Last updated
11 November 2019
Press Releases for
July, August & September 2007
25/09/07
Blackheath & Bromley athletes achieved great success at
the World Masters Championships in Riccione.
There won’t have been many father/son pairs at the
World Masters. Colin Brand enjoyed a tough competition in the M70 javelin,
eventually finishing 7th, while son Daryl, on a rare visit over from New Zealand
(but competing in GB colours) hurled a leading throw of 60.77m in the first
round, and eventually clung on to third place overall, and a bronze medal.
Beatrice Simpson was everywhere. She threw in the W50
discus, hammer, javelin and weight throw, before taking on the throws pentathlon
on the final day of the championships. Her best placing was 8th in the hammer,
but her 28.24 in the javelin was a Club record. Sadly disaster struck in the
throws pentathlon’s hammer event. The Hammer clattered against the cage, before
crashing back on her foot, breaking her big toe in 12 pieces.
After a stunning season on the track, Bridget Davey chose
to run the marathon. Begun at 9am on a hot morning, and on a course along the
sea-front for much of the way, she timed 3-21-37 for 14th overall. She was third
British W40 finisher, and the GB women won the team race.
On the track. Bob Minting, with gritted teeth at times due
to Achilles trouble, ran the M55 400, 800 and 1,500 metres. He placed 6th in a
scintillating 400 race which contained five Brits, and 8th in the 1,500 later
that same evening, but a few evenings earlier had battled to a bronze medal over
800 metres in 2:11.48. Ken Daniel ran M55 1,500 too and ran one of his best ever
races in the 1,500 to finish 6th, just beating Bob. A couple of races later,
Dave Taylor ran a gutsy 4:02.54, leading for most of the M40 race before
finishing 4th..
Helen Godsell’s low-key season culminated in some superb
sprinting in Riccione as she won the silver medal in the W50 100m and gained 4th
place over 200. She capped a fine Championships with gold as part of the W50
sprint relay team. Also sprinting well after a season of injury niggles was Club
Masters Captain Tom Phillips. Annoyed at missing the M50 100m semis by 0.01 of a
second, Tom blasted from lane 7 in his 200m heat to a win in a new M50 Club
record of 25.07. He managed 6th in his semi-final, just a fraction slower. That
consistency was rewarded with lead-off place in the M50 sprint relay squad. The
strong GB quartet held off the Germans and Americans to win gold in one of the
fastest M50 times run by a GB team.
Will Bolton Memorial Relays.
Blackheath & Bromley's Senior Men had a bright
start to the Winter season as they finished first in the Will Bolton Relays at
Sparrows Den, West Wickham. Over the 2.5 mile course they also provided the two
fastest times of the day from Mike Skinner and Jamie Atkinson. Just one second
separated the duo with Mike just the quicker with 12.48.
Junior Alex Bruce Littlewood got the team off to a good
start as he came in third on the opening stage with 13.28.
Peter Tucker ran 13:01 (4th fastest of the day) to edge up a place on leg two. Skinner swept into the lead on
stage three to give the Club a 32 second advantage
David McKinlay has had a good Summer but following a rest
period he was not perhaps as sharp as he would have liked and he slipped back to
second with 13.52 as he was just overtaken at the end by Tonbridge. Alex Gibbins
restored the lead on the fifth stage as he clocked 13.18 opening a gap of 24
seconds for Jamie Atkinson. Atkinson showed the benefits of the marathon
training he has been doing as he prepares for the Rotterdam Marathon. Looking
strong throughout he extended the lead to over minute. Phil Sesemann have a good
run for the Club's C team as he timed 14.11.
In the womens race the Club's youngsters team of Amy
DeMatos, Jessica Saville, Rebecca Smith and Amy Mitchell just pipped the Senior
squad of Claire Lodwig, Kate Pratten, Ella Fisher and Rosie Ferguson. Rosie
proved the Club's fastest of the day with a time of 16.35.
Tom Bensted
Tom Bensted is the latest athlete to receive a
Jack Petchey Foundation Achievement Award for the month of August. Each month
the club selects one young person, in the 11 to 25 age group to receive an
Achievement Award. The month's winner receives a framed certificate and a cheque
(payable to the club) for £200 to be spent on a club project of the recipient's
choice.
Tom has had an outstanding Summer, under his coach John
Powell, winning both the English Schools and the English Athletics 400 metre
titles. He has been an invaluable addition to the Club's Under 15 boys team
competing with distinction as well over the 100 and 200 metres.
Kent Multi events Champs
Alex Pope is the Kent Decathlon champion after a
very close competition at Erith Stadium. He won despite a troublesome injury
with 6499 points just 63 ahead of the runner up. He started with 11.7 in the 100
metres before leaping 6.38 in the long jump. A 12.85 shot putt was followed with
a new best of 1.81 in the high jump before he finished the first day with a 52.2
in the 400 metres. This left him in third place which was where he remained
after timing 16.4 in the 110 hurdles the next day. His 44.20 in the discus was
easily the best of the day and moved him the second place. In the pole vault the
leader Francois Potgeiter failed to clear a height and with the expert advice of
Allan Williams, Alex soared over 4.10 to again produced the best performance of
the day. His 53.41 in the javelin was also the best of the day, which just left
the 1500 which he survived with 5.17.0.
Kent Under 13 champs
There were plenty of medals for the Club's
youngsters at the Kent Under 13 Championships which were also held at Erith
Stadium. Aaron Lloyd equalled the Championship Best Performance as he scorched
to victory in the 75 metre hurdles in 12.4 despite running into a -2.6 metre per
second headwind. As expected Anton Daly won the boys 100 metres in 12.9 but then
had to settle for second place in the 200 behind Andrew Bryant who has been
injured for much of the year.
Adam Willis set a new best in the long jump to win with a
leap of 4.85 with Eddie Otoyo also setting a new best of 4.71 to pick up silver.
There was a best also for Kristian Britton as he picked up
a bronze in the 800 with 2.21.0. Frances Read was the Club's only winner in the
girls competition. She took the high jump title with a leap of 1.40 to add to
her third place leap of 4.31 in the long jump. There was more success in the
field as Eleanor Dumper took bronze in the shot putt with 7.37.
On the track there were silvers for Dina Asher Smith in
the 150 metres and for Jessica Jones in the 800 metres. Bronze medals went to
Eliza Sargeant (75m), Holly Fletcher (800), Rhiannon Jones (70 metre hurdles)
and Jessica Jones again in the 1200 metres.
Kent Veteran Championships
There was more success for the Club's athletes at
the Kent Veteran Championships at Erith including four Championship Best
Performances. Barbara Terry grabbed two in the over 60s age group with 20.42 in
the javelin and 23.49 in the discus. She also won the shot with 8.97 in a
seasons best, so close to the 9 metre target she has set herself since having a
knee replacement. She also won the Hammer with 25.17.
Daryl Brand enjoyed a rare competition in Britain since he
emigrated to New Zealand nearly 20 years ago. His Championship best came in the
javelin an event in which he competed for England in the 1986 Commonwealth
Games. He threw 57.11. Keeping CBPs in the family his father Colin annexed the
M70 javelin title with 38.87.
Ricky Fox enjoyed a win in the over 40's 100 metres in
12.8 and grabbed silver in the 200 metres as well. Jane Bradshaw was a class
apart in the w35s 1500 and there were wins also for Gordon Hickey in the M70
shot and discus to add to his silvers in the javelin and hammer.
Parris Handicap
This month saw the final running of the summer series of 6 races for the
Parris Memorial Shield. The trophy honours Roy Parris, a club member who sadly
died in 1998 following an heroic battle against cancer.
The races are run on a yacht handicap basis whereby the
slowest runner starts first and others follow at timed intervals thereafter.
This gives all runners an equal chance of winning each race, whatever their
ability. Points are awarded for the position that runners finish in the race.
These points are totalled up at the end of the series and the runner with the
highest points tally is declared the winner.
This year saw a record number of 89 participants, with 7
runners competing in all 6 races, namely Mike Cronin, David Churchus, Mike
Salmon, Clare Lodwig, Andy Lawes, Rhiannon Lloyd and Anne Cilia. The overall
result was in doubt right up to the final race, but congratulations went to the
eventual winner, past president Anne Cilia, with Rhiannon Lloyd second and Andy
Lawes third. Anne has the double distinction of being the first person to win
the trophy for a second time.
Thanks to Tom Phillips and Rob Brown for their help in
writing this report.
18/09/07
Blackheath & Bromley's Under 20 women are officially the
fifth best team in the whole of Europe. They placed 5th out 8 teams in the A
final of the European Champions Club Cup for Juniors at Brno in the Czech
Republic.
As the "A" indicates, the 8 teams taking part were the
cream of Europes Clubs with the bottom two being relegated to the B final next
year. There is also a C Final.
Although the squad placed third in Moscow last year, the
result in 2007 was every bit as good a team effort as the Club were deprived of
the services of two of its best athletes Anike Shand Whittingham, through
illness and Serita Solomon with a long term injury. Had they been able to take
part the team would almost certainly have finished third behind the teams from
Moscow and Brno.
Given the quality of the opposition, individual medals for
top three placings were always going to be at a premium, especially as the
standard was higher than in 2006. For example, Shaungh Brown, a winner last year
in the discus had to settle for bronze this year with a distance of 45.22. She
also placed 4th in the shot with a putt of 12.83.
There were three silvers for the team, however, and none
came closer to a gold medal than Jade Dodd. She led until the very last throw of
the javelin contest with a throw of 48.12, only to be overtaken by the Serbian
athlete who threw 48.33. Rachel Arnheim comfortably cleared 3.40 in the pole
vault to secure second place on count back and there was a pleasant surprise of
a second place in the 4x100 from the quartet of Emily Martin, Lauren Blackie,
Amy Godsell and Daniella Annon with a time of 48.53.
Lauren had earlier set a new best in the triple jump with
an excellent leap of 11.98 which secured her a well deserved bronze medal.
A number of athletes just missed out on medals as there
were 4th places for Amy Godsell (200) who had earlier won the non scoring 100,
Bryony Proctor (3000), Banke Jemiyo (Hammer) and the 4x400 team of Vaness
Nakangu, Katie Murray, Katrina Cosby and Isobel Ivy who timed 3.57.26.
As ever, however, this was a team competition and every
athlete contributed to the excellent result. As well as the relay Katie Murray
also set a seasons best in the 800 as well as racing the 1500; Vanessa Nakangu
placed 5th in the 400 as did Emily Martin in the long jump. Sarah McLellan
defied a troublesome foot injury to place in the 400 hurdles and 100 hurdles and
youngest member of the team Daniella Annon came 6th in the 100 in a very useful
12.40.
But perhaps the most gutsy performance came from Rebecca
Taylor. Despite being unfit she tackled the 3000 metres steeplechase. It was a
long hard race but she scored two important points for the team.
A team contest in the competition area, it was just as
much so in the stands where the supporters, managers coaches and reserves
cheered themselves hoarse, quite literally in the case of Victoria Thomas, but
also a team effort in the overall organisation of the event in which trip
organiser Andy Frankish did the Club proud.
The Club would not have been able to take part in the
contest had it not had support from, The Jack Petchey Foundation, Nike, UK
Athletics, Bromley Mytime, the London Borough Of Bromley, numerous individual
donors and the athletes and their parents.
The Club have qualified for the competition again in 2008
although the venue has yet to be confirmed. With only a small number of athletes
moving out of the age group the Club is confident that it will again be able to
compete successfully against Europe's elite.
Results and pictures are here.
As the press officer has been away with the team
details and reports on the World veterans, the Kent Multi Events, Kent Under 13
and other fixtures will appear asap.
11/09/07
Blackheath & Bromley won their second National title in
two weeks when they triumphed in the National Junior League Final at Derby. Last
week the Under 17s, Under 15s and Under 13s won the National Young Athletes
League title but this week it was the turn of the Under 20s squad, which can
include under 17s, to take centre stage. Not only did the Club win the title for
the second year running since it became a joint scoring men and womens match,
but the girls squad will represent the United Kingdom in the European Champion
Clubs Cup in 2008 as they were the top womens team on the day.
The Club also provided two of the four athletes of the
match. Anike Shand Whittingham took the womens track award for her 11.85 win in
the 100 metres, an impressive time as the athletes were running into a -2.2
metres per second headwind. She also won the 200 metres in 24.33, again into a
minus headwind. Second claimer Jay Thomas won the Male field event award for his
16.68 putt in the shot.
As with the Young Athletes Final last week the Club led
from the start, opening with a double victory in the Hammer courtesy of Alistair
Williamson and Richard AlAmeen, while Shaungh Brown won the shot. Yet the lead
was never very large and victory was only secured by all athletes in the squad
striving in their events to score as many points as possible for the team. Most
dramatic win of the day came in the mens' pole vault. Here Scott Huggins had
secured victory but then disaster struck as his pole snapped as he attempted to
clear 4.70. After some medical attention for some bumps and bruises he bounced
back on to the runway to clear the bar at his first attempt. He then raised the
bar to a new Scottish Junior Record of 4.86 but wasn't able to clear.
There was more success in the field with Kola Adedoyin
winning the mens triple jump with a leap of 14.10 and a double victory in the
womens javelin from Jade Dodd and Sarah McGuire. Demonstrating the strength in
depth of the squad, Katrina Cosby's time of 64.38 in winning B string 400
hurdles was actually quicker than the A string. Other B string victories came
from James Alaka in the 100, Liam Presnell (discus), Isobel Ivy (400), Flo Clark
(discus), Anna Smith (high jump), Lauren Blackie (long jump) and Emily Godley
(pole vault).
For Mens team manager Brendan McShane it was " a just
reward for all the athletes hard work during the season". It also a reward for
his and womens team manager Jean Blackwell's endeavors as well as the coaches
officials, supporters and sponsors Nike, The Jack Petchey Foundation and the
Trust Partnership.
Match result. 1. Blackheath & Bromley (511) 2. Enfield &
Haringey (482.5) 3. Shaftesbury Barnet (451) 4. Birchfield (421) 5. Sale
Harriers Manchester (368.5) 6. Leeds City (338) 7. West Wales (325) 8. Windsor
Slough Eton and Hounslow (290)
Meanwhile in Bristol, Jamie Atkinson finished in 16th
place in the Bristol Half Marathon which incorporated the England Championships.
Being a National Championship the race attracted a high quality field. His time
of 68.21 was a new personal best and will give him confidence as he builds up to
his first full marathon.
Peter Tucker finished in 25th place also in a new best of
70.18. He too has been in good form recently having won the 5000 metres at the
Southern Inter Counties match at Portsmouth last month. His time was a promising
15.09.9.
Closer to home many of the Clubs athletes were in action
at the Kent Relay Championships at Norman Park. With the clash with the Junior
League Final, the interest was in the younger age groups and they didn’t
disappoint.
Four Blackheath & Bromley teams qualified for the under 13
girls 100 metres final and they took both the gold and silver medals in an
exciting race. The B team were in the lead at the last change over before A team
runner Georgina Middleton chased down Rachel Giannini for victory. So it was
gold for Georgina, Dina Asher Smith, Jessica Moore and Eliza Sargeant in a time
of 55.2 and silver for Rachel, Lara Lalemi, Charlotte Colgate and Lauren Pariola
Birch in 55.9. It was gold too for the boys 4x100 team of Eddie Otoyo, Raphael
Maloney, Aaran Lloyd and Anton Daly in 52.5.
In the 3x800 the girls struck gold again with a trio of
Holly Fletcher, Nancy Carney and Jessica Jones coming home in 7.51.2.
The boys team of Alex Lister, Adam Willis and Kristian Britton had to settle for
silver medals in 7.41.5.
In the Under 15 age group it was the turn of the boys to
claim gold as the 4x400 quartet of James Clack, Stephen Camacho, Ben Parkin and
Tom Bensted swept to victory in 3.42.4. Tom was also part of the 4x100 team with
Kieran Daly, Jonathan Pettet and Pharjeon Okotie who won bronze medals in 47.6.
The girls team of Danielle Critchley, Krystal Galley and
Michelle Fewster picked up silver medals in the 3x800 in 7.25.9.
4/09/07
Montell Douglas was part of the Great Britain team which
narrowly missed out on a medal in the 4X100 at the World Athletics Championships
in Osaka. The team finished in fourth place behind the teams from the USA,
Jamaica and Belgium.
She has been in good form at these Championships. The
Blackheath & Bromley athlete finished third in her first round heat of the 100
metres in a time of 11.39. In the quarter finals she had a good start and after
50 metres looked as if she might qualify for the semi final. However she
eventually had to settle for 6th place in 11.43.
Blackheath and Bromley's Young Athletes bounced back from
the disappointment of finishing runners up last year to be crowned National
track and field Champions in 2007. In the National Young Athletes League Final
in Birmingham they led from start to finish in a keenly competitive match to win
by 36.5 points from last years champions Enfield & Haringey.
Over 250 Clubs took part in the League this season and the
Club can proudly boast that they have been National Champions in three of the
last four years since the competition became a joint scoring boys and girls
competition.
Aaron Lloyd won the male track athlete of the match award
for his performance in the 75 metre hurdles which he won in a new Meeting Best
Performance of 12.11. He also joined James Pinnock, Raphael Maloney and Anton
Daly to win the 4x100 in an excellent 51.49. There was a MBP also from Banke
Jemiyo as she set a new best of 43.20 to win the under 17 women's hammer.
This was above all, however, a team competition with every
athlete's individual performance contributing to make it such a memorable day
for the Club. The squad could not have been better prepared for the 7 and a half
hour meeting as they watched boys team captain Aston Stockdale's motivational
video on the coach to the stadium.
His efforts certainly paid off as the team were quickest
out the blocks with a double win in the under 17 men's hammer from Andrew Jordon
and Jake Haylock. Andrew won the A string event by nearly 9 metres and Jake
produced yet another personal best improving to 54.95 a distance which would
have won the A event but meant that he triumphed by over 18 metres in the B
contest.
Similarly in the opening track event Katrina Cosby stormed
to victory in the A string 300 hurdles in her second quickest ever time and Amy
DeMatos claimed second in the B event. The B & B charge had begun.
They soon had a 20 point lead and although this was
reduced to eight points at one stage, every time they looked as if they might be
caught, one of team would produce an inspirational performance to regain the
momentum. On the track, for example, Tom Bensted claimed A string victories in
the under 15 boys 100 and 400 and gained 2nd in the 200 metres; Jessica Jones
had the crowd on their feet as she swept from fourth to first in the last 100
metres of the under 13 girls 1200 metres; Phil Sesemann dominated the Frank
Starkie Memorial Under 15 boys 1500 metres race to win by over seven seconds;
Ben Hopkins defied injury to win the under 15 boys 80 metre hurdles; and
Daniella Annon won the 300 metres in only her second attempt at the distance.
Likewise in the field Sarah McGuire and Helen Silvester
grabbed double gold in the under 17 javelin; Kelly Davey enjoyed a double
victory in the under 15s shot and discus; Charlee Debola raised the bar in the
under 15 boys pole vault to win in a new best of 3.11; and Jessica Matthews
equalled her seasons best to win the under 17s high jump in 1.65.
Under 15s team manager Jonathan Stockdale's highlight was
the Hammer. "At the start of the season I had no throwers at all and yet we
ended the year winning both strings of the Hammer in the National Final" This
came courtesy of Mehmet Takpak and Joseph Cooper. Not winning last year
obviously gave the youngsters an edge in 2007 but other contributing factors
included the reopening of Norman Park 8 lane track; the flourishing Bees Academy
run by John Blackie for School years 4 to 7; the dedicated work of the Clubs
coaches and team managers; and the support of sponsors Nike, The Trust
Partnership, The Jack Petchey Foundation, Albert Vinson, and Pizza Hut, where
the team dined after the match.
The afternoon finished on a high with Dan Putnam, who has
had a magnificent season and earlier won the 400 metres, storming round the
final leg of the under 17 mens 4x400 to cross the line first. Winners in this
event, winners on the day and winners all season, National Champions.
28/08/07
Montell Douglas has been in good form for Great Britain at
the World Athletics Championships in Osaka. The Blackheath & Bromley athlete
finished third in her first round heat of the 100 metres in a time of 11.39. In
the quarter finals she had a good start and after 50 metres looked as if she
might qualify for the semi final. However she eventually had to settle for 6th
place in 11.43. She now looks forward to the 4x100 metres relays.
Michael Skinner was just outside his best for 5000 metres
at the Nike British Milers Club races at Crystal Palace winning in 13.53.84.
There was a new best though for Shavaun Henry as she placed third in the 3000
steeplechase in 10.56.70, just two seconds outside the Club Record. David
McKinlay and Martin Airey timed 1.55.95 and 1.57.24 for 800 metres while Alex
Bruce Littlewood and Bryony Proctor ran 4.06.24 and 4.42.07 for 1500.
Last Wednesday Philip Sesemann ran the fastest 3000 metres
time in the country this year by an under 15 boy at the Watford Open Meeting.
Paced by training partner Jamie Atkinson the 14 year old made a big improvement
in his personal best by finishing in 9.19.25. Andrew Conway finished just ahead
of him in 9.13.49.
The meeting also saw the welcome return to competition of
Russell Bentley after a long period in Kenya and Australia. He timed 4.09.70 for
1500 and also won the 400 metres F race.
At the BMC races at Sutcliffe Park Dave McKinlay timed
4.04.9 for 1500 metres just ahead of Alex Gibbins who ran 4.05.5. Alex Bruce
Littlewood finished in 4.09.9.
A small number of the Club’s athletes were in action at
the UK Schools Games with many of them Setting new bests. Dan Putnam was just
shy of breaking through the 49 second barrier for 400 as he finished in 49.04.
Katrina Cosby slashed a second off her best in the 300 hurdles as she finished
in 44.52.
In the field Banke Jemiyo launched the hammer out to a new
best of 42.77 with five of her six throws measuring further than her previous
best.
Isobel Ivy in the triple jump with a leap of 11.14 and
Katherine Jones with a putt of 10.91 in the shot both finished in 7th place in
their events.
More of the Club’s athletes were competing in the under 20
and under 15s Inter County match at Copthall with five of them winning events.
Anike Shand Whittingham, who won a gold medal in the 4x100
at the European Junior Championships, made a big improvement in her personal
best to win the 200 metres in 24.00 an din the Mens’ event James Alaka swept to
victory in a new best of 21.36. He had earlier finished third in the 100 metres
in 10.59 with Funmi Sobodo placing 4th in 10.71. Vanessa Nakangu won the womens’
400 metres in 57.55 and Chelsea O Rawe Hobbs the 3000 walk in 15.58.96.
In the field Richard AlAmeen won the Hammer in a new best
of 57.63 and there was a new best also for his brother Alex who finished second
in the 110 hurdles in 14.26. Bryony Proctor was third in the 1500 in 4.42.44.
Highlight in the under 15s age group was a new Club Record
in the girls pole vault from Jessica Nicol Smith who cleared 3 metres to finish
in second place. It was second place also in the boys event for Charlee Debolla
again with a height of three metres.
Tom Bensted took second in the 400 in 51.34 and Phil
Sesemann was just outside his best in finishing third in the 1500. Stephen
Camacho was 12th in the long jump with a leap of 5.36.
The Club Championships at Norman Park produced another
Club Record as Siobhan Parr soared over 2.20 in the under 13s pole vault and
over a dozen personal best were set in the various age group events.
Scott Huggins attempted to break his Scottish Junior
Record for the pole vault but had to settle in the end for a height of 4.60.
Alex Pope used the meeting to do some fine tuning for the Kent Decathlon and won
both the Senior Mens’ discus and javelin contests with throws of 46.74 and
48.99. There was a welcome return to the track for Steve Timmins who won the
shot with 12.10. Neil Francis set a new best to win the 400 in 50.4 to add to
his 100 gold.
Daniella Annon impressed in the under 17s age group. After
winning the 100 she moved up in distance for her first ever 300 metres where she
achieved a National Grade One performance by timing 41.4. Grace Sheppard’s 42.7
was also her fastest ever.
There were more bests in the under 15s age group where
Mark Longhurst cleared 3.00 metres to win the boys event and Anna Huggins went
over 2.20 in the girls event behind winner Jessica Nicol Smith.
Kelly Davey had an excellent afternoon with new pbs of
10.58 and 25.53 in the shot and discus. There were a plethora of new bests in
the under 13 age group with three in the 75 metres from Georgina Middleton
(10.7), Frances Read (10.7) and Lauren Pariola-Birch (10.9). Georgina’s leap of
4.04 to win the long jump was also a best as were Frances’ 12.7 and Rachel
Giannini in the 70 metre hurdles.
In the under 11a Gina Kennedy enjoyed wins in the ball
throw and long jump as well as a mightily impressive gun to tape victory in the
600 metres.
21/08/07
Dwayne Grant has had to withdraw from the Great Britain
team for the World Athletics Championships in Osaka. The Blackheath & Bromley
athlete was forced to make the decision because of a hamstring injury. This is a
blow for the 25 year old sprinter who had been selected for the 4x100 squad. He
now returns to his training base in Spain to plan his recovery and programme for
the Winter.
Anike Shand Whittingham was the Club's star performer at
the British Athletics League 10 in 100 Cup Final at Bedford. She won the women's
100 metres in 11.87 a time which was over two tenths quicker than the runner up.
On the down side the heavy traffic meant that she was too late to race in the
200 metres earlier. She did, however, run a useful leg in the medley relay. Best
performance for the men came from Scott Huggins. The Scottish Junior record
holder finished runner up in the pole vault with a clearance of 4.60, a good
effort considering the wet and windy conditions which affected all jumpers.
Overall points were hard to come by as each of the eight
team matches contained the top teams in the country and reaching he final was an
achievement in itself. Southern Men's League team manager David McKinlay scored
some useful points with fourth places in both the 800 and the 3000 steeplechase.
His time of 10.01.99 was impressive considering he had only run the 800 an hour
before.
There was 4th place also for James Alaka in the 200
metres, a good placing for the first year junior against seniors. Alistair
Williamson was just outside his best in the Hammer with a distance of 58.39.
More important points came from Duayne Bovell (100), Ed
Harrison (400), Dan Ryan (1500) Sam Bobb (triple jump), Alex Pope (discus) and
the medley relay team of Bovell, Alaka, Neil Francis and Ian Allerton.
The team finished in 6th place and had the satisfaction of
beating Windsor Slough Eton and Hounslow who were promoted to the Premier League
this season.
The women's team finished equal 7th in their match, level
on points with Midland Giants Birchfield Harriers. Captain Liz Hughes took 4th
place in the pole vault despite a wrist injury while Rachel Blackie took 5th
place in the Hammer with a throw of 52.32 to add to the points she scored in the
discus.
Sarah McLellan returned from holiday to race the 100
hurdles but also filled in at the last moment in the 200. Other valuable points
came from Vanessa Nakangu (400), Jessica Saville (800), Jennie Butler (3000) and
Lauren Blackie (triple jump).
Following the recent triumphs of the Club’s Juniors and
Young Athletes it was the turn of the veterans to take centre stage. Both the
men and women won their respective matches at the Southern Veterans Final at
Ashford to make it a memorable day for the Club.
The women were pushed all the way by a strong Havant side
but eventually prevailed by 27 points. The mens’ match was even closer with
reigning champions Oxford City taking the lead for part of the afternoon before
the B & B squad rallied to secure victory before the final relay. Past President
and Mens’ Team Manager commented “ This was the Club at its very best with team
spirit in abundance”. It was a fitting finale to a successful but difficult
season with the passing of ones of the team’s greatest supporters Jim Day who
died a few weeks ago. Had he been there he would no doubt have been in the thick
of things and would have been proud of his team mates performances. He was in
everyone’s thoughts during the day.
Womens’ team manager and another Past President Anne Cilia
commented “We had 12 women contesting 42 individual events and 8 relays and we
managed to fill all slots. Everyone there mattered and the absence of anyone
would have left a gap.”
Bridget Davey produced an exciting finish to the 1500 to
snatch victory and she also scored maximum points in the 800 and 3000. Helen
Godsell dominated the over 50 sprints with wins in the 100, 200 and 400 and
contributing legs to two winning relay teams.
Beatrice Simpson went even better with four individual
wins which included new over 50 Club Records in both the high jump (1.20) and
Hammer (37.76).
Barbara Terry stepped down in age groups to place 2nd in
the over 35’s javelin and hammer but also won the over 50’s discus and had time
to compete in her own age group as she placed second in the over 60’s shot.
Annie McDonough was another who broke a Club Record
improving her 800 time to 2.51.1 as she placed second in the over 50’s age
group.
Another Past President Maureen Miller won the over 35’s
400 and added runner up spots in the 100 and 200.
Elsewhere Nanette Cross scored vital points in six
different events at the age of 67 including a new Club Record of 1.05 in the
high jump and Mel Healey returned to action to race over the 200, 400 and relay.
Similarly Justine Eastbury, Miranda Porritt and Heather Symmons kept the points
coming, all, of course, inspired by their team manager Anne Cilia who hurt her
hamstring early in the day.
Highest points score for the men was Rob Hall who competed
in all three middle distance events as well as contributing in the field. Clem
Leon featured in six individual events scoring 22.5 points for the team.
On the track there were individual wins for Alan Camp in
the over 50’s 1500 and 3000 races; Tom Phillips in the over 50’s 200; Shaun
Lightman in the over 35’s 2000 walk; Nigel Keogh in the B string 200 and 400
over 35’s races and from Jon Thorpe in the over 35’s B 800 metres.
In the field Colin Brand enjoyed a successful afternoon
with victories in the over 60’s shot and javelin despite being in his 70s.
Like Colin, Gordon Hickey was often up against athletes
twenty years younger, while John Baldwin was in action in the over 60’s 1500
despite being aged 70.
Former team manager John Turner returned to the team and
the contribution of new veterans such as Richard Holt also helped make the
difference.
14/08/07
Dwayne Grant has been added to the Great Britain
selections for the World Championships in Osaka at the end of August. The
Blackheath & Bromley athlete has been chosen as part of the mens 4x100 squad
subject to him recovering from injury.
Montell Douglas received news of her selection last week
and she celebrated by finishing second in the LEAP International meeting at
Loughborough in another good time of 11.36.
There were some swift times recorded in the men's 100
metres with Funmi Sobodo timing 10.58, James Alaka 10.63 and Dwayne Bovell
10.80.
Three Club members travelled to Stretford for the latest
British Milers Club meeting. David McKinlay and Dan Ryan timed 1.54.27 and
1.56.31 respectively for 800. This was a new best for David. James Poole ran
3.56.39 for 1500.
Tom Bensted was the Club’s star performer at the England
Athletics Under 17 and Under 15 Championships at Sheffield. He won the under 15s
400 metre title in an excellent 51.24 to add to the English Schools title he won
last month.
Jessica Nicol Smith set a new Club Record in the under 15
girls pole vault as she cleared 2.90 to finish in 6th place.
A number of other athletes were even closer to medals. Dan
Putnam stepped down in distance to place 4th in the 200 metres having set a new
best of 21.84 in his semi. He also ran a new best of 11.16 for the 100.
There was a new best also for Marcus Morrison in the
triple jump. He leapt 14.24 but had to settle for 4th place a few centimeters
off third.
Ben Hopkins was also 4th in the 80 metre hurdles, his
performance being hampered by a hamstring niggle. The Club retained the overall
title in the Kent Young Athletes League match at Sutcliffe Park and won three of
the four individual age group titles as well.
As normal there were numerous good individual
performances. In the under 15s age group Philip Sesemann ran an impressive
9.28.9 for the 3000 metres to win his race by over half a minute. Other wins on
the track came from Pharjeon Okotie in the 100 and James Clack in the 800. In
the field Matthew Fletcher continued his comeback from injury to win the long
jump with a leap of 5.52 while Charlee Debolla soared over 2.70 to win the pole
vault and Mehmet Takpak took the shot title by just five centimetres.
A team is only as good as its B strings so wins for Oliver
Taylor with a diverse combination of 800 and pole vault, Hector Kurtyanek (3000)
and Kieran Daly (long jump) were also important factors in the team victory on
the day and the season.
For the girls in this age group there were maximum points
in the A string middle distance races with victories for Danielle Critchley in
the 800 and Sophia Maslin in the 1500. Nenisha Nelson Roberts and Sian Duffy
secured a double victory in the 75 metre hurdles. In the field Letitia Noel won
the shot with a useful 9.36 and Amara Jacobs enjoyed a successful afternoon with
victories in the B string 200 and long jump. She finished the afternoon by
joining Nenisha, Sian and Christine Lyston to win the 4x100 metres.
Anton Daly dominated the sprints in the under 13 age group
winning the 100 metres by over a second and the 200 by an astonishing three
seconds. Adam Willis won the long jump with a leap of 4.70 to add to his runner
up spot in the 800. James Pinnock won both the 100 and high jump B string events
with further wins coming from Raphael Maloney (200 and long jump), Liam Cater
(discus and javelin), and Bradleah Haylock (shot).
The girls were all powerful in the track and jumps winning
both strings of all events except the 2000 walk. Dina Asher Smith won both the
75 and 150 metre races with Eliza Sargeant and Holly Fletcher winning the B
strings.
Holly also won the 600 in 1.48.9 and Nancy Carney
the B string in 1.51.3. Jessica Jones and Hannah Cook produced another double
win in the 1000 metres and Jessica then won the B string 70 hurdles.
Most successful athlete of the day was Frances Read who
not only won the a string 70 hurdles but also the high jump and B long jump.
Jesica Moore won the A long jump and Eliza Sargeant gained
another win in the B High Jump. The squad finished an excellent afternoon with
Eliza, Dina Asher Smith, Jessica Moore and Frances Read teaming up to win the
4x100.
The League makes a series of awards each year for the best
performers in each event and age group. Full details will be supplied when
available.
7/08/07
Montell Douglas has been selected to represent Great
Britain in the 100 metres at the World Championships in Osaka at the end of
August. She was picked on the basis of the 11.28 which she ran at the European
Under 23 Championships last month. She has also been picked for the 4x100 squad.
A number of Club members were in action at the Norwich
Union Grand Prix at Crystal Palace. Michael Skinner lined up in a high class two
mile field finishing in 14th place with a time of 8.41.59.
Dwayne Grant ran for the Great Britain 4X100 metre B team
and was running well down the back straight before picking up an injury. He is
currently up in Loughborough training with the GB relay squad and will know this
week whether he has made the squad for the World Championships. Anike Shand
Whittingham was an impressive winner of the Under 20 women’s 100 metres crossing
the line in 11.77 despite racing into a –1.0 metre per second headwind. Bryony
Proctor took 14th place in the under 20 women’s 3000 metres race.
Despite a valiant team effort Blackheath & Bromley were
relegated from Division One of the British Athletics League after the final
match of the year at Copthall Stadium. It was always going to be a tall order to
stay up as, not only did the team need to finish very high in the 8 team match,
but, they were also dependent upon other Club's finishing in certain positions
to avoid the drop. For much of the afternoon they lay in 2nd and 3rd positions
and such were the positions of the opposition that they were set to stay up.
However, the latter field events were not the Club's strongest and this combined
with a disqualification in the 4x100 meant the team eventually finished 6th.
This meant that they finished bottom of the division despite never finishing
last in a match and having beaten five of the other Club's in division at
various times during the season. Despite the gloom of the final result there
were, nevertheless, some breakthrough performances from the Club's athletes.
Alex Pope set a new best in the discus of 50.80, an outstanding distance for a
decathlete, and as he had a busy afternoon he only took a couple of throws.
Junior Liam Presnell also recorded a new best in the B string of 41.60.
There were personal bests too in the hammer from two more
juniors as Alistair Williamson launched the Senior implement out to 58.96
improving his previous best by nearly six metres. This gained him 2nd place in
the contest ahead of Commonwealth Games representative Iain Park of Harrow and
with Richard AlAmeen winning the B string with 47.79 the Club achieved near
maximum points in this event.
Maximum points were gained in the 1500 where captain
Michael Skinner, who had earlier placed 3rd in the 800 and raced in the Grand
Prix at Crystal Palace over 2 miles the night before, shrugged off the symptoms
of a cold to sprint to victory and win by nearly a second. Fast improving James
Poole made it full points for the team taking the B race by nearly six seconds.
Ever present in the team this year, Ed Harrison, stacked up good points in the
400 hurdles as he placed 2nd in 53.41 and there was an excellent BAL debut from
Alex AlAmeen who placed 3rd in the 110 hurdles in 15.09 despite running into a
-1.9 headwind. Alex Gibbins set a new best in the steeplchase.
The other ever presents in the team this year were the
afore mentioned Alex Pope who again competed in seven events and Bomene Barikor
and Peter Tucker.
For the team to bounce back next season there will need to
be more athletes available for all matches as they will need to field strong
teams in all fixtures. They can perhaps take heart from the fact that the last
time the Club dropped to the third tier of League competition in the country in
the early 90's the squad responded by achieving two successive promotions. With
a young team and more athletes coming through after some lean years at Young
Athletes level at the turn of the decade, competing in the Premiership in 2010
is a realistic goal for the Club.
There were mixed emotions for the Senior Women’s team in
the final UK Women’s League match of the season at Liverpool. They won the match
but missed out on promotion by just nine match points as they finished level on
League points with the host Club.
While it was a useful squad that travelled North they had
probably not expected victory but with many talented athletes who were prepared
to do more than just their normal events the seeds for a famous victory were
sown.
GB Junior International Shaunagh Brown grabbed victories
in both the shot and discus but also scored useful points with a third place in
the B hammer.
Pole vaulters Liz Hughes and Rachel Arnheim scored maximum
points in their specialist event but Liz also finished runner up in the B shot
and 6th in the A javelin. Rachel’s clearance of 3.45 in the vault was a new best
and she celebrated by placing 6th in the high jump and then volunteering for the
3000 metres finishing in 4th place in the B race. Considering the team were just
4.5 points ahead of Liverpool at the end of the afternoon performances such as
this made all the difference. The other A string victories of the day came from
Rachel Blackie in the Hammer with 50.02 and the 4x100 team of Katy Benneworth,
Lauren Blackie, Amy Godsell and Vickie Cole who tore round the track in a very
useful 48.3.
Lauren had earlier set a new best of 11.70 to finish 2nd
in the triple jump and there were new bests also for Bryony Proctor with 2.18.0
in the 800 and Vanessa Nakangu in the 400 with 56.8. Lauren also won the B
string long jump and there were other B string wins for Sam Singer in the 400
and Katy Benneworth in triple jump.
All these efforts weren’t quite enough to secure promotion
and so the team remain in Division Three of the National League.
31/07/07
Michael Skinner ran a season's best in the 5000 metres at
the World Championship Trials in Manchester. However, the Blackheath & Bromley
athlete had to settle for the silver medal behind British number one Mo Farah.
Skinner was the Club's only medallist of the weekend but
Montell Douglas just missed out as she placed fourth in the 100 metres. Having
already run 11.28 this year she should at least get a place in the Great Britain
4x100 metre squad for the World Championships.
Training partners Victoria Thomas and Rachel Blackie
finished 7th and 8th in the Women’s Hammer final with distances of 53.43 and
53.26.
Duayne Bovell ran well in the men's 100 to make the semi
final.
After Blackheath & Bromley's young athletes became
Southern Champions last week it was the turn of the Club's Junior (under 20's)
team to do the same this week. In the first National Junior League fixture to
take place at Norman Park since 1995, the Club ran out winners of the final
match of the season to secure the Southern title by four League points.
This means they have qualified for the National Final in
Derby in September where they will attempt to defend the title they won last
year. In 2006 the Club only finished third in the Southern Division and still
won the National title.
Kola Adedoyin received the Male Athlete Of the Match for
his 14.64 metre leap in the triple jump. There were a number of eye catching
performances on the day. Simon Merrill took the 110 hurdles race on his debut
for the Club, crossing the line in 14.5 while in the field Alistair Williamson
and Richard AlAmeen scored maximum points in the Hammer.
There were maximum points also in the women's 400 hurdles
from Katie Murray and from Katrina Cosby who was making her debut in the event;
and in the discus from Shaunagh Brown and captain Florence Clark. Earlier
Shaunagh had teamed up with Katherine Jones for a double victory in the shot
putt. Jade Dodd won the javelin by over 10 metres with a throw of 46.65. The
afternoon finished on a high with wins in both relays for the women and second
places for the men.
Meanwhile the National Masters Championships were taking
place in Birmingham with the Club’s athletes picking up five gold, seven silver
and six bronze medals.
Highlight was a new British Record for Colin Brand in the
over 70’s javelin with 38.23 and he also won the discus and claimed bronze in
the shot putt.
Barbara Terry won the over 60’s discus and she also won
silvers in the shot, hammer and weight. Peter Hannell took the over 60s 3000
walk title and Clem Leon retained his over 50s high jump title with a leap of
1.55.
Clem also took silver in the triple jump and there were a
hat trick of silvers for Beatrice Simpson in the over 50s javelin, weight and
hammer to add to a bronze in the discus.
Gordon Hickey struck bronze in the over 70s javelin and on
the track there were third places in the over 50s 5000 for Alan Camp and in the
over 50’s 1500 for Ken Daniel.
At Luton the Senior Women produced a remarkable team
performance to finish second in their latest Southern League match of the
season. No one would have predicted this at the start of the meeting as with the
clash with all the other meetings on this weekend there were only five athletes
available.
However the fantastic five of Katy Benneworth, Maureen
Miller, Carolyna Jones Baldock, Stephanie Allerton and Anne Cilia all covered
five individual events each to produce a memorable result.
On the track there were double wins in the 400 hurdles
(Stephanie and Carolyna) and 400 (Maureen and Stephanie) and Katy won both the
100 and 200 metre races. In the field Maureen claimed second place in the shot
to add to her runner up spot in the B string hammer.
The afternoon reached a rousing climax with Stephanie,
Carolyna, Katy and Maureen winning the 4x400 by nearly a 100 metres.
24/07/07
Anike Shand Whittingham was part of the Great Britain
women's 4x100 metres team that won gold at the European Junior Championships in
Hengelo. The Blackheath & Bromley athlete ran the opening stage to set up Ashlee
Nelson, Hayley Jones and Asha Philip for victory in 44.78. In the 100 metres she
finished 6th in the final in 11.82 having run a swift 11.67 in her heat.
Funmi Sobodu and James Alaka were part of the GB men's
4x100 squad that picked up the silver medals. Both ran in the semi final as the
quartet swept to victory in 40.40. Funmi ran in the final as the team finished
just two seconds down on the German team in 39.83.
James qualified comfortably in the first round of the
individual 100 metres in 10.62 but went out in the semi final as he placed 6th
in 10.77.
On the back of their performances at the English Schools
Championships, second claim member Kola Adedoyin and Marcus Morrison were both
selected to represent England in the triple jump at the Home Countires
International in Newport. They finished first and second with distances of 14.28
and 14.12, the latter being a new best for Marcus.
Both the Club’s Senior teams are waiting to see if they
have qualified for the British Athletics League 10 in 100 Cup competition. The
men and women both finished second in their matches at Copthall and with only
the winners qualifying for the final the teams go into a paper match to decide
which two Clubs join the six winners in the final at Bedford in August.
The men have been having a tough time of it in the League
this year but despite being bottom of Division one they had the satisfaction of
beating by one point Newham & Essex Beagles who won the most recent Premier
Division match. Shaftesbury won both mens’ and womens’ matches.
Best performance for the men came from Tom Robinson who
won the pole vault with a clearance of 4.20 despite the atrocious weather. A
late call up for Martin Airey did not stop him for grabbing second place in an
exciting 800 metres finish and there were runners up spots for Alex Pope in the
shot and the medley relay team of Bomene Barikor, Duayne Bovell, Neil Francis
and Ed Harrison. Bomene, Duayne and Ed had earlier finished 3rd in the 400, 100
and 400 hurdles respectively and there were 3rd places also for Daniel Haque in
the 200, Peter Tucker in the 3000 metres and Alex Pope in the shot.
In the women’s match Sam Singer won the 400 metres with
ease finishing over a second clear of the runner up. It was maximum points also
for Liz Hughes in the pole vault as she cleared 3.40. Sam then linked with
Jessica Saville, Vicki Cole and Katy Benneworth for an impressive win in the
medley relay.
Runner up spots came from Shaunagh Brown in the shot and
Vicki Cole in the 100; while Katy Benneworth (200) and Lauren Blackie (triple
jump) achieved third places.
Jessica Saville achieved her second fastest ever 800 on
her debut for the team and Jennie Butler and Carolyna Jones-Baldock scored
important point in the 1500 and 400 hurdles to allow the Club to finish five
points clear of Herne Hill.
The Club's youngsters are Southern Champions of the
National Young Athletes League as they won their fifth and final match of the
season at Norman Park. Going into the match B & B and Windsor, Slough, Eton &
Hounslow had both won four out of four matches and so this match was to decide
who are the top team in the South.
On the day the youngsters of B & B were unstoppable,
leading from start to finish scoring 509 points to the Berkshire Club's 386.
Two of the team received athlete of the match awards.
Female track award went to Daniella Annon for her 25.4 second win in the 200
metres. Letitia Noel won the field event award with her 9.55 putt in the shot.
This was an outstanding team performance with all athletes
playing their part. Particularly pleasing was to see a number of youngsters
making their League debuts and performing impressively. For example, in the
under 15 boys Mehmet Takpak won both the shot and discus events as well as
finishing second in the hammer; and Rebecca Brawn won the under 17 women’s pole
vault.
The under 17 women were so impressive that they dropped
just 12 points all afternoon scoring 124 out of a possible 136.
At the very sharp end a number of athletes achieved
national grade one performances. In the under 17s these came from Dan Putnam
(200 and 400), Andrew Jordon (hammer), Eddie Ekanem (shot), Daniella Annon
(200), Isobel Ivy (300), Katherine Jones (discus and shot) Jessica Matthews
(high jump) and Leah Forbes Morris (triple jump).
Tom Bensted achieved grade ones in the 100 and 200 in the
under 15 age group despite these being below his best distance the 400. Others
came from Ben Parkin (400), Ben Hopkins (80 hurdles), Matthew Fletcher (long
jump), and Letitia Noel (shot),
Grade ones in the under 13s came from Dina Asher Smith
(150), Anton Daly (100 and 200), and an outstanding 12.3 in the 75 metre hurdles
from Aaron Lloyd.
Full details will appear on the Club website. The team
will now travel to the National Final in Birmingham at the start of September
where they will be looking to reclaim the National title that they won in 2004
and 2005.
All eyes this weekend will be on the Great Britain Trials
for the World Championships in Manchester and the Club will have a number of
athletes in action.
Michael Skinner goes in the 5000 metres buoyed by the news
that he has secured a new sponsorship deal with local solicitors MB Allen and
Co.
The GB International will receive support which will help
cover the costs of kit, travel and medical support and so help ease the
financial burdens of training and competition. The main aim is to help Michael
in the build up to the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
Club 100 metre record holder Dwayne Grant flies in from
his training base in Portugal and Montell Douglas who has already achieved the
World qualifying time goes in the Women’s event. Closer to home the Club’s
Junior team who were National Champions in 2006, will be aiming to secure the
2007 Southern Premier title in their home match at Norman Park.
Peter Tucker is the new British Police 5000 metres
champion. He won the event in Blackpool in 15.22 against athletes from forces
from over all of England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.
He also helped the Metropolitan Police to victory in the
medley relay contributing the first leg over 800 metres.
The Club will be hosting an open meeting at Norman Park
track on Wednesday evening the 25th of July. Entry forms can be downloaded from
the Club website at www.bandbhac.org.uk
17/07/07
Montell Douglas has been on fire at the European Under 23
championships at Debrecen in Hungary winning the silver medal in the 100 metres,
making the final of the 200 setting four new personal bests and two Club
Records.
The Blackheath & Bromley athlete started her Championships
by taking a tenth of a second off her personal best in the first round of the
100 metres as she clocked 11.41 for victory. This was a big improvement but more
was to come. In her semi final she ran the fastest time of the day to win in
11.28, with Germany's Verena Salter who timed 11.31 in first round, nine
hundredths slower than Montell.
Montell's time is the fastest by a British Woman this year
and is a qualifying time for the World Championships in Osaka.
The final was a dramatic affair. There were no fast times
because the athletes were running into a -2 metre per second headwind. Montell
had to settle for the silver medal in a blanket finish which saw her time 11.66
the same as the winner Salter and just two hundredths of a second ahead of
third.
With the medal ceremony and going through Doping Control,
Montell did not leave the stadium until gone midnight but she returned the next
day to set another new best in the 200 metres of 23.42, having run 23.62 in the
heats.
This was a high quality field and her time only got her
4th place in the semi. It was also the 7th quickest of those who qualified for
the final and this was where she finished in 23.63.
Representing Great Britain at the World Youth
Championships in Ostrava, Shaunagh Brown qualified for the final of the discus
with a throw of 45.07 in the qualifying round. Things did not go so well in the
Final for her as she placed 11th with 41.95.
She also competed in the shot putt and was 16th furthest
in the qualifying round. Funmi Sobodu qualified easily for the semi finals of
the 100 metres despite the worry of a false start. In the semis he was in a
tough heat and although he timed 10.79 this was only good enough for 5th place
and so he did not qualify for the final.
Three Club members picked up gold medals at the English
Schools Championships in Birmingham with two of them coming in the Senior pole
vault from athletes coached by Allan Williams.
Scott Huggins won the Senior Boys competition with 4.58 a
little below his recent best but, not only was the weather poor, he was also
competing using borrowed poles. Rachel Arnheim won the Girls event by 20
centimetres with a clearance of 3.35 just six short of her best.
Tom Bensted was the other gold medal winner. The John
Powell coached athlete rose to the occasion timing 50.96 in his heat to
obliterate his personal best for the distance. He won the Final in 51.07 which
although not quite as fast was still nearly a second better than his best going
into these Championships.
There was nearly a fourth gold with Ben Hopkins just
missing out in the Junior Boys 80 metre hurdles despite timing a new best of
11.32. Flo Clark also produced a new best as she threw 41.44 in the Senior Girls
discus. Second claimer Kola Adedoyin took the runner up spot in the Intermediate
Boys triple jump with 14.18 a leap one place ahead of Marcus Morrison who
recorded 13.62.
Another second claimer Simon Merill picked up bronze in
the Senior Boys 110 hurdles in 14.23 edging Alex AlAmeen into fourth place. Alex
was one of a number of the Club’s athletes who just missed out on medals with
fourth places going to Sarah McLellan (Senior Girls 400 hurdles with a new best
of 64.31 in her heat), Banke Jemiyo (Inter Girls Hammer), Dan Putnam (Inter Boys
400 in a new best of 49.11); Stephen Cavey (Inter Boys 800) and Andrew Jordon
(Inter Boys Hammer).
Just qualifying to compete in the Schools is an
achievement and to achieve a new best is a sign of great promise so Ben Parkin’s
improvement to 53.02 was another noteworthy performance.
More of the Club's sprinters have been in action elsewhere
in Europe. At the Salamanca Grand Prix in Spain, Dwayne Grant equalled his
Senior Men's Club 100 metre record as he timed 10.26 to finish in third place.
At the Leon Buyle Memorial meeting at Oordegem in Belgium
former Club record holder Jonathan Barbour ran 10.78 for the 100 while Welsh
International Fabian Collymore continued his return from injury by running
11.09. Jonathan also ran 10.87 in a second race.
In Hungary at Budapest Danny Doyley finished 5th in the
100 metres in 10.76. Ed Harrison finished 2nd in the 400 hurdles at the Welsh
Championships in 53.20 with new member Derek Paisley returning to action to go
well inside 57 seconds.
Erith Stadium proved a happy hunting ground for the Club’s
teams as they travelled there on three successive days and enjoyed victory on
each occasion.
The veterans set the ball rolling on Friday with both the
men and women securing overall victory in the Kent Veterans League to qualify
for the Southern Final in August.
Going into the match it was questionable whether the men
would qualify but they beat rivals Cambridge Harriers into third place to secure
the title.
Victories in the over 35’s age group came from Richard
Holt (A 400), and from Jon Thorpe and Roger Beswick in both strings of the 3000
metres. Alan Camp won the over 50’s 5000. Although the women did not win their
match, so well had they performed in earlier rounds that they only needed to
turn up to win the League.
Only winners of the day were Jane Bradshaw in the B 3000
and Barbara Terry who moved down an age group to win the over 50s Hammer.
“Mad Dog” Thorpe was back the next day for the Southern
Men’s League Division Three match and didn’t disappoint winning the B string
5000 just two seconds outside his best. Andy Rayner returned to action after a
long lay off to win the A string.
Best performance of the day, however, came from Alistair
Williamson who set a new best to win the Hammer with a throw of 55.55 with Tim
Ayres making it maximum points in the B event. Tom Robinson won the pole vault
with a clearance of 4 metres with namesake John, who also competed in the vets
League the night before scoring valuable points in the B string. There were
maximum points in the 800 and 1500 from Martin Airey, Adam Atkinson, Alex
Gibbins and Andrew Conway. Alex then won the steeplechase.
Richard Holt, another competing for a second day enjoyed
wins in both hurdles. Team Manager David McKinlay was delighted with the
performance and found himself unable to choose a man of the match.
The weekend finished on a high on Sunday with wins for all
four age groups in the Kent Young Athletes League.
Matthew Fletcher returned to track racing in the under 15
boys age group to win the 100 metres in 11.9. Other A string wins came from
Sufyan Sultan (200), Philip Sesemann (3000), Mark Longhurst (80 hurdles and High
jump), Jesse McDonald (long jump) and new boy Mehmet Takpak who impressed in the
shot with a putt of 12.91.
There was similar success for the girls with wins for
Nenisha Nelson Roberts (200 and 75 hurdles), Sophia Maslin (800), Jessica Nicol
Smith (pole vault), Sian Hurlock (long jump), Letitia Noel (shot) and another
talented new thrower April Turner in the javelin.
Anton Daly was again the Club’s leading performer in the
under 13 age group as he won both the 100 and 200 metre races in grade one
performances of 12.7 and 26.4. There were two A string wins also for Aaron Lloyd
in the 75 hurdles and high jump as well as victories for Adam Willis (long jump)
and new boys Fraser Donaghue (shot) and Sam O Connor (javelin).
For the girls there were wins for Charlotte Colgate (150),
Jessica Jones (70 hurdles), and Eleanor Dumper (shot).
As ever the team victories would not have been achieved by
A string wins alone and the Club were hugely indebted to a array of talented
youngsters who strove to achieve personal best and score points for their team.
The Club will be hosting an open meeting at Norman Park
track on Wednesday evening the 25th of July. Entry forms can be downloaded from
the Club website at www.bandbhac.org.uk
10/07/07
Blackheath & Bromley’s Senior Men’s team have a monumental
task if they are to retain their British League Division One status. They
finished in 7th place for the third time last Saturday in the third match of the
season at Eton. This means that despite beating a different team on each
occasion they are bottom of the eight team division with just one match
remaining.
They now need to finish four places ahead of 6th placed
Harrow and two ahead of 7th placed Cardiff to avoid the finishing in one of the
two relegation places. To do this they will need all their top athletes to be
available for the final match of the season at Copthall at the start of August.
It has been a frustrating season as, on paper, the squad is stronger than last
year, but, for each match, for whatever reason, the Club has been unable to
field its strongest team. For example, on Saturday four sprinters were
unavailable either training or racing abroad.
The bright spot at Eton was the middle distance events
where the Club's athletes scored more points than any other Club. Captain
Michael Skinner led from gun to tape to win the 5000 metres with Peter Tucker
third in the B string. James Poole was delighted with his afternoons work. He
was second in the A 1500 metres after finishing third in the 800 earlier. Dan
Ryan and David McKinlay finished second in the B strings.
Alex Bruce Littlewood took fourteen seconds off his best
in the steeplechase to time 9.41.85 for 6th place with Paul Martin third in the
B race. There was a new best also in the 200 metres where Duayne Bovell timed
22.04. Ed Harrison set a seasons best of 52.92 to finish third in the 400
hurdles and he also timed a useful 49.54 to place third in the 400 metres.
Best performance in the field events came from Scott
Huggins as he won the pole vault with a clearance of 4.80. This was just one
centimetre off his best and the remarkable thing was that he achieved this using
borrowed poles.
Alex Pope continued his heroic efforts for the team, again
taking part in seven events. He set a new best of 16.37 in the sprint hurdles
and was just outside his best in the discus, but a cold and a touch of tennis
elbow held him back in the other events.
Two of the Club’s Hammer throwers received England
International call ups as they took part in the annual throws International in
Verazadin in Croatia. Alistair Williamson and Andrew Jordan didn’t disappoint
either. Alistair threw his second furthest ever with a distance of 66.74 with
the under 20 6kg implement. Andrew did even better. He launched the 5kg under 17
implement a mighty 67.54. This was not only a personal best but also a new Club
Record, the third time he has broken it this year.
The Club finished 4th in their second UK Women’s League
Division three match of the season at Stevenage. This means with one match
remaining they are third place in the table one point behind second placed
Liverpool.
Hammer throwers Rachel Blackie and Victoria Thomas
achieved maximum points with Rachel just pipping her training partner with 51.88
to Victoria’s 51.49. The Club’s other A string winner of the day was Rachel
Arnheim. She set a new best of 3.41 to win the pole vault.
There was a new best on the track also for Fran Green as
she placed third in the 3000 metres in 10.28.4 with Jennie Butler just behind in
10.35.4. It was third places also in the 1500 from Bryony Proctor and Carolyna
Jones Baldock and also in the A string 800 from Bella Clayton who clocked
2.15.3. Sprinters Vicki Cole and Amy Godsell scored good points despite the
strong winds and they teamed up with Lauren Blackie and Katy Benneworth to
finish second in the 4x100.
Fresh from her hammer success Victoria Thomas set a new
best in the discus of 34.56 to take third place in the A event with Rachel
Blackie third also in the B contest. More good points came in the triple jump
from Sandra Alaneme who was 3rd in the A event with Lauren Blackie winning the B
string.
The Club enjoyed a comfortable victory in the latest
Southern Women's league match of the season at Norman Park winning with 130
points with none of the opposing teams scoring over 100. After a tough fixture
in the last round this leaves them 12th in the 25 strong team division. There
were double victories in four events. Victoria Thomas and Rachel Blackie were
untroubled in the hammer both throwing over 50 metres with no one else over 40.
Similarly Jessica Matthews won the A high jump by 20 centimetres with 1.60 and
Anna Smith the B string by half a metre with 1.50. Liz Hughes' 3.40 in the pole
vault was 2.30 higher than the runner up, the difference being the same height
that Rebecca Haywood cleared to win the B string. Sam Singer won the 400 metres
by an astonishing margin of nearly seven seconds with Stephanie Allerton making
it maximum point in the B string.
Other wins in the field came in B string events with Liz
Hughes taking the discus and Victoria Thomas the shot.
On the track Rosie Ferguson made her debut for the team
and impressed with second places in the 3000 metres with 11.08.8 and the 1500
with 5.14.9. Jessica Saville set a new best of 2.18.5 in the 800 metres and
there were B string victories for Carolyna Jones Baldock in the 1500, Rebecca
Smith in the 3000 and Stephanie Allerton in the 100 hurdles.
The Kent Veterans League is moving to an exciting climax
as in the men’s competition with just one match to go just half a point
separates Blackheath & Bromley and Cambridge Harriers. With Cambridge winning
the latest contest match at Canterbury, B & B head the table with 27 League
points to Cambridge’s 26.5.
If the teams are level on League points then match points
come into play and things could not be much closer here as B & B have half a
point more with 328 to 327.5. The reward for the winning team is a place in the
Southern Counties Final in August.
Winners at Canterbury included Ricky Fox and Paul
Sutherland in the over 35s 100 and Discus; Tom Phillips in the over 50s 100
metres and Mike Martineau in the over 60’s long jump. The women’s team have
qualified for the Southern Final so long as they turn up at the next match. They
head the division by 5.5 points after winning by 11 points.
Best event for them was the 800 where Bridget Davey and
Anne Cilia won the A and B strings in 2.38.8 and 3.10.9.
Helen Godsell and Beatrice Simpson won the over 50s 100
and discus contests while Nanette Cross dominated the over 60s age group with
wins in the 800 and long jump.
3/07/07
The recent achievements of Blackheath & Bromley and its
athletes have been overshadowed by the news of the sudden death of Jim Day, one
the Club's most enduring athletes. A Past President of the Club, he died
suddenly on Sunday the 1st of July. He would have been 74 next month and next
year would have completed 50 years membership of the Club.
The previous weekend he had been at Norman Park track for
the Southern Men's League match where he had been intending to compete in the
pole vault but he decided not to take part because of a calf strain. He promised
team manager that he would be back but sadly this will not be.
He is probably the Club's most successful athletes having
won medals at County, Area, National, European and World level. He received a
special award from the Kent County in recognition of him competing in 50
consecutive County Championships.
Despite his great success he would ALWAYS turn out for the
Club and in the 90's competed for the Club's British League team when he was
over 60. The Club History records a remarkable example of his commitment to the
Club in 1959 when the team for the Ryder Trophy Meeting were delayed, he grabbed
his pole and ran the half mile to the track to take part in an event that has
already been in progress for twenty minutes. Inspired by this the Club won the
Trophy for the first time ever.
Former Olympic vaulter Allan Williams had been planning to
room with Jim at next years World Indoors and said “He took great pleasure in
reminding me that he competed for Kent County on the day that I was born and
from the time I met him in 1969 we remained great friends. Jim was a true
gentleman and never had a bad word to say against anybody and was generous with
his time and support for everyone around him. His friendly nature and his
sustained athleticism earned the respect of us all. The sport and the pole
vaulting community will miss him very much.”
The next day instead of a minutes silence at the veterans
League match at Canterbury, all competitors and spectators gave a minutes hand
clapping.
Jim would have been delighted that fellow vaulter Scott
Huggins is the latest athlete to receive a Jack Petchey Foundation Achievement
Award for the month of June. Each month the club selects one young person, in
the 11 to 25 age group to receive an Achievement Award. The month's winner
receives a framed certificate and a cheque (payable to the club) for £200 to be
spent on a club project of the recipient's choice.
Scott has not only broken the Scottish Junior pole vault
record four times this year but also helps the Club by coaching in the Bees
Academy. A virtual ever present in the Club’s teams he is also happy to help in
other events when the team is short and competed in the shot and javelin in the
first British League match of the season.
Five athletes from the Club have gained International
selections in the last few days. Montell Douglas has been picked to represent
Great Britain at the European Under 23 Championships in Debrecen, Hungary on the
12th to 15th of July.
Two of the Club's promising sprinters have been picked for
the European Under 20 Championships in Hengelo, Holland on 19th to 22nd of July.
James Alaka and Anike Shand Whittingham have been selected for the 100 metres
and 4x100 squads
A further two athletes have been chosen to represent GB at
the World Youth Championships in Ostrava, Czechoslovakia on the 11th to 15th of
July. Shaunagh Brown has been picked for both the shot and discus while Funmi
Sobodu goes in the men's 100 metres.
A number of the Club’s athletes were in action at the Nike
British Milers Club meeting at Watford. Best performance came from Michael
Skinner who was just outside his best ever time for 1500 with 3.43.12. Like wise
James Poole who clocked 3.50.10.
Bryony Proctor continues to improve and she ran a new best
of 4.35.55 in the women’s 1500. Bella Clayton timed a useful 2.14.82 in the 800.
Peter Tucker finished second in the Kent 5000 metre
Championships at Dartford. Already the County 10000 metre champion he just
missed out on the double claiming silver with 15.24.3. At the same venue Aaron
Lloyd won silver in the under 13 boys County Pentathlon. His points score of
1394 included a new best of 4.32 in the long jump. And he was the fastest of the
day in the 75 metre hurdles with a time of 12.6.
Adam Willis found himself in last place after the hurdles
but then set new bests of 6.34 and 4.775 in the shot and long jump. This took
him up to 5th place with just the 800 metres to go. He won this by an
astonishing 150 metres to win the bronze medal.
Eleanor Dumper finished in 5th place in the girls contest
with 1519 points. Her best event was the shot, her putt of 7.07 being the second
furthest of the day.
