England in the Inter Territorial Meeting at Abingdon
against the North, Midlands, Wales and Northern Ireland. The Club provided all
four winners in the hammer courtesy of Amir and Alistair Williamson, Rachel
Blackie and Victoria Thomas. There were wins also for Jade Dodd ( "A" javelin),
Holly Williams (B 3km walk), James Thomas Lindor (B long jump), Danny Doyley (B
200) and second places in the A strings for Stuart Harvey (javelin) and Scott
Huggins (pole vault). Alex AlAmeen took 3rd in the sprint hurdles
Locally, the club has been holding a series of timed
handicap races throughout the summer, with runners competing for the Roy Parris
shield. Roy was a club member for many years, but sadly died after an heroic
fight against cancer. This year, the winner was David Carton who ran
consistently well throughout the summer and narrowly held off a spirited
challenge in the final race by 18 year old Jason Daly. Mick Jones was third in
his first full year with the club. Highest placed lady runner was Clare Lodwig
in 5th place.
5/09/06
Blackheath & Bromley's youngsters just missed out on
retaining their National title when they finished 2nd in the UKA National Young
Athletes Final at Birmingham's Alexander Stadium. Despite winning two "Athlete
Of The Match" awards, and achieving a number of Meeting Best Performances and
personal bests the team were narrowly beaten by just eight points (797 to 789)
by a strong Enfield and Haringey squad.
The two Athlete Of The Match awards both came in the field
events. Jessica Matthews bounced back from injury to win the under 15 girls high
jump in 1.70 which was not only a personal best but also a Club Record and a
Meeting Best Performance. Eddie Ekanem, a relative newcomer to the Club, was
just outside the Club Record in the Under 15 boys shot as he putt 16.13 to win
the Boys Athlete Of The Match award and again set a MBP.
Shaunagh Brown's winning throw of 43.98 in the under 17
women's discus improved her own Meeting Best Performance and there was a MBP
also for Andrew Jordon in the under 15 boys hammer with 58.17.
There were many other impressive performances as well. In
the under 17 's age group Amy Smith was in dominant mood in the women's 3000
metres as she lapped all but three of the field to win by over a minute in
10.32.02. There were triple jump wins for Isobel Ivy and Marcus Morrison and
Shaunagh Brown added the shot title to her discus win.
Dan Putnam stormed to victory in the under 15 boys 400
metres in 52.39 and B string winner Stephen Cavey had earlier won the 800 metre
with a devastating kick for home from 200 metres out. The two then teamed up
with Ozzay Booth and Sanchez Palmer for a resounding victory in the 4x400 relay.
In the field Danny Duffin won the javelin in 46.37 and he also took silver in
the B shot and bronze in the B high jump, a fitting end to his time with the
Club as his family emigrate to Australia this week. Matthew Fletcher took the
long jump in his first year in the age group.
For the girls there were wins for Danny's training partner
Helen Silvester with 31.14 in the javelin and for Katherine Jones with a very
useful 9.45 in the shot.
Best performances for the under 13 girls came from Sian
Duffy who won the 75 metre hurdles and from Kelly Davey who putt the shot 8.55.
Best placed for the boys was Anton Daley who was 2nd in the 200 metres.
These were just some of the highlights from a squad that
have performed with distinction all Summer thanks to the support of numerous
coaches and the work of team managers Karen Cosby, Paul Patten, Mike Shepherd,
Heather Williamson, Jonathan Stockdale and Jenny Jackson plus the generous
support of Nike, The Trust Partnership, Pizza Hut, Whitbread, Bromley Council
and Bromley Mytime.
It has not been an easy Summer for the youngsters with
Norman Park track being shut for refurbishment but, with it reopening, the Club
are hopeful of challenging successfully for the National title next year.
Meanwhile down at Battersea, at the other end of the age
scale, there was a similar display of team spirit and athletic achievement at
the Southern Counties VAC track and field final. Both the men and women’s teams
qualified as Kent champions and took part in one of the most nail biting finals
in years.
After eight hours of competition the women finished in
joint first position with Epsom & Ewell while the men finished in third place
just six and a half points behind the winners.
The women’s team’s achievement was remarkable since they
only had eleven athletes and had seriously been thinking of pulling out on the
Thursday evening, but, inspired by team captain Anne Cilia they not only took
part, but filled every event. She did all the jumps and sprints.
For example in the over 35’s Bridget Davey, who is more an
endurance athlete, scored important points in the 400 metres; Diane Osborne
combined the 2000 walk and the 200 metres; and Heather Symons and Barbara Terry
both moved down age groups to score vital points in the throws. Viv Mitchell and
Tara Emery added vital points on the track.
Helen Godsell was in outstanding form in the over 50s age
group winning the 100, 200 and 400 while Beatrice Simpson was equally impressive
in the field with wins in the Hammer, Shot and Discus. Annie McDonough straddled
the middle distance events with 2nd places in the 800, 1500 and 3000 metres.
Nanette Cross was the backbone of the over 60s team.
The men were equally busy with wins for Paul Sutherland in
the over 40’s long jump and 400 metres and Colin Brand in the over 50’s javelin
despite being an over 70.
Moving even further down in age category was Gordon Hickey
who scored important points in the over 40s hammer and discus. Other good
performances in the over 40’s came from Alan Hardy who cleared 3.40 in the pole
vault; and from Captain Tom Phillips who recorded some useful sprints times for
an over 50 as did Shaun Lightman in the walk.
Bob Minting was a big points score on the track in the
over 50’s age group with 2nd places in the 400 and 800 plus a 3rd in the 200
metres. There was 2nd places also for Peter Hannell in the 2km walk and Tim
Soutar in the 3000 metres while Clem Leon picked up good points in the jumps.
Despite all these efforts they couldn’t quite win the
title but are looking forward to challenging again next year.
29/08/06
A number of athletes from Blackheath & Bromley were in
action at the Inter Counties match at Eton with two setting Championships best
performances. Rachel Blackie may have been down on her personal best but the
53.82 she threw in the under 20s hammer won the competition and broke the
previous best. Likewise Dan Putnam set a meeting record in the under 15's 400
metres with 51.55.
Rachel Arnheim won the under 20's pole vault despite still
being an under 17. She cleared 3.30 and there was also a win for Alistair
Williamson in the men's hammer. Daniel Haque ran 11.05 in the heats of the 100
metres despite his blocks slipping and Lauren Blackie, another under 17, leapt
11.00 to place 4th in the triple jump.
Andrew Jordon is the number one under 15 hammer thrower in
the country this year and he maintained his unbeaten record with a winning throw
of 58.72. Daniella Annon took second place in the 100 metres in 12.92 and for
the boys there was a personal best of 11.93 for Izzy Ukoko. Jessica Matthews
placed 5th in the high jump with 1.55 and it was 5th also for Jessica Nicol-Smith
as she equalled her best in the pole vault with 2.50.
Some of the Club's older members were in action at the
Veterans AC Championships at Kingston. In the over 40's Paul Sutherland won the
800 in 2.07.2, although he was hoping to go quicker. Clem Leon continued his
excellent season with wins in the over 50s high jump, long jump and triple jump.
His leap of 1.50 in the high jump was a Championship Best Performance and he was
also third in the 100 and 5th in the 200.
Club President Ken Daniel won the over 55s 1500 at a
canter in 4.44.9 with Peter Hamilton taking bronze. Peter was third as well in
the 800. Evergreen Jim Day set a Championship Best of 2.50 to win the over 70's
pole vault and also won the the high jump with 1.18 as well as placing third in
the shot putt. Beatrice Simpson had a busy day also winning the over 50's shot,
discus and hammer competitions.
A small number of athletes competed in the Vancouver
Trophy Meeting at Parliament Hill with some good results. There were wins for
Martin Airey (800), Duayne Bovell (100) and Serita Solomon (100 hurdles). Alex
Pope set a new best of 11.84 to place second in the shot putt and he was runner
up also in the discus with a throw of 39.83. It was second also for Stuart
Harvey in the javelin with 57.89, a foot injury preventing him from throwing
further. Andy Hodge, competing for Achilles threw 41.39.
22/08/06
Three athletes from Blackheath & Bromley represented Great
Britain in the International match at Birmingham against the United States,
Russia and China. Dwayne Grant was drafted into the men's European Championship
winning 4x100 metre team to replace Darren Campbell who retired earlier in the
week. Dwayne ran a strong second leg and helped the team to victory.
Montell Douglas was also in relay action joining the
women's team that took silver in the Europeans. She ran the third leg and the
quartet finished in 3rd place. Michael Skinner ran in the 3000 metres and
finished in 5th place in 8.18.93.
Out in Beijing at the World Junior Championships, Amir
Williamson was just outside his best in the men's hammer with 66.77 to finish
7th in his qualifying pool. Unfortunately the distance was not enough to make
the Final, but it was a great achievement to even be selected for the
Championships.
At the Scottish Championships in Glasgow last weekend
veteran Paul Sutherland took 6th place in the final of the 400 hurdles in 58.31
which was a stadium record for a veteran athlete.
There have been numerous new Club records set this Summer
and another fell at the Under 17 Inter County match at Ashford. Rachel Arnheim
made full use of the new pole that she first used in training last Thursday and
cleared a new best of 3.40 to win the vault.
Lauren Blackie took second place in the triple jump with a
leap of 10.94 while Isobel Ivy leapt 5.18 in the long jump.
On the track there was second place for Sarah McLellan in
the 300 hurdles and there were two third places for Katrina Cosby in the 300 A
and 200 B races.
Further details results of the meeting are not yet to
hand.
15/08/06
A number of Blackheath & Bromley athletes enjoyed success
as part of representative teams on a busy weekend of competition. Highlight of
the these was the performance of Scott Huggins in the Celtic Games in Waterford,
Ireland. Jumping for Scotland in the under 18’s competition he won the contest
with a clearance of 4.70 which equalled the Club Under 20 record.
South of England 1500 champion Jamie Atkinson was in
winning form at the under 23 inter area match at Derby taking the race by six
seconds in 3.58.60. Tom Robinson continued his impressive return to competition
by finishing joint winner of the pole vault with a clearance of 4.25.
Rachel Blackie won the under 20 womens hammer with 53.66;
Stuart Harvey was runner up in the javelin with 58.08; and Holly Williams 9th in
the 3k walk.
Michael Skinner was third in the mile in the BMC Grand
Prix Final at Manchester in a time of 4.05.29.
The Club's Junior team are on their way to the National
Final in Derby in September after winning the final Southern Premier match of
the season at Eton. The top two teams from the Division automatically go to the
final and with Blackheath & Bromley third they have qualified as one of the two
next best Club's in the country. In fact they have a realistic chance of
finishing in the top three in the final, the first time this has been a joint
scoring event.
Most pleasing result of the day was the return to action
of Serita Solomon after spending most of the season injured. She won the women's
100 hurdles in 14.9. Danny Doyley ran his first individual 400 metres in
impressive style winning in 48.1. He also helped the team score maximum points
in the 100 metres winning the A race in 10.7 with James Alaka first in the B
race in 11.0. There were maximum points too for James Thomas Lindor and Jeremy
Odemetey in the long jump and for Alex AlAmeen and Simon Hemmings in the high
jump.
Anike Shand Whittingham impressed in the sprints as did
Shaunagh Brown in the throws while Katie Murray won the 400 hurdles with ease.
The Club enjoyed another successful day in the Final Kent
Young Athletes League match of the season. Both the under 15 and under 13 girls
won the titles for the season and there were some impressive performances from
the boys.
Highlight of the day was a mighty leap of 6.13 in the long
jump by Matthew Fletcher one of the top ten performances in the country this
year in his first year in the age group. He also set a new best of 11.8 in the
100 metres. For the girls there was another win in the pole vault for Jessica
Nicol-Smith as she cleared 2.30.
Sian Duffy produced a grade one performance in the under
13 girls 70 metre hurdles as she timed 11.6 but such was the standard of
competition that this only gave her second place. In the firld there was an
impressive win in the shot from Kelly Davey as she won with a putt of 8.86 which
ranks her 9th in the country this year.
The Club has struggled in the Southern Women’s League this
season in part because this is secondary to the UK Women’s League, National
Junior League and Young Athletes League.
At Sutton last Saturday the squad was again weakened and
finished in 5th place.
Nevertheless it was encouraging to see athletes such as
Katie Welch, Sonya Bye, Rachel Chadwick and Karyn O Mahoney back in action after
long breaks.
Rachel Blackie won the Hammer before dashing off to Derby
for the Inter Area match and Shaunagh Brown had a good win in the discus to add
to her second place in the shot and third in the B Hammer.
For the under 15s there was a win in the 100 metres from
Danielle Annon while Nicole George, Chigo Orunta and Leah Forbes Morris scored
heavily in the field events.
8/08/06
Blackheath & Bromley's senior men produced a fine team
performance in their last League fixture at Sheffield to avoid relegation and
stay in British League Division One. Going into the match they lay in 7th place
in the 8 team Division and with the bottom two to go down they needed to beat
rivals Bedford by one place to avoid the drop. However, they finished in third
place on the day and were not far off winning the match while Bedford struggled
and finished last.
Among a clutch of excellent performances the contribution
of Scott Overall was outstanding. In his first League match for the Club he
finished third in the 800 and then went on the win both the 1500 and 5000 metre
races, a remarkable achievement as there is less than half an hour between the
latter two races. His times of 1.55.9, 3.53.2 and 14.33.0 were useful too.
The Club's sprinters were out in force, and shrugging off
the disappointment of the absence of electronic timing, scored near maximum
points. Dwayne Grant won the A string 100 metres in 10.5 with Jonathan Barbour
making it maximum points in the B string. Julian Golding had to settle for the
runner up spot in the 200 metres as he was hampered by a groin strain and it was
second place also for first year junior Danny Doyley in the B string. The
quartet then combined to win the 4x100 relay by a whole second in 40.6 but this
was outside the Club record they set last week.
Stuart Harvey returned to League action after injury and
won the javelin with 62.93 while Mensah Elliott, another on the comeback trail,
took the 110 hurdles in 14.9.
There were some useful new personal bests, most noticeably
from Neil Simpson who finished 2nd in the long jump with a leap of 6.87. Ian
Allerton is better known as a 400 metre runner but he turned his hand to triple
jumping and finished 4th in the B string with 12.45.
Biggest points scorer for the team this year has been Alex
Pope and he again underlined his value by competing in six events. His Hammer
throw of 33.93 was a new best. Veteran Paul Sutherland has been another
important figure and the 42 year old ran very useful times of 57.5 and 16.8 in
the 400 and 110 hurdles.
It was not all good news for the Senior Men, however, as
the Southern League Division two team were third in their match at Chelmsford
and will be relegated while due to a lack of athletes the Club did not contest
the Division three match at Uxbridge.
There were some good performances at Chelmsford with
Daniel Haque running 49.8 for 400, Duayne Bovell clocking 10.9 for the 100 and
Tom Robinson clearing 4.20 in the pole vault.
In the UK Women's League the Club finished 5th in the
final Division Three match of the season at Sutton. This left them in third
place overall for the season.
The only individual winner of the day was Jade Dodd who
won the javelin in 43.01 but there were some good placings in the sprints with
Amy Godsell third and second in the 100 and 200 and Anike Shand Whittingham and
Vicki Cole picking up runner up spots in the B events. The quartet combined to
finish second in the relay.
It was second place too for Bella Clayton in the 800 with
2.12.40 while Siobhan Budd flew in from France to score good points in the 1500
and 3000 metre races. In the field Liz Hughes picked up another useful 2nd place
in the pole vault as well as scoring good points in the shot and discus while
Anna Smith claimed third place in the high jump.
Some of the Club’s stars of the future were in fine form
at the AAA’s Under 17 and Under 15 Championships in Birmingham with three
picking up gold medals and another setting a Club Record. Shaunagh Brown
continued her outstanding season by winning the women’s discus with a throw of
44.95 just short of her Club record. Like Shaunagh, Andrew Jordon has been
unbeaten in his age group this season and he maintained this record by winning
the under 15’s hammer with a throw of 56.20.
On the track Chelsea O’Rawe Hobbs continued her
outstanding year. She took the 5km walk title in a time of 26.44.55 to complete
a successful month. She recently won the English Schools Home Countries
International at Grangemouth and has been selected to represent Great Britain in
a walks International in Germany at the end of August
James Alaka broke Michael Nartey’s 15 year old 200 metre
Club Record with a time of 21.68 but such was the standard of competition that
it only gave him the silver medal. He also picked up bronze in the 100 with
another new best of 10.73.
There was silver too for Club Record Holder Dan Putnam in
the under 15 boys 400 with a time of 51.22 while Stephen Cavey claimed bronze in
the 800 in 2.03.38.
Alex Bruce Littlewood was just outside his best in the
1500 steeplechase but a fall at the last water jump meant he had to settle for
5th place in a time of 4.37.79. Rachel Arnheim and Emily Godley were also just
off their bests with clearances of 3.20 and 3.10 in the pole vault.
Four of the Club’s top Masters athletes were in action at
the recent European Masters Championships in the scorching heat of Poznan, in
Poland.
Bob Minting was one of the stars of the championships,
winning five medals in the M55 category, three of which were gold. He was an
impressive winner of the 1500 metres in 4.40.19, and followed this up later in
the day with easy qualification for the 400m finals next day. He was pipped for
gold in the 400, gaining the silver medal in 55.58. A few days rest brought him
flying back in the 800 metres, which he won convincingly in 2.07.42 and he was
also a member of the silver medal winning M55 4x100 metre relay squad, before
anchoring the M55 4x400 metre relay team home to gold.
Dave Taylor was the easy winner of the M40 5,000 metres
race in 14.42.34, the only person in the field to break the 15 minute barrrier.
He was equally impressive in the 1500 metres he won by six seconds in 4.00.84.
Blackheath & Bromley’s Masters Team Captain Tom Phillips
smashed his M50 100 metre best, and the Club record, in his semi-final,
recording a time of 12.21, and qualifying for his first major championships
individual final. He placed 8th in the final. “Getting to that final had been
this season’s target. I’m delighted.” he later said. The M50 200 metres was one
of the most hotly contested events in Poznan. Tom qualified for the semi-final
with 25.51, and ran a personal best of 24.46 in his semi-final, narrowly missing
out on a place in the final.
Evergreen Jim Day placed third the M70 pole vault, with
2.40 metres, maintaining his record of winning medals in most of the major
championships he has entered.
1/08/06
Two of Blackheath & Bromley’s rising stars have gained
selection for major Championships for Great Britain. Montell Douglas has been
chosen for the Great Britain 4x100 metre squad for the European Championships in
Gothenburg. The 20 year old gained her place after finishing third in the Trials
in Manchester a couple of weeks ago and an impressive victory in the AAA's Under
23 Championships last weekend.
Hammer thrower Amir Williamson is off to Beijing this
Saturday for the World Junior Championships. His selection comes after he threw
the qualifying standard to win the South Of England Championships in June.
Montell was in action at the Norwich Union Grand Prix on
Friday night where she placed 5th in the 200 metres in 23.81. Also competing at
the meeting were James Alaka who ran 22.18 in the Spar Sprints Initiative 200
metre; Christine Lawrence who received a late call up for the javelin and placed
6th; and Dwayne Grant and Danny Doyley who were both in action in the relays.
Amir was up in Birmingham on the Saturday for the first
UKA throws festival. His best throw of the day was 66.30 with his brother
Alistair recording 59.91. There was disappointment however for Rachel Blackie
who didn’t achieve the World qualifier. Her best was 53.80.
Undoubtedly the performance of the day came from Shaunagh
Brown who broke the Club Record for the under 17 and under 20 discus on three
occasions. In her first contest she threw 45.53 but she improved even more in
the evening competition with a distance of 46.01. This comes just a week after
she broke the record another two times.
Stuart Harvey threw 60.42 in the javelin.
The Club narrowly missed out on a place in the Golden
Jubilee Cup Final when they finished in the runner up spot in the Semi Final at
Eton. Highlight of the day was a sparkling performance by the men's 4x100 metre
team of Danny Doyley, Jonathan Barbour, Julian Golding and Dwayne Grant. Their
winning time of 40.34 was the fastest by a UK Club team for four years and
shattered the previous Club Record of 41.0. Fittingly among the interested
spectators were Marlon Devonish and Mark Lewis Francis two of the Great Britain
quartet that won relay gold at the Athens Olympics.
Grant had earlier won both the 100 and 200 metres races
with other wins in the men's events coming from Scott Overall (800), Michael
Skinner (1500), Stuart Harvey (javelin) Sam Bobb (triple jump) and the 4x400
team of Doyley, Golding, Neil Simpson and Ian Allerton. Interestingly it was the
sprinters who timed the fastest with Doyley’s split 48.0 and Golding’s 48.1.
For the women there were victories for Shaunagh Brown
(Discus), Christine Lawrence (javelin) and Liz Hughes (pole vault).
There was another Club Record in the 400 hurdles where
Paul Sutherland's time of 56.87 took a huge chunk off his own over 40's record.
Despite these good performances the team were beaten by a
useful Team Southampton. However, with a stronger squad the Club could have won.
There were a number of athletes missing but it was heartening to see how those
who were there rallied to the cause.
For example Jennie Butler set a new best in the 800 metres
and then 20 minutes later ran the 100 metres. Similarly Abbie Jacobs, Sarah
McLellan, Ella Fisher and Stephanie Allerton all came in at short notice to help
the team.
Blackheath and Bromley's youngsters retained their
Southern Premier League title in the UKA Young Athletes League with a fine win
in their final fixture at Eton. The hosts Windsor were unbeaten going into the
match but a good all round team effort ensured victory for the visitors with
three of the team gaining "Athlete Of The Match" awards.
New member Eddie Ekanem received the Boys field event
award on his Club debut with his putt of 14.54 in the under 15's shot. Rachel
Arnheim won the women's field award with her 3.20 metres clearance in the under
17's pole vault; and Sarah McLellan picked up the track award for her 45.2
second run in the 300 hurdles.
Shaunagh Brown has already received such an award this
season and so was ineligible to pick up a reward for a magnificent 44.50 throw
in the discus. This was both a Club Under 17 and Club Under 20 record and the
furthest by an athlete in the UK this year. What was more remarkable was that
she achieved this having set the previous record at the AAA's under 20
championships at Bedford that morning. She also won the shot putt.
The other outstanding performance came from Andrew Jordon.
He is already the top hammer thrower in the country this year, and was
victorious in his main event, but he astonished everyone by timing 11.4 for the
80 metre hurdles one of the fastest times in the country this year and a big
improvement on the Club Record.
A string wins in the under 17 age group came from Isobel
Ivy (long jump), Rebecca Taylor (3000), Sarah McGuire (javelin), Lauren Blackie
(triple jump), Alex Bruce Littlewood (1500 steeplechase), Richard AlAmeen
(Hammer) and the men's 4x400 team.
The Under 15 girls again hardly dropped a point all
afternoon with wins for Rebecca Cook (long jump) Amy DeMatos (800) Jessica
Matthews (high jump), Helen Silvester (javelin), Katherine Jones (shot),
Michelle Fewster (1500) and the girls 4x100 team of Cook, Grace Sheppard,
Daniella Annon and Jazmyn Raikes. Wins for the boys came from Dan Putnam (400),
Stephen Cavey (800), Matthew Fletcher (long jump) and the 4x400 team.
The future looks bright for the squad judging by the
performances of the under 13s with A string wins for Anton Daly (200), Aaron
Lloyd (75 hurdles), Sian Duffy (75 hurdles) and both boys and girls 4x100 metre
teams.
These and a plethora of other good performances from an
army of enthusiastic youngsters mean that the Squad go to Birmingham in
September with high hopes of retaining the National title they have won for the
last two years.
25/07/06
Victoria Thomas added to the English Schools title she won
two weeks ago when she won the junior women's hammer competition at the Norwich
Union World Junior Trials and Under 20 and Under 23 Championships at Bedford.
The Blackheath & Bromley athlete's throw of of 56.78 was not only a personal
best but also a Championship Best Performance and a new Club Senior and Junior
Record. It is also just 22 centimetres outside the qualifying standard for the
World Junior Championships which take place in Beijing next month.
It was a double celebration for the Club and coach Mike
Davies as runner up was Rachel Blackie who threw 55.58. Like Victoria she is
just outside the Beijing qualifying standard with the 56.74 she threw earlier in
the year.
Fresh from her bronze medal at last weekends Senior
Championships Montell Douglas won the under 23 title in 11.57 to warm up nicely
for this Fridays Norwich Union London Grand Prix at Crystal Palace.
Chelsea O Rawe Hobbs was the Club's other winner as she
took the under 20's 5km walk title in 26.22.51. Significantly she is only a
first year under 17 and is eligible to compete in this Championship for a
further four years.
There was another Club Record in the Under 20 women's
discus where Shaunagh Brown, who is still an under 17, took the silver medal.
Her throw of 44.21 was both a Club Under 17 and Under 20 record improving on the
44.14 she threw in winning the Home Countries Schools International in
Grangemouth the previous weekend.
It was silver too for Stuart Harvey in the Under 20 men's
javelin as he threw a seasons best of 64.36 in only his second competition since
returning from injury. He then competed in the Under 23 event the next day and
again took silver. Second claim member Jade Dodd was also second in the women's
event with a distance of 45.33.
Danny Doyley was within a whisker of a medal in the 200
finishing one hundredth of a second behind third. He also ran a very good 10.66
in the 100 metres semi final but had to settle for 6th in a high class final
with 10.75. Daniel Haque set a seasons best of 10.92 in the semi final.
Alistair Williamson set a new best of 61.07 in the under
20s hammer to place 5th but there was disappointment for his brother Amir who
had an off day and only threw 60 metres. Likewise Scott Huggins injured his hip
in the pole vault and Ed Harrison tripped in the Under 23 400 hurdles
With a number of juniors up at the AAA’s Senior Trials the
Club's Under 20's team were significantly weakened for the latest round of the
National Junior Athletics League at Stevenage. The combined men and women's team
eventually finished in 4th position having been placed 5th for much of the
afternoon.
This late surge was in no small part due to the excellent
performances of the relay teams with the highlight being a split of 47.9 in the
4x400 from Danny Doyley as he moved the team up from third to first. He had
earlier run 10.7 in the 100 metres. Rebecca Syrocki held on in the women's race
despite sustaining an injury.
In the pole vault Scott Huggins won the men's event
despite a hip problem clearing 4.40 at the first attempt before retiring from
the competition. Rachel Arnheim won the women's event with a clearance of 3.35
with Emily Godley securing maximum points in the B event with 3.20.
Bryony Proctor set a new best in the 1500 of 4.47 the
fastest by a Club member this year. There was a new best also for Alex Bruce
Littlewood in the 2000 steeplechase as he timed 6.31 while in the 400 hurdles
Ashley Healey improved to 60.2 to take third place in the B competition.
There was a fine win for Sarah McLellan in the women’s 400
hurdles. The Under 17 captain was in action against athletes up to three years
her senior but won in 66.1 a new personal best.
Simon Hemmings again showed what a valuable addition he
has been to the squad. The second claimer, whose first Club is Southend, won the
high jump with a leap of 2 metres but also took the runner up spot in the B
sprint hurdles. He also scored important points in the pole vault where he
cleared two metres to match the height he cleared in the high jump.
Despite these good performances it looks as though the
Club will be hard pressed to qualify automatically for the national Final in
September. Only two teams go by right and the Club are still in third place. It
looks as if they will have to rely on the results of a paper match whereby the
performances of the third and fourth placed teams in each of the Regional
Divisions are compared to decide the remaining two qualifying places.
18/07/06
Montell Douglas was Blackheath & Bromley's top performer
at the Norwich Union European Trials and AAA's Championships at Manchester. The
20 year old picked up the bronze medal in the 100 metres final in 11.57, having
already set a new best of 11.52 in the semi final. She will now wait to see if
she is picked for the 4x100 squad for the British team for the European
Championships in Gothenburg next month.
She just missed out on the medals in the 200 metres where
she finished in fourth place in 23.80, having timed 23.71 in the heat. It was
4th place also for Michael Skinner in the 5000 metres. He was just outside his
best finishing in 13.53.83. Scott Overall place 7th in 14.08.87.
Dwayne Grant took 6th place in the 200 metres in 21.12
although he ran quicker in the semi final where he clocked 21.01. Also in the
semi was Daniel Haque who was one of a number of Club members who were making
their debut at these Championships. The 17 year old St Olaves schoolboy ran
21.83 but was faster in his heat where he ran 21.62.
Other first timers at this event were Junior Hammer
throwers Rachel Blackie and Victoria Thomas who placed 8th and 10th with
distances of 55.17 and 52.52; Christine Lawrence who was 8th in the javelin with
44.19; Jamie Atkinson who timed a useful 3.49.01 in the 1500; Bella Clayton in
the 800; Ed Harrison in the 400 hurdles; and sprinters Duayne Bovell and Katy
Benneworth. Jonathan Barbour timed 10.80 in the heats of the 100 metres.
Blackheath & Bromley’s men and women’s Masters teams have
won the Kent Masters League, and the right to be at the Southern Counties
Masters Finals at Battersea on 3 September. This repeats the teams’ successes of
last year, and is the result of a long hard summer of competition, with some
excellent performances along the way.
The culmination was the recent Kent League fixture at
Canterbury. The six League fixtures have ranged from an unusually still and warm
evening at Deangate, near Chatham, to a miserable, wind and rain-swept May
evening at Norman Park which was enlivened by Neil Ayrton’s 54.2 second 400
metres in ghastly conditions. Neil pulled up injured in the next league fixture,
leaving Mark Watling to take his place as 400m/800m specialist, and one of the
top points scorers of the summer.
Club Masters Captain and sprinter Tom Phillips lowered the
Club’s M50 age group record three times during the season, finishing with 12.3
seconds at Canterbury. He has been ably backed up this year by Clem Leon, in his
first full year for the team, as an accomplished sprinter and jumper, whose
recent national title in the M50 high jump is tribute to the guy’s versatility.
In a year when performances in the M40 age group had been hampered by injuries
and non-availability of athletes, it has been the M50 athletes, including Club
President Ken Daniel, who have anchored the Men’s team to success.
Blackheath & Bromley’s team of women’s Masters is small
but hugely talented, including multiple national title holder Beatrice Simpson
in the throwing events, and W60 athlete Nanette Cross, who has performed as a
one woman W60 team through the whole season, in a huge array of different
events. Women’s team Captain Anne Cilia adopted the same tactic in the league as
last year, of fielding an athlete in every single event at every league fixture,
and steadily chalking up top points overall.
11/07/06
Blackheath & Bromley's athletes enjoyed another successful
English Schools Championships in Gateshead with a healthy number of medals and
personal best performances. Highlight of the weekend came in the Junior Boys
Hammer where Andrew Jordon won the competition by over 10 metres with a throw of
64.16. This distance is the 6th best ever by a UK athlete and a new Club Record.
There was gold too for Andrew's training partner Victoria
Thomas in the Senior Girls contest. Her winning distance of 52.56 was over 8
metres clear of the runner up. Shaunagh Brown won the Intermediate Girls title
with a throw of 42.70 and is rewarded for her efforts with a place in the
England team for the Schools Home Countries International at Grangemouth this
weekend.
On the track Amy Godsell ran a sparkling new best of 24.68
to win the 200 metres. She also picked up a silver medal as part of the Surrey
4x100 team.
Second Claim members Jeremy Odametey and Jade Dodd also
won golds in the Senior triple jump and javelin.
There was a new Club Record for Dan Putnam as he won
silver in the Intermediate Boys 400 metres. His time of 51.10 smashed the
previous record of 51.88 which had stood for 10 years.
Stuart Harvey made a welcome return to competition after a
stress fracture and won silver in the Senior Boys javelin with 63.12 and there
were runners up spots also for Scott Huggins in the pole vault with a clearance
of 4.35 and from Danny Doyley in the 200 metres with 21.83.
Alistair Williamson set a new best of 60.75 to take 3rd in
the Senior Boys Hammer. Anike Shand Whittingham took bronze in the 100 in the
same age group as did Rachel Arnheim (Intermediate Girls Pole vault) and James
Alaka (Intermediate Boys 200) Daniel Haque also won bronze as part of the Senior
Men's 4x100 team.
The Club’s older members produced some outstanding
performances at the National Masters Championships in Birmingham winning 16
golds, 5 silver and 4 bronze medals.
Bob Minting won four golds in the over 55’s age group. He
won the 200, 400, 800 and the 1500, the latter being the most satisfying victory
as he pushed Club President Ken Daniel down into the silver medal position. His
time of 4.33.08 was still, however, three hundredths of a second slower than
Daniel’s best time this year.
Two British Records were set in the throws. In the over
70’s javelin Colin Brand broke his own British record as he sent the spear out
to 40.01. He also won gold in the shot as well as bronze in the discus.
There was a British Record too for Beatrice Simpson in the
over 50’s age group as she launched the heavy weight out to 11.85 to add to her
wins in the hammer and discus and runners up spot in the javelin.
Another triple winner was new member Barbara Terry who won
the shot, hammer and heavy weight in the over 60’s category.
Paul Sutherland missed out on gold in the 110 hurdles by
two hundredths of a second as he timed 15.90 for the silver medal
In the over 50s category there was a surprise win for Clem
Leon as he soared over 1.50 to take gold in the high jump. He also grabbed
bronze in the long jump. Former Olympian Allan Williams was the class act in the
pole vault. He cleared 4 metres but then injured himself as he attempted a
Championship Best height. On the track there was a bronze for Alan Camp in the
5000.
Peter Hannell took the over 60’s 3km walk title as he
timed 16.41.39.
Jim Day cleared 2.50 in the over 70’s pole vault to add to
a bronze in the high jump while Gordon Hickey won silver medals in the shot and
javelin.
Results from last weeks throws meeting in Croatia are now
available. Hammer throwers Rachel Blackie, Victoria Thomas and Richard AlAmeen
were all in action with the best performance coming from Richard who broke the
Club Under 17 Hammer record with a distance of 60.89 to place third. Rachel was
5th with 55.74 and Victoria 8th with 52.09.
Rachel and Amir Williamson missed competing at the English
Schools Championships as they were selected for the Great Britain Under 20s
International squad that travelled to Mannheim in Germany. Amir threw 64.81 in
the Hammer while Rachel achieved 54.03.
4/07/06
Athletes from Blackheath & Bromley have been in action
around the World in the last few days as they put the finishing touches to their
preparations for the Major championships and trials that take place in the next
few weeks.
Over in the States Scott Overall ran his first 1500 of the
season and timed 3.43.80 to place 9th in an American Milers Club race. Scott
arrives back in Britain this week from Butler University having completed a
highly successful track campaign which has seen him named the 2006 Horizon
League Outdoor Track Athlete of the Year for the second time. This followed his
record breaking 13.38.19 for 5000 metres earlier in the year.
Over in Ireland Dwayne Grant was in good form at the Cork
City Games where he timed 10.48 and 21.21 for the 100 and 200 metres. In Bilbao,
Spain, Michael Skinner was in action over 5000 metres timing 14.05.63.
In Greece youngster James Alaka was representing England
in the ISF World Gymnasiade in Thessalonika. The competition takes place every 4
years with over 40 countries taking part in a contest for youngsters born in
1989 to 91.Competing in the 100 metres he finished in 6th place in 10.89 having
produced times of 10.87 and 10.93 in the heats.
Meanwhile in Croatia Hammer throwers Rachel Blackie,
Victoria Thomas and Richard AlAmeen were in action but the results are not yet
available. Training partner Amir Williamson missed the trip as he was still
recovering from the competition the previous week in Budapest. Here he was a
little below his recent best with a throw of 64.89.
Blackheath & Bromley’s Senior Men were last of 8 teams in
the latest British Athletics League Division One match of the season at
Carlisle. It was a close fought, high standard match and the team were just six
points behind Bedford and eight behind the City Of Edinburgh at the end of the
afternoon. The result leaves the Club 7th out of 8 teams in the League with the
bottom two relegated to Division Two and means they need to finish one League
point ahead of Bedford in the remaining match at Sheffield in August.
The sprints were very good for the Club with Jonathan
Barbour, Danny Doyley and Julian Golding scoring heavily. The jumps performances
were also the best the Club's athletes have produced this year. Highlight here
was an outdoor best of 4.50 for Scott Huggins in the pole vault in only his
second competition since returning from an injury incurred when he missed the
landing bed.
Another bright spot was a new Club Masters record in the
400 hurdles from Paul Sutherland who ran 57.91. Ed Harrison gained a useful 3rd
in the A string.
The Club's real problem was the middle distance and the
throws. With many absent for a variety of reasons the squad was much weakened.
Nick Gasson and Peter Tucker battled hard in the sweltering conditions to
produce useful times in the 1500 and 5000 and there was a promising debut in the
3000 steeplechase from young Alex Bruce Littlewood.
Best performance in the throws came from Alistair
Williamson who threw 50.42 in the hammer but with too many others unavailable
the Club were really only able to cover the other events.
UK Women’s League, Coventry
The women were up in Coventry for the latest round of the
UK Women’s League and finished in 4th place. This leaves them 3rd overall in the
table with an outside chance of gaining promotion in the remaining fixture at
Sutton next month.
With a number of athletes unavailable the squad did well.
Captain and International pole vaulter Liz Hughes led by example as after
finishing second in the vault to British Record Holder Janine Whitlock, she also
scored valuable points in the shot and discus.
Likewise Katy Benneworth took third place in both the 100
and long jump A strings as well as doing the B triple jump. There were third
places also for Amy Godsell (200), Bella Clayton (800) and Katie Murray (400h)
but unfortunately Katie sustained a foot injury which prevented from doing the
sprint hurdles as well. Another to suffer was Shavaun Henry who dropped out of
the 3000 with a niggle thus shifting Bryony Proctor up to the A string.
The only B string wins of the day came from Amy Godsell
(100) and Sam Singer (400)
British Over 50’s throws champion Beatrice Simpson
returned to League competition and placed 6th in the A hammer as well as
competing in the javelin and discus.
Ella Fisher did well in the heat to run both the 800 and
1500 while A string runner in the 1500 Jennie Butler broke 5 minutes for the
race and was also game enough to putt the shot.
UKA Young Athletes League, Battersea
The Club's youngsters unbeaten run in the UKA Young
Athletes League came to an end in a close fought battle with Enfield & Haringey
at Battersea. The North Londoners just prevailed, the first time in 15 matches
that the Club has been beaten since the League became a joint scoring
competition in 2004.
Athlete of the match awards went to Richard Alameen for
his 55.57 winning throw in the Hammer and to Shaunagh Brown who launched the
discus out to 41.14.
Team captain James Alaka won both the 100 and 200 metre
races in the Under 17 mens contest with grade one performances. Banke Jemiyo
also produced a grade one effort as she won the Women's Hammer in this age group
with a throw of 35.37.
Training partner Andrew Jordon launched the under 15
Hammer out to 55.83 with Jake Haylock taking the B string in 44.91 a performance
that would have won the A contest had Andrew not been competing. Dan Putnam ran
grade one times in the 200 and 400 but because of the high standard of
competition he did not win either race.
Best performance for the girls was a magnificent leap of
1.67 in the high jump from Jessica Matthews which not only won the competition
but was also a Club Record.
For the under 13's there was a good win the the sprint
hurdles from George Gregory for the boys and from Sian Duffy for the girls.
Lauren Stevens was the Club's other winner here with a 4.19 leap in the long
jump while Letitia Noel had to settle for the runner up spot in the 150 metres
despite producing a grade one performance of 20.3.
Kent Young Athletes League, Erith
There were mixed results for the Club’s youngsters at the
latest Kent Young Athletes League match at Erith with both the under 13 and
under 15 girls teams winning but the boys teams placing second and third. This
meant in the combined results the girls were first and the boys came fourth.
Best performance of the day in the Under 15 Boys came from
Matthew Fletcher. He leapt 5.96 in the long jump a grade one performance from a
first year in the age group. He also took 2nd in the 100 with 12.1. Teddy
Cascarino timed a useful 55.8 to win the 400.
For the girls in this age group there was a classy
clearance of 2.40 in the pole vault by Jessica Nicol Smith and there were other
A string wins for Katie Vistuer (100), Grace Sheppard (200), Jessica Saville
(300), Nenisha Nelson Roberts (High Jump) and Emma Armstrong (Discus) as well as
the 4x100 metre team.
Anton Daly had a double victory in the under 13’s age
group taking the 100 and 200 metre races with some ease. Best performances for
the girls came in the field where Mollie Norris won both the shot and discus
contests and Ellie Dumper won the javelin with a throw of 14.94.
