Press Releases for
July, August & September 2017
27/09/17
Southern Road Relays
A nice warm day at Crystal greeted the 92 BBHAC
athletes representing the club in the annual SEEA 3, 4, and 6 stage road
relays where the club had athletes in 9 age group races.
From a spectator point of view it’s not a great
spectacle because each leg starts and finishes on the old running track but
it’s not easy to watch the athletes once they leave the stadium. The track
itself is in great shape but the stadium has been very neglected down the
years which is a shame for such a once hallowed athletics venue.
Anyway this did not detract from some excellent team
and individual performances with many happy Blackheath coaches also on
display. First up was the under 13 boys 4 leg race where BBHAC rallied well
to finish 4th of the 46 finishing teams. In the under 13 girls race the club
were able to filed 4 different 3 girls teams and they ran well to finish,
11th, 27th, 30th and 39th.
Only one team up in the under 15 boys race who after a
slow start rallied well for 24th place just before the under 15 girls race
started with BBHAC fielding 6 x 3 girl teams. What a great performance from
all the athletes as not only did the club win the race by a considerable
margin, but the second team finished a very credible third despite last leg
runner Zakia Mossi falling flat on her face with 60 yards to go,getting up
and stealing back the third place she had briefly given up when falling. The
other teams were also well to the front in 13th, 29th, 35th and 40th places.
Ava White ran the fastest leg of the day in 9.18, Zakia Mossi 3rd fastest in
9.34, Anwen Thomas 6th fastest in 9.45 and Eliie Dolby 17th fastest in 9.52.
The under 17 men finished in a highly commendable 11th
place fielding only one team, while the under 17 ladies fielded three teams
who not only went onto win with the A team by a clear margin, but the B team
finished 9th and the final team 19th. Yasmin Marghini ran the third fastest
leg of the day with 9.16, Eloise ’Shaughnessy 9.24 for 5th, Sophie Hoare 6th
fastest in 9.30 and Madalina Samolia 16th fastest in 10.01.
In the senior mens event (6 legs) we fielded many
athletes and managed to complete two teams with the A team 16th and the B
team 64th. On leg one Phil Sesemann was first back into the stadium and ran
the fastest time of the day with 14.26, second leg runner Will Fuller ran a
15.10 leg and held a narrow lead and after that we just seemed to get caught
by teams fielding their stronger athletes in the middle order. However we
finished in the the top 25 and have qualified for the Nationals later this
year so a great achievement. In the womens race the ladies raced well for
12th and 40th place with Carolyn Johnson and Niamh Bridson Hubbard getting
round in under 13 minutes on their respective legs.
Elsewhere in Carshalton our pole vaulters were in
action and proud coach John Wakeman was able to boast about 5 news pbs from
his 8 athletes competing. Zoe Austridge jumped 2.73m, Ethan Kitterdige
2.93m, Ellie Barrett 3.13m, Coleman Corry 3.23m and George Pope 3.93m, every
athlete making significant improvements.
Nick Brooks
19/09/17
Our Junior Girls took 3rd place at the European
Junior Clubs Cups Final in Brno CZE.
The Blackheath & Bromley Junior Women returned to Brno
in the Czech Republic last weekend intent on improving upon their 3rd place
result the last time the European Champion Clubs Cup was held there in 2013.
The day dawned grey and wet and hardly conducive to athletic performance but
not too different from too many evenings at Norman Park, so, although not
entirely in our element, we weren't exactly in unchartered territory.
The first two events were those possibly most affected
by wet weather: nevertheless, in the hammer, Victoria Wiltshire threw
further than in Spain last year only to finish one place further down the
field in a solid 3rd place, a position replicated by Sophie Dowson in the
pole vault by keeping her head and beating more fancied vaulters who
couldn't cope with the conditions. Triple Jump came next and Annie Davies,
who has struggled with a nagging foot injury all season, produced a SB in
round one , just shy of 12m, to take the lead, which she held until the end
of round 3. Annoyingly, two more athletes squeezed past her in the final
round of 4 (European field rules applying) and she ended up just outside the
medals. As light rain continued to fall, attention moved to the High Jump.
Rebecca Hawkins, wrapped in a blanket when not actually jumping, literally
took it all in her stride and gained a fine 2nd place behind a very
accomplished Danish jumper. Meanwhile, Hannah Macaulay, a first year U17 and
youngest in the field, commenced battle in the discus. She threw well, but,
in a tightly packed field ended on the wrong end of the results in 7th.
That finally brought us to the track programme with
the 400H. Steph Fisher had missed a chunk of training during the late summer
while she participated in a world challenge event in Asia, followed by
illness. Recent training suggested she had recovered sufficiently to take
this on and she was in the mix for 300m only to run out of legs resulting in
an altercation with the last hurdle and another 7th place. Moving to the
800m, Katy-Ann McDonald controlled the race from the front for 700m only to
miss out on 1st place in the run-in, but still securing our best result so
far in 2nd. More good points then followed from Modupe Shokunbi in the 100m.
Isolated in lane 8, she ran a measured race to secure 3rd.
So, no wins yet, but a series of fine performances saw
us leading the other teams after 9 events. That lead improved further with
Euro Junior 200m Champion, Maya Bruney, securing our first win, in the 400m.
But then we stumbled. Our premier long jumper, Holly Mills, hoping to defend
her title from 2016, had picked up a suspected calf tear in the YDL Finals
and had been, in her own words, 'gutted' not to be able to make the trip.
With Funminiyi Olajide just too young to be eligible, Jamiyla
Robinson-Pascal stepped in at late notice. But, having thought her season
had finished 2 weeks earlier, she wasn't quite able to produce the kind of
jump she'd been reeling out earlier in the summer and ended up in 8th, less
than 20cm behind 3rd. At the same time, Hannah Macaulay was producing a PB
with the 4kg shot, but it was only good enough for another 7th place. Her
time will come.
Back on the track, Yasmin Austridge was negotiating
the extra distance of the 3000m s/c and ground out a gutsy 6th place.
(Having never understood why European Athletics always insisted on Junior
Women, who could be as young as 16, taking on an event that can reduce grown
men to tears, it is hoped that the survey of teams carried out during the
competition, suggesting a move to 2000m from next year, will meet with
overwhelming support.) Such is the level of competition that we had now
slipped to 4th equal in the standings. The team manager had also downgraded
his prediction of the winning score to 112 points, a score we could still
meet, but, with seven events to go, we would need to medal in every one of
them and we couldn't afford too many of them to be bronze!
And so our fight back began. In the 200m, Immanuela
Aliu was just run out of 2nd place, but we had the first of those medals.
Katy-Ann McDonald was next back on the track. Again she controlled the race
from the front, ensuring the early pace was manageable after her earlier
800m, and again she led into the final straight. In the closest race of the
day there was nothing between her and her Danish opponent over the last 80m,
with the latter just squeezing in at the finish. Another fine silver for
Katy-Ann. We were still in with a chance.
The last field event of the afternoon saw almost half
the field take a liking to Bekah Walton's javelin. She remained completely
unfazed by this and ensured it was available for each of her 4 throws,
allowing her to put together one of her best ever series. There was clearly
a really big throw in there trying to get out and maybe two more attempts
might have released it, but Bekah had to settle for 3rd. We weren't giving
up and the travelling supporters had more to cheer with Issie Hilditch
dominating the sprint hurdles to produce a comfortable defence of her title.
It was now between us, the Turkish defending champions
and the local hosts from Brno and they weren't about to make things easy for
us. We were picking up the medals we needed but every time we seemed to be
joined by those two teams on the podium. Jess Keene, winner in both Istanbul
and Castellon, was our rep in the final individual event of the day, the
3000m. In the previous races, Jess had led from the front and ground down
the field before romping to victory. She applied the same tactics this year
almost to the same effect, but she couldn't shake off the Turkish runner who
made an early run for home with 800m to go, opening a gap that Jess was
unable to close. The Czechs could 'only' manage 4th.
Thus, with only the relays to go, we were still in the
hunt, but the odds were beginning to look against us. We don't usually think
about losing the 4x100m, but we all know it's all about GTBR and our quartet
of Parris Johnson, Maya Bruney, Immanuela Aliu and Modupe Shokunbi didn't
disappoint, bringing us home comfortably, followed in by... Fenerbahce and
AK Olymp Brno. The game was, barring something extraordinary, pretty much up
and with Maya Bruney deciding she was unable to take her place in the long
relay, even a miracle might not be enough. But we're not a team that gives
in. Despite having undertaken one of the most gruelling doubles on offer and
having had little recovery time, Katy-Ann volunteered to step in. After fine
legs from Belinda Clark, Issie Hilditch and Megan Walsh, she ran a
consummate anchor to bring us home in 2nd place... behind a very strong
Czech quartet.
We'd won all the seven medals but had come up just
short again: Fenerbahce had won with 110 points, AK Olymp Brno had 107 and
we had 104, with a significant gap to the Danes, Sparta AM in 4th. Team
Manager, Tim Soutar summed up the day: ' This was another magnificent
performance from the girls and I'm immensely proud of them. We just missed
out last year and, after what was an even better performance this year,
we've done so again. But, they deserve to be European Champions and we'll go
away and see if we can't make it actually happen next year, when we'll have
the boys there too to cheer us on.
Tim Soutar
12/09/17
Blackheath & Bromley Track Round Up
The penultimate weekend of the track season saw our
athletes on duty in Newcastle, Oxford and Bromley in the Great North Games,
the Southern Inter Counties for under 15 and under 20s and the Kent Relays.
First up was Dina Asher Smith on the quayside in
Gateshead alongside the river Tyne competing in the rarely run 150m sprint
on a specially constructed track. In a field of only four athletes Dina won
comfortably in 16.70 on prime time BBC TV, a highly respectable time.
At the Southern Inter Counties match for u15/u20
athletes BBHAC had many athletes in action with 5 athletes recording wins.
Matthew Knight won the under 20 mens 200m in a new pb of 22.01 and Luc
Durant won the shot with an effort of 14.74m. In the under 15 boys events
Ollie Briars won the 300m in 36.52, while in the under 15 ladies events
Holly Mpassy won the 300m in 40.21, Morgan Squibb easily won the 1500m in
4.37.14 with Naomi Toft 2nd.
Funiminiyi Olajide an under 17 athlete jumped well for
2nd in the long jump against much older athletes, and Nicole Farmer was 2nd
in the under 20 ladies triple jump. Coleman Corry was 4th in the 400m
hurdles, George Pope 4th in the pole vault, and Anika Olalere 5th in the
ladies shot, with Alice Prentice 9th in the high jump and Carys Marsden 8th
in the discus. In the under 15 age group events, Ethan Kitteridge took 4th
in the pole vault, Kyron Morgan took 4th in the 100m, Jacob Byfield 5th in
the triple jump and 8th in the long jump, while Akeiyla Robinson Pascal
finished 4th in the long jump.
At the time of writing there are no results to hand
from the Kent Relays but results will be published once we have access to
them.
This weekend sees the ladies under 20 team in action
in Brno in the Czech Republic representing GB in the European clubs finals.
One athlete per event plus relays, a strong team is participating, ably
backed up by a team of strong reserves.
There is also the Will Bolton Cross Country Relays at
Sparrows Den on Saturday in West Wickham preceded by junior races.
Nick Brooks
Blackheath and Bromley Harriers
Athletics Club are officially the best young athletes track and field team
in Great Britain
BBBHAC were the only club to have teams in both age
group finals at Birmingham Alexander Stadium and while our LAG (lower age
group) U13 and U15 boys and girls placed a fantastic second in their final
and only three points behind Sale but ahead of pre match favourites
Southampton, the UAG (upper age group) went one better winning their final,
securing a place in the European final, completing a historic weekend for
the club in what is seen by many as the best weekend ever in the club
history for youth athletics.
The UAG ladies were current champions and excelled
once again to retain the title but the UAG men were outstanding and went one
better than last year to grab the title for themselves and in doing so
earning the right to represent Great Britain in the European Champions Clubs
Cup Final in September 2018 alongside our ladies. Britain has never had just
one club representing them in both mens and womens matches and this
represents a massive achievement.
The BBHAC LAG team qualified for their final as South
region runners up to Southampton AC and were also up against the Scottish
champions and last years runners up Edinburgh AC, along with the other best
club teams from across the UK. The competition was fierce and four teams
crept ahead with Southampton leading early on followed by North region
champions Sale Harriers, BBHAC and Edinburgh. As the afternoon progressed
BBHAC and Sale pulled level in front with Southampton dropping back to 3rd.
With the final few events being contested and no one club dominating the
result was going to be tight.
A tense wait for the final results saw Edinburgh AC
4th with 536 points, Southampton in 3rd with 594.5 points, BBHAC second with
599 points and Sale 1st with 602 points proving what an exciting and tense
competition it had been. Just 7.5 points separated the top three teams and
only three points between BBHAC and Sale. A truly memorable final.
In the first finals (LAG) on Saturday there were many
outstanding moments including Holly Mpassy’s impressive 300m race earning a
league and club record of 40.15, earning her the “Norma Blaine MBE Award”
for the most outstanding performance of the day and Lily Meers had the
stadium on their feet as she showed so much guts and determination in
holding off her rival for most of her under 13 1200m, with the last 100m
being the most exciting end of the race, that saw Lily win by the smallest
of margins. It brought a lump to most people's throat.
On Sunday when the older age group athletes arrived
for action at the end of a long season there was a sense that the team
wanted to try and win that much more having learned that the younger age
group had been pipped the day before. Despite injuries and athletes being
unavailable the entire team performed admirably in cold and damp conditions
unlike the sunshine and warmth on Saturday. With 21 gold medals in the A
string events, 19 silvers and 11 bronze backed up 25 golds in the B string,
7 silvers and 10 bronzes it is no wonder BBHAC won the match by a landslide
recording 994 points to Shaftesbury’s 827 and Edinburgh’s 822. With athletes
doubling up or covering because of injury BBHAC were to the fore in almost
every event. They now rightly take their place in Europe in 12 months, the
stuff of a club treasurer’s nightmare !
We wouldn’t have been able to achieve as much as we
have without the great support we’ve had from BBHAC club officials, coaches,
team managers, parents, grandparents, families and friends. Three coach
loads and a lot of cars ensured all athletes arrived on time and had a great
deal of support behind them.
Full results can be found here as there are far too
many athletes to mention in one report.
http://www.thepowerof10.info/results/results.aspx?meetingid=195343
Nick Brooks
30/08/17
Great warm-up for many for the YDL Finals next
weekend
The England Athletics Champs for under 15s and under 17s
were held at Bedford this past weekend and BBHAC athletes registered 14 top
10 finishes which augurs well for the YDL Finals in Birmingham on September
2nd and 3rd.
The highlights of the weekend were clearly a great win in
the under 17 mens 400m by Ethan Brown in 47.82 which is a new club under 17
record too, and Funminiyi Olajide winning the under 17 ladies long jump with
5.86m. Morgan Squibb ran strongly for second in the under 15 girls 1500m in
4.35.67 and Oliver Briars matched his English Schools performance with a
fine 3rd place in the under 15 boys 300m in 36.56, and to
complete the medal haul Ben Sutton took a great third place in the under 15
boys long jump with 6.68m.
There were hard earned 4th places for Izzie
Bridge in the under 17 ladies 10km walk in a new club record of 28.46.95,
Coleman Corry 56.44 and a new pb in the under 17 mens 400m hurdles and
Hannah MacAulay in the under 17 ladies discus with 39.77m. Ellie Dolby ran
well for 5th in the under 15 girls 800m in 2.18.04, Pedro
Gleadall leapt a mighty new pb of 4.11m for 5th in the under 17
mens pole vault and Lauren Farley threw a new pb of 38.74m in the under 17
ladies javelin.
Other top 10 performances included Dillon Claydon 7th
in the under 15 boys discus with 37.74m, Karina Harris 7th in the
under 17 ladies triple jump, while Ethan Kitteridge vaulted 2.81m for 9th
in the under 15 boys pole vault and Ellie Barrett leapt 2.91m in the under
17 ladies event.
Elsewhere at the ISTAF event in Berlin both Adam Gemili
and Dina Asher-Smith continued their fine end of season form with Dina
winning the 200m in 22.41 beating the world silver medallist, and Adam
taking third in the 100m in 10.10.
At the Southern Counties Vets Champs at Kingston Tim Nash
won the mens 50 age group 800m in 2.21.54, and at the London Inter Club
Challenge at Lea Valley Rob Sutherland won the triple jump with 14.86m.
Finally in Tonbridge Oliver Robertson took 4th place in the Kent
Under 13 Champs in the heptathlon.
In Birmingham this coming Saturday the club are in action
in the YDL under 13 and 15 national final, and on Sunday the under 17 and
under 20 teams are in action in their final with the winning senior team
going on to represent Great Britain in the European Clubs Final in September
2018.
Nick Brooks
22/08/17
Busy weekend with BBHAC athletes at 6 venues across
the land
Southern League
First up at home in Norman Park was the Southern League match for our
men and women where a solid team performance would see BBHAC finish 2nd in
the league out of 16 teams. They duly obliged winning the meeting with 221.5
points from Bedford on 206 points.
With 14 A string wins and 14 B string wins, the club
were well to the fore in most events. The men won many A string events with
Will Ruiz in the 5000m winning easily, Coleman Corry an easy winner in the
400m hurdles, Joss Barber in the 2000m steeplechase, Tom French in the long
jump with three jumps in excess of 7m, a double by Louis Mascarenhas in the
shot and discus, and Steve Timmins winning the javelin.
In the ladies A string events there were wins for
Immanuela Aliu in the 200m, Krystal Galley in the 400m, Jess Keene the
1500m, Isabella Hilditch in the 100m hurdles, Zara Asante both the long jump
and triple jump and Sam Milner the discus.
Notable B string wins for Coleman Corry in the pole
vault with 2.90m for a new pb, and also 5.95m for a new pb in the long jump,
and Dele Aladese 41.43m for a new pb in the discus. New member John Cooke
won the B string javelin and for the ladies Jess Keene won the 800m, Niamh
Bridson Hubbard the 1500m, Emma Rowland the 3000m , Parris Johnson the 100m,
Jamiyla Robinson-Pascal the triple jump and Carys Marsden the discus.
BMC Meeting Stretford
Not content with racing the following day, Will Fuller ran 3.45.39 for a new
pb in the 1500m and a nice cash prize just ahead of Phil Sesemann in
3.46.45, a nice warm up for both athletes to double on Sunday.
National League Division 1 Manchester
Some of the Southern team left sharply after the match to head to Manchester
for the final league match of the season, and with a depleted team of 15
athletes compared to some teams with 25 athletes, the club finished a
spirited 6th on the day with 238 points and 5th overall in the league which
was a great achievement given we could still have won promotion on the final
day if things had gone our way. We say good by to Cardiff and Swansea who
won promotion with Basingstoke and Glasgow relegated to be replaced by
Liverpool and Southampton coming down and Kingston and Herne Hill coming up.
No A string wins but some great efforts and a host of
new pbs. Ever present Dan Putnam was a close second in the 100/200 in 10.74
and 21.26, also ran both relays including a 48.1 split in the 4x400m. Dan
was easily the club’s highest point scorer across the whole season.
Rob Sutherland jumped a new pb in the long jump with
6.61m for 4th, and Ross Braden ran 15.05.97 for a massive new 5000m pb. Luc
Durrant also threw a huge new shot pb of 14.73m for 3rd in the A strong
shot. Will Fuller ran 3.51.66 to win the 1500m B string just behind Phil
Sesemann who was 3rdin the A string, and then 20 minutes later ran a
14.29.87 for third in the A string 5000m, Phil also ran strongly for 4th in
the 800m A string losing out in a tight finish with 1.54.91.
James Habergahm had also run 800m in the BMC event the
previous night and then took 2nd in the B string 800m, ran the B string 400m
and to finish with ran a 50.22 pb split in the 4x400m relay. Also spare a
thought for teenager Matthew Knight who only 50 metres into his senior debut
in the 200m pulled his hamstring meaning he could not finish the race and
some frantic relay team rearrangements were needed as he was due to run
both. Adam Herring had the previous day run 4 sprint events and he too
travelled to Manchester where he ran the 400m and both relays, and Steve
Timmins continued his multi event efforts on both days as had Louis
Mascarenhas and Kieron Murphy.
IAAF Diamond League Birmingham
With Adam Gemili being disqualified in the 100m for a false start it was
left to Dina Asher Smith to fly the club flag. Dina ran a seasons best 11.13
in the qualifying round and then ran a little slower in the final for 5th
place but in doing so managed to beat Dafne Schippers the world 200m
champion from London. Each week Dina is improving and no doubt soon will be
breaking both 11 and 22 seconds for the 100/200m.
SEAA Under 15/17s Champs Crystal Palace
The weekend also saw many of the clubs young athletes in action with Holly
Mpassy winning the under 15 girls 200m in 25.75, Morgan Squibb winning the
800m in a new pb of 2.12.14 with Zakia Mossi 2nd in 2.12.85, Ellie Dolby win
the 1500m in 4.47.39. In the under 15 boys events Dillon Claydon won the
discus with a throw of 37.85m.
In the under 17 ladies events Eloise Locke won the
javelin with a throw of 37.97m, and in the mens under 17 events Ethan Brown
won the 200m in 22.22 having taken 2nd in the 100m in 11.12 and a new pb.
There were also some events for the under 13 athletes
and although not finals some of our athletes produced some amazing
performances including Emily Kerr fastest in the 100m with 12.86 for a new
club record, also 2nd in the 200m in 27.30 with Tiana Lewis 29.47 and
Georhgia Sullivan 29.52. Amarisa Sibley continues her fine form winning the
800m in 2.23.94, Sophie Kerr second fastest in the 70m hurdles in 12.00 and
a 4.75m long jump with Tianna Lewis leaping 4.14m.
Blackheath Open Meeting - Norman Park
Monday night saw an open meeting aimed at the hurdles with a few other
events thrown in. Highlight of the evening was Amarisa Sibley running the
under 13 600m in 1.39.37 for a massive new club record.
Nick Brooks
14/08/17
World Gold and Silver Medals for Blackheath
athletes
Dina Asher-Smith missed out on the bronze medal in the
IAF World Championship womens 200m by 7/100ths of second to an athlete who
should have won the 400m (Miller-Uibo), with Dina running 22.22 for 4th
place and her third best time ever. Many of us are wondering what might have
happened had Dina been injury free all season.
That performance was outstanding whether Dina had been
injured or not and will have given her a great sense of achievement and any
disappointment was shortlived as Dina ran the third leg of the 4 x 100m
relay in both the qualifying rounds and the final where the team recorded
fantastic times and more importantly in the final ran the US team close in
winning silver medals.
This adds to the bronze that Dina won at the Olympics
in Rio in 2016, hopefully with this trend gold is to follow in 2018 !
Adam Gemili had no such disappointment in the
individual events because injury arguably robbed him of a place in the 200m
because the trials came at a time when he needed rest and recovery. Anyway
every cloud has a silver lining, or in this case a gold lining as Adam was
selected quite rightly to run the second leg in the 4 x100m relay for the GB
team. Qualifying was taken so seriously given the GBs track record in recent
years in poor baton exchange that they put the strongest team out in
qualifying and the final and like the ladies team ran superbly in both
rounds. However, in the final the GB team held on to beat the USA team and
win the gold medal in a new UK and European record. Adam ran brilliantly as
did the rest of the team to give the GB team its first sprint relay gold at
these championships. The club now looks forward to seeing what Adam can do
in his individual events for the rest of the season now having recovered
from injury, we could always use him in the Southern League or National
matches at the weekend !!
Nick Brooks
9/08/17
Blackheath see all age groups on action this week
Young Athletes
The BBHAC under 13s and under 15s were n action this
week at the final Kent Young athletes match at Gillingham.
There were many fine performances pn the day but the
highlights are understandably the following;
In the Under 13 Girls Emily Kerr won the 75m in 9.7
for a new Kent and Club Record and also won the 70m Hurdles in 11.5
equalling the Kent and Club Record. Amarisa Sibley won the 800m in 2.22.2
for a new Kent Record and Abigial Smith won the 1k walk in 5.03 also for a
new Kent and Club Record.
In the Under 15 Girls Eve Ward, Shakanya Osahon, Eva
Stephanou and Holly Mpassy won the 4 x 300m relay 2.54.9 in a new Kent
record
The club won the Kent League with 31 league points
from Meday & Maidstone in 2nd on 27 points, with the under 15 boys, under 13
girls and under 15 girls all winning their age group leagues. In Division 2
the club finished a close second on 83 points to Tonbridge on 84, with the
under 15 girls inning their age group in the league.
Masters Athletes
Following her success earlier in the week in the
womens age 60 age group, Helen Godsell went on to win the 200m in 29.71 and
also participated in both winning relay teams . That is 100m, 200m, 4x100m
and 4x400m with the added bonus that the British squad broke the world
record in the last of these.
IAAF World Champs London
With Adam Gemili only selected for the sprint relay
later in the week, it was left to Dina Asher Smith and Shannon Hylton to fly
the club flag in the womens 200m. With tight qualifying conditions Shannon
ran solidly, looked great for 150m and just failed to close it out finishing
4th in 23.39 and some way down on her pb. This unluckily was 1/100th short
of the time needed to progress to the semi finals but no such problem for
Dina who won her heat in 22.73 and a season’s best to progress to the semis
as 4th fastest qualifier and every hope of making the final.
Nick Brooks
1/08/17
Blackheath Round Up across the ages
The UK CAU championships took place at Bedford at the
weekend and there were 7 club athletes representing their counties in
basically what is the old Inter Counties event.
Jonathan Ilori jumped 15.89m for a great second in the
triple jump and also 7.16m for 4th in the long jump, while Scott Huggins
leapt 5.05m for 3rd in the pole vault. Zara Asante took 4th in the ladies
triple jump with 12.44m, Matthew Blandford 5th in the discus with 53.18m,
Dan Putnam 7th in the 200m in 21.73, and Rob Sutherland 14.75m for 7th in
the triple jump. Continuing her fine form following European success the
previous week, Maya Bruney finished 2nd the ladies 400m in a brand new pb of
53.18 narrowly missing the club under 20 record by 2/100ths.
Some of the under 13 athletes were also competing at
Kingsmeadow in their inter counties event where Sophie Kerr ran new pbs in
the 100/200 in 13.28 and 27.70, while Rianna Rennie also recorded new pbs of
13.79 and 28.47. Sophie’s twin sister Emily Kerr achieved a new pb in the 70
metre hurdles with 11.86 and also broke the club under 13 long jump record
winning easily with 4.97m. With Oliver Robertson winning the 75m hurdles in
12.11 and Amarisa Sibley taking 3rd in the 800m, it was a great day for BBHAC athletes.
The previous week is was also noted that in 22
different 1500m races at the Watford Open Graded meeting there were fine new
pbs for under 15 lady Morgan Squibb with 4.34.67 and for Dan Kennedy in a
mens race with 4.04.67. Phil Sesemann ran 8.16.14 for 11th in a competitive
3000m but must have been feeling the efforts of his national league double a
few days earlier.
At the other end of the age scale our evergreen Helen
Godsell became the W60 100m European Champion, after winning on 29 July in
Aarhus in a time of 14.37 into a -3.6 wind.
Nick Brooks
25/07/17
Bruney wins European Under 20 - 200m Title
At the European under 20 championships in Grosetto in
Italy, Maya Bruney ran superbly to win the ladies 200m by a clear margin and
a great new pb of 23.04. Later Maya ran a leg in the Great Britain relay
team which won the bronze medal.
After a disappointing performance in the discus,
Divine Oladipo rallied well to take 4th place in the shot with 16.03m ,
while third team member James Whiteaker failed to make the men’s javelin
final but did well to gain selection and will learn from his adventure.
Teenager Holly Mills was selected to carry the England
team flag at the opening ceremony of the Commonwealth Youth Games in the
Bahamas where she went on to win the ladies long jump with a leap of 6.19m.
Last Friday Dina Asher Smith continued to prove the
selectors right in selecting her for the 200m at the upcoming world champs
in London by taking third place in the Diamond League in Monaco in a
season’s best of 22.89 meaning that BBHAC will have two athletes running as
Shannon Hylton will also be competing.
Finally at the Allianz Stadium in Barnet the under 17s
and under 20s mens and womens teams were in action in the final league match
of the YDL season and having already qualified for the final in September
they duly won the last match with 791.5 points with SBH second on 737 points
and Windsor third on 705.5 points.
In the under 20 mens events there were good A string
wins for Camron Lyttle in the 100m in 10.99, Ricky Lutakome in the 800m in
1.53.23, Lewis Mills in the steeplechase in 6.23.14 and Luc Durant a massive
new pb in the shot with 15.40m to rank 4th in the UK in the under 20s age
group. The team also won the sprint relay and were backed up by B string
wins for Matthew Knight in both the 200m and 400m and Charlie Davis in the
steeplechase.
On the under 17 mens events there were A string wins
for Kyle Reynolds Warmington in the 100m in 22.52, Peter Guy in the 800m
with 1.58.90, Michael Eagling the 3000 in 9.16,89, Caelan Raju the 400m
hurdles in 62.70, Harrison Thorne 1.90m in the high jump with the team
winning the 4x400m relay. Good support came in the B string with wins for
Callum Myatt in the 3000m, Prince Reid in the steeplechase, Cameron Swatton
the hammer and Charlie Short in the discus.
In the ladies under 20 events there were A string wins
for Modupe Shokunbi in the 100m in 12.31, Jess Keene won the 3000m in
10.14.37 with Niamh Bridson Hubbard winning the B string, Isabella Hilditch
took the hurdles with Annie Davies winning the B string and also the B
string 100m, Jamiyla Robinson Pascal won the long jump and also the B string
triple jump, Anika Olalere won the shot and Bekah Walton the javelin. Also
plenty of B string wins to report with Parris Johnson winning the 200m, Katy
Ann McDonald the 400m, Amy Leach the 1500m and Anna Barnett the discus,
while the team won the sprint relay to finish well.
In the under 17 ladies events wins were harder to come
by but even so some solid performances including A string wins for Yasmin
Marghini in the 1500 in 4.38.04, and for good measure also won the B string
800m, Eloise O’Shaughnessy in the 3000m, Funminiyi Olajide 5.59m in the long
jump, Hannah MacAulay 12.20m in the shot backed up by B string wins for
Imogen Sears in the pole vault and Eloise Locke in the shot putt.
Nick Brooks
18/07/17
Great weekend across the whole club with Ladies
avoiding relegation, young athletes winning the YDL match and the men
finishing third in BAL.
Men’s Senior Team
Saturday was an all-day affair as the BAL combined all 5 league matches
into one day at one location. Despite the early start the BBHAC were on duty
with a strong team to finish a credible third place leaving them 5th overall
but still in with a chance of promotion as 2 points cover 4 teams.
Phil Sesemann had his first outing for the club this
season on the track winning the 3000m in 8.04.25 for a new league record and
then winning the 1500m with ease, while Dan Putnam having narrowly come
second in the 100m stormed to win the 200m in 21.24 and then spearheaded the
team to a clear win in the sprint relay. Scott Huggins continued his winning
ways by jumping better than the premier division vaulters to win the pole
vault in 5.10m, with Jonathan Ilori winning the A string triple jump in
15.44m and Rob Sutherland winning the B string in 14.66m, while Matthew
Blandford won the shot in a new pb of 14.86.
So all to play for at the final match in Manchester on
August 20th, a similar set of performances could put BBHAC back into the top
flight which is exactly where the women’s team will remain for next season
following their Houdini act in Bromley on Sunday.
Ladies Senior Team
The ladies team showed what a difference it can make having a full
complement of fit athletes and filling places in every event by finishing a
fantastic third place on 176 points behind TVH on 234 and Birchfield 226.
This meant that TVH won the league for the second year running but BBHAC did
enough to gain 6th place overall on the same number of league points as 5th
placed Swansea, but more importantly condemned Shaftesbury Barnet and
Woodford Green to relegation down to Division 1, something that was a dream
at the start of the day.
Wins were hard to come by as many clubs were able to
field their international athletes, but strong performances across the board
meant that BBHAC were well placed in most events and fully justified their
third place finish. With athletes like Jess Keene, Niamh Bridson Hubbard and
Caroline Johnson coming back to compete and Divine Oladipo coming to support
the club in several events before going off to represent the GB Juniors, we
had far greater cover on the events this time. Katy Ann McDonald continued
her return to full fitness in the A string 800m while Caroline Ford took out
the B string event strongly and only just got pipped at the end but ran a
massive new pb of 2.06.48.
Rebecca Hawkins won the high jump with Deborah Martin
2nd in the B string, good 2nd places for Zara Asante and Chioma Matthews in
the triple jump, Viv Olatunji 2nd in the B string 100m in 12.15, and Sam
Milner 2nd in the B string discus. Isabella Hilditch having won the England
Schools the previous weekend ran well with 14.00 in the 100m hurdles but
found the competition far tougher than last week.
So the season has ended and BBHAC finished 6th and
retain their league status. If we can do this for all three matches next
season there is no reason why we should not be in the top three in 2018.
Team Manager Brendan McShane was called “Houdini” by many after Sunday’s
exploits, but probably better aimed at the whole ladies team for their
fantastic performances.
Young Athletes U13/15
Having being second in the previous three YDL matches to national league
champions Southampton, it was great to see the BBHAC youngsters finally turn
the tables with a resounding win in the last league match at home in
Bromley. A place in the final already assured, some great efforts were seen
on Saturday.
In the under 13 girls events Sophie Kerr won the 150m
race in a great 19.51 and also won the long jump with sister Sophie winning
the 75m and the B string long jump, while Lily Meers won the B string 1200m
in a massive new pb only just missing the magic 4 minute mark. The team also
combined to win the sprint relay.
In the under 13 boys Connor Sutton won the 100 and
200m both in pbs of 12.88 and 25.82, while new member Tom Afelumo won the B
string even quicker in 12.67 for a pb. With Max Gregson and Jake Anthony
winning both strings in the 1500m and the team winning the 4x100 relay, this
greatly helped the club to overall victory.
For the under 15 girls Holly Mpassy continued her fine
form winning both the 200m and 300m and anchoring the victorious 4x300m to a
brand new club record of 2.49.13 which is among the fastest ever run by a
club side. The girls won the sprint relay as well while Zsiriah Thomas won
the B string 100m, Eve Ward the B string 300m, Ellie Dolby the B string
800m, and Naomi Toft shared the lead duties with Ava White before winning
with Ava taking the B string in a new pb in the 1500m.
For the under 15 boys Sam Reardon ran strongly to win
the 800m, Ryan Mansbridge took the high jump, while Michael Burfoot won both
the shot and discus, also a new pb of 40,31m. with Kareem Akarakiri wining
the B string. Kyron Morgan won the B string 200m and 300m and Barnaby Corry
jumped 2.40 for a new pb in winning the B string pole vault, and the team
ran superbly to win the 4 x 300m in a UK leading 2.33.42 without England
Schools bronze medallist Ollie Briars who was rested.
If the whole team can perform like this in the final
on September 2nd they will be right in the winning mix.
Nick Brooks
11/07/17
Isabella Hilditch wins England Schools hurdles
Being a great achievement to be picked to represent
your county at the England Schools Championships is in itself a major
accomplishment as these athletes are the best of the best. When your club
has over 40 athletes making the finals in Birmingham and coming away with 3
golds, 5 silvers and 7 bronze medals its not hard to see why we are among
the top clubs in the country for young athletes.
A host of pbs showed why these athletes train to peak at the right time and
in the table below you will see how they all did as there are far too many
to mention but each one has their own unique story. The club is incredibly
proud of all of these athletes with pride of place going to Isabella
Hilditch for winning the 100m hurdles, Ethan brown the inter boys 400m and
higher competition athlete Ricky Lutakome the senior 800m.
Results from other events to follow as information comes to hand, but the
club were second on the Southern League match at Crawley and Dina Asher
Smith continues her road to recovery cloiking 11.51 in the 100m at the
Anniversary Games in London.
|
Position |
Name |
Event |
Age
Group |
Performance |
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
1st |
Ethan Brown |
400m
|
Int
Boys |
48.22 |
pb |
|
1st |
Isabella Hilditch |
100m
hurdles |
Sen
Girls |
14.09 |
|
|
1st |
Ricky Lutakome |
800m |
Sen
Boys |
1.53.27 |
|
|
2nd
|
Camron Lyttle |
100m |
Sen
Boys |
10.62 |
|
|
2nd
|
Holly Mpassy |
200m |
Jun
girls |
25.01 |
pb |
|
2nd
|
Bekah Walton |
Javelin |
Sen
Girls |
44.62m |
|
|
2nd
|
William Adedeye |
Long
Jump |
Int
Boys |
7.13m |
pb |
|
2nd
|
Michael Burfoot |
Shot
putt |
Jun
Boys |
13.65m |
pb |
|
3rd |
Immanuela Aliu |
100m |
Sen
Girls |
11.94 |
pb |
|
3rd |
Ollie Briars |
300m |
Jun
Boys |
36.26 |
pb |
|
3rd |
Zakia Mossi |
800m |
Jun
girls |
2.13.97 |
pb |
|
3rd |
Funmi Olajide |
Long
Jump |
Int
Girls |
5.83m |
|
|
3rd
|
Luc
Durant |
Shot
putt |
Sen
Boys |
14.50m |
|
|
3rd |
Rebecca Hawkins |
high
jump |
Sen
Girls |
1.69m |
|
|
3rd |
Sophie Dowson |
pole
vault |
Sen
Girls |
3.70m |
|
|
4th |
Joe
Fuggle |
400m
hurdles |
Sen
Boys |
53.61 |
|
|
4th |
Ben
Sutton |
Long
Jump |
Int
Boys |
6.71m |
|
|
4th |
Annie Davies |
100m
hurdles |
Sen
Girls |
14.31 |
|
|
4th |
Henry James-Cowie |
1500m steeplechase |
Int
Boys |
4.28.71 |
pb |
|
5th
|
Anika Olalere |
Shot
putt |
Sen
Girls |
11.16m |
pb |
|
5th
|
Angus Harrington |
800m |
Int
Boys |
1.54.95 |
pb |
|
5th
|
Naomi Toft |
1500m |
Jun
girls |
4.37.24 |
|
|
5th
|
Josh
Watson |
100m
hurdles |
Int
Boys |
13.94 |
|
|
5th
|
Millie Smith |
1500m steeplechase |
Int
Girls |
5.15.39 |
pb |
|
6th
|
Rico
Cottell |
100m
hurdles |
Int
Boys |
14.16 |
|
|
6th
|
Morgan Squibb |
1500m |
Jun
girls |
4.38.13 |
pb |
|
6th
|
Hannah MacAulay |
Discus |
Int
Girls |
38.97m |
|
|
6th
|
Eloise Locke |
Javelin |
Int
Girls |
41.54m |
|
|
6th
|
Joss
Barber |
2000m steeplechase |
Sen
Boys |
6.04.77 |
pb |
|
7th |
Stephanie Fisher |
400m
hurdles |
Sen
Girls |
63.22 |
|
|
7th |
Modupe Shokunbi |
100m |
Sen
Girls |
12.31 |
|
|
7th |
Ava
White |
1500m |
Jun
girls |
4.39.32 |
|
|
7th |
Mary
Adeniji |
Triple jump |
Sen
Girls |
11.37m |
pb |
|
7th |
Matthew Francis |
1500m steeplechase |
Int
Boys |
4.32.24 |
|
|
8th
|
Jamiyla Robinson-Pascal |
Long
Jump |
Sen
Girls |
5.47m |
|
|
8th
|
Dele
Aladese |
Discus |
Sen
Boys |
42.02m |
|
|
9th |
Kyle
Reynolds-Warmington |
100m |
Int
Boys |
11.09 |
|
|
10th
|
Victoria Wiltshire |
Hammer |
Sen
Girls |
45.20m |
|
|
12th |
Karina Harris |
Triple jump |
Int
Girls |
10.81m |
|
|
12th |
Daisy Dowling |
Javelin |
Int
Girls |
38.90m |
pb |
|
13th |
Yasmin Marghini |
3000m |
Int
Girls |
10.07.70 |
|
|
16th |
Yasmin Austridge |
1500m steeplechase |
Sen
Girls |
5.22.31 |
|
Nick Brooks
4/07/17
Shannon Hylton wins UK 200m Champs and selection
for World Champs
A great win by Shannon Hylton in the British Champs in
Birmingham equalling her pb of 22.94 gained her automatic selection for next
months world championships in London. A clear winner against fancied
runners, 20 year old Shannon hit top form at exactly the right time of the
season and we wish her well next month.
Twin sister Cheriece Hylton also ran superbly in the
400m and after running a new pb in the heats had to settle for 4th in the
final in a near best time of 52.98 which could earn relay selection next
month. Second claimer Holly Mills jumped 6.31 for new pb in the long jump
winning a bronze medal, and Jahisha Thomas leapt 13.25m for a new pb and a
bronze medal in the triple jump, with Zara Asante 9th.
Elsewhere Jonathan Ilori took 5th in the mens triple
jump with 15.74m, Scott Huggins vaulted 5.15m for 6th in the pole vault
while Dina Asher Smith ran for the first time this season and did well for
6th in the 100m final having clocked 11.41 in qualifying and must have a
good chance of making the team for the word champs now. Adam Gemili faded
badly and appeared injured in earning 6th in the 200m but way off the pace
by his own high standards, Joe Elis took 5th in the hammer, Tom French 8th
in the long jump, Matt Blandford 7th in the discus and Sophie Dowson 12th in
the ladies pole vault.
Notable qualifying performances from Dan Putnam with
10.54 and 21.33 in the 100/200m, Phil Sesemann 3.46.59 in the 1500m and a
new pb of 14.74 for Reece Young in the 110m high hurdles.
The young athletes were in action at Ashford on Sunday
in the Kent League for under 13/15s, winning the match and maintaining a
healthy lead at the top of the league table.
In the under 13 boys match the team finished second on
the day with Oliver Robertson winning the 75m hurdles in a magnificent new
club record of 12.0 and the high jump with 1.43m, the team won the 4x100m
relay, while in the under 15 boys they won the match with Ryan Mansbridge
jumping 1.73m to win the high jump, Matthew Burfoot winning both the shot
and discus, and the team winning the 4x300m relay. The under 13 girls
finished second on the day with Emily Kerr breaking 10 seconds with 9.9 for
the 75m hurdles, Amarisa Sibley won the 1200m in a shade over 4 minutes,
Sophie Kerr won the long jump and the girls won the 4x100m relay. The under
15 girls also finished second team on the day winning both relays. All 4
teams were ably backed up by a total of 12 B string winners to secure a
handsome margin of victory.
Next weekend is the England Schools Champs in
Birmingham with over 25 club athletes competing for the various counties,
and the Southern league for men and women at Crawley where the team
currently sit second of the 16 teams.
Nick Brooks
