Last updated 25
August 2000
Press Releases June
& July 2000
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pages.
31 July 2000
Oldest Club in the
world Blackheath Harriers Bromley is currently enjoying some of the greatest
individual success in its 131 year history with another magnificent seven new
Club Records set on a hectic weekend of competition.
First team captain
Mensah Elliott broke the Senior Mens 110 Hurdles record twice in a day at the
Loughborough International Development Meeting. He won his heat in a new best of
13.92, 0.05 quicker than Newham’s Damien Greaves. In the final he took second
in 13.82 despite hitting a number of hurdles and had the frustration of seeing
Greaves dip inside the Olympic qualifying time with 13.62. His time leaves him
ranked 4th in the country and he will aim Olympic qualifying mark of
13.70 at the Trials on two weeks time.
The previous day he
won the prestigious Inter Area match at Solihull where he timed 14.06; while
team mate Michael Champion was 2nd in the 200 in 21.66 and Paul
Fisher continued his return to racing with 6th place in the 800.
Emeka Udechuku was
also in action both days. He beat one of his rivals for an Olympic place, Glen
Smith, at the Loughborough meeting when he threw 58.83 for 2nd in the
discus, one centimetre off his seasons best.
He had represented
England at an international meeting in Dublin the day before finishing 3rd
in both the shot and discus with throws of 17.36 and 57.26. Lash Lashore timed
10.68 in the 100, despite a tight hamstring; and Joe Mills, running for Wales,
was 3rd in the 1500 in 3.45.87. Jonathan Barbour also had hamstring
problems and was forced to withdraw from the 100.
Meanwhile at the AAAs
Under 17s and under 15s Championships at Sheffield, the Oliver sisters continued
their systematic revision of the Clubs throws records. Spurred on by Coach
Herbie Kuenstlinger, Emily launched the under 17s discus out to 33.91. Not only
was this a record in her age group but it also set a new Senior Record as well!
Not to be outdone
sister Anita hurled the under 15s implement out to 26.91for another record. Both
finished 6th in their respective competitions.
Star of the weekend,
however, was Joseph Godsell who was rewarded for some hard training under Dave
Liston at Norman Park with an outstanding silver in the 800 metres.
Godsell’s uncle,
Bob Minting also had cause to celebrate, as he and some of the Clubs more senior
members returned from the British Veterans Championships at Bedford with six
gold medals. Not only did Minting win both the over 50s 800 and 200 metre
events; but he also set new Club records of 12.41 and 67.32 with silvers in the
100 and 400 hurdles; and was also 3rd in the high jump.
The evergreen Jim Day
was also a double winner with gold in the over 65s pole vault and high jump in
2.70 and 1.29, and 2nd in the 100 hurdles and triple jump. Gordon
Hickey was 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th in
the over 65s shot, javelin, discus and hammer; while Peter Hannell strode to
victory in the over 50s 3km walk; and Joe Clare was 3rd in the over
60s 1500 metres.
Some of the Clubs
stars of the future were in action at the Bromley Primary schools and there was
a one-two from Blackheath athletes in the girls 500 metres with Rebecca Taylor
breaking the Championship record to win in 1.32.7, and Aimee Boyle a close 2nd
in 1.34.5.
More of the Clubs
youngsters are currently appearing on television each Sunday morning in Jamie
Baulch’s Energize programme at 10.05 with Katy Porter helping do the
presenting.
The Club is still
looking to recruit new girls and boys of all standards. Anyone interested should
visit Norman Park track on a Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday from 6.30 and ask
for Michelle Bovell or Dave Liston. Further information about the Club is
available on the weekly updated website.
Both Julian Golding and Jonathan Barbour are set to compete
at the Norwich Union British Grand Prix at Crystal Palace this Saturday; while
many of the Clubs youngsters will make up the supporting cast of baggage
carriers and hurdle removers. On Sunday the Clubs Senior mens team travel to
Enfield for the final match of the British Athletics League Division Two season.
Currently second in the table, a solid result would secure promotion back to the
highest division of Club athletics in the country.
24 July 2000
Mark Steinle posted
his second Olympic qualifying time when he finished 4th in the AAAs
Olympic 10,000 metre trial at Watford. The 25 year old Blackheath Harrier
Bromley athlete is already selected for Great Britain in the marathon, but his
time of 28.04.48 was nearly six seconds inside the 10,000 qualifying mark. It
also breaks the Blackheath club record of Bob Richardson, which has stood since
1969, by 31 seconds, a second for every year.
A new best by over a
minute, Steinle was also pleased with the negative splits. “I ran the first
5,000in 14.04 and the second half in 13.59 which is only a second off my 5km
best. It’s back to hard training this week. I aim to run the Erewash 10 in
four weeks time and that’s it as far as racing until the Olympics. Hopefully I’ll
be allowed to travel out to Sydney around the 10th of
September.”
Although 3rd
Briton home in the 10,000, he does not seek double Olympic selection, being
happy that his time indicates that his training is on course for a good Olympic
marathon.
Steinle’s
performance was the highlight of an outstanding weekend with six Club members on
international duty. Julian Golding and Mensah Elliott represented England and
Joe Mills, Wales, in an international in Bucharest, Hungary. Golding timed 20.84
for 2nd in the 200, with Elliott 5th in the 110 hurdles in
14.20, having timed 14.08 in his heat; and Mills setting a seasons best of
3.43.73 in the 1500.
At Liverpool, the
Club provided 3 individual winners for Great Britain in the under 23
international match against France and Germany. Jonathan Barbour won the 100 in
10.34; Chris Moss the 800 in 1.48.68; and Emeka Udechuku the discus in 56.30.
Udechuku was also 3rd
in the shot in 17.17 and his weekend didn’t finish there, as, the following
day he travelled to Rugby to help the Blackheath team to a memorable semi final
win in the Gold Cup over current National League and Cup holders Belgrave by
half a point.
He won the shot and
discus and started the day with a new best of 45.38 in the hammer, a remarkable
achievement since he arrived minutes before the event as his car broke down on
the way from Liverpool that morning. Other wins came from Bill Foster (10,000),
Michael Skinner (1500), Dave Heath (5000); and the 4x100 team of Lash Lashore,
Dave Gardiner, Darren Burley and Michael Champion.
The team now look
forward to the final at Bedford on the 22nd of August.
Car trouble also
affected the womens team as they travelled to their first ever Jubilee Cup semi
final at Eton. Motorway hold ups meant they missed the 100 metre and 800 events
as the young team from Southern League Division Three took on five National
League teams including two from Division One, six divisions higher than them.
Making the Final was
never a realistic goal, but, the chance to challenge some of the country’s top
athletes was met with some gusto,
as Siobhan Budd ran away from the field to win the 3000 metres; and Sam Singer
and Karyn O Mahoney both scored 2nd places in the 200 and 1500.
Highlight in the
field was another new under 17 Club Record in the hammer for Emily Oliver. She
improved to 30.22 which means the record has been extended by nearly 25% this
summer!
The motorway hold up
has probably cost them a place in the Plate Final for the best non National
League teams in the Cup, but the Clubs boys team have certainly qualified for a
final. They will compete in either the main or auxiliary final of the McDonalds
Young Athletes League, after finishing 2nd in their final match at
Crawley. Which match they have qualified for depends on the results elsewhere,
but, whichever one it is, Sundays individual performances indicate they will be
tough match for anyone.
Phillip Shelley took
the Man Of The Match Award for his 29 metre throw in the under 17s discus, while
in the same age group there were impressive 22.7 and 23.0 clockings in the 200
from Fabian Collymore and Darren Watson. Matt Gipon set a new best of 54.7 in
the 400; and there was a rare double victory in the pole vault from Tom Robinson
and Gareth Fergus.
In the under 15s
excellent performances included Andrew Johnson 80 metre hurdles (12.1); Ray
Campbell 800 (2.14.9); Joe Sweeney 1500 (4.22.1) and Sanjo Bamjboye long jump
(5.77) while in the under 13s Fabrice Serybi launched the shot out to 10.09 (13
centimetres off the Club Record) and Langley Park schoolboy Shane Marsh leapt
4.42 in the long jump on his debut.
There was success of
a different kind at the girls match at Perivale where an inspired effort from a
weakened squad meant the Club avoided relegation. A third Club Record of the
weekend was set by Clare Cooper as she timed 11.7 to win the under 13s 70 metre
hurdles. Sandra Alaneme won both the under 15s high and long jumps; and Anita
Oliver scored a one, two three in the discus, javelin and shot.
Equally vital to the
Clubs cause were the efforts of Nina Akif, Vanita Apsouka, Siobhan Taylor, Cleo
Richardson, Rebecca Atanda, Vicky O Connell, Ashley Harper and Leanne Anderson,
many of whom were making their seasons debuts.
Gold Cup Result
1. Blackheath
Harriers Bromley 125. 2. Belgrave Harriers 124.5. 3. Swansea Harriers 96. 4.
Rugby 91.5. 5. Cardiff 83. 6. City Of Norwich 76. 7. Telford 62. 8. City Of
Stoke 50.
100. 2. Lash Lashore
10.6. 200. 3. Michael Champion 21.3. 400. 6. David Gardiner 51.5. 800. Paul
Fisher 1.55.1. 1500. 1. Michael Skinner 3.57.2. 5000. 1. David Heath 14.04.1.
10,000. 1. Bill Foster 30.47.7. 110H. 8. Alexis Sharp 15.5. 400H. 2. Nange
Ursell 55.1. 3000s/c. 2. Jeremy Bradley 9.32.6. HJ. 2. Bomene Barikor 1.90. LJ.
4. Levi Edwards 7.08. TJ. 4. Marvin Bramble 14.37. PV. Sharp n/h. SP. 1.Emeka
Udechuku 17.17. DT. 1. Udechuku 57.79. JT. 2. Sharp 53.58. HT. 4. Udechuku
45.38. 4x100. 1. (Lashore, Gardiner, Champion, Darren Burley) 42.1. 4x400. 3.
(Gardiner, Skinner, Bradley, Gardiner) 3.25.9
Jubilee Cup
200. 4. Anisha
Barnaby 26.0. 400. 2. Sam Singer 57.3. 1500. 2. Karyn O Mahoney 4.52. 3000. 1.
Siobhan Budd 10.20.9. LJ. 6. Katy Benneworth 5.21. TJ. 5. Angela Zihute 10.61.
SP. 6. Lisa Edwards 9.75. DT. 5. Emily Oliver 31.02. JT. 6. Edwards 28.46. HT.
5. Oliver 30.22 Club record. 4x100. 4. 49.1.
Other results from
Watford
800. E. Race. 4.
David Moulton 1.55.2. F Race. 4. Steve Cooper 1.56.0
1500. C. Race. 4.
Martin Airey 3.51.6. D Race. 1. Jeremy Bradley 3.51.39
3000s/chase. 2. David
Heath 8.52.92. 12. Dave Lee 9.18.23.
18
July 2000
Athletes from
Blackheath Harriers Bromley have set a number Club Records in the first couple
of months of the track and field season, but few were anticipating that five
should fall in one hectic weekend of competition.
The Oliver sisters,
both coached by Herbie Kuenstlinger, were in outstanding form at the Southern
Women's League match at Parliament Hill. In the under 15s Anita broke the
javelin record with a throw of 26.58 and then improved the discus record to
26.24. Not to be outdone sister Emily set a new under 17s hammer record of 26.39
and the following day went even further at the National Junior Athletic League
match at Croydon launching the implement out to 27.78.
On the track, the
burgeoning talent of Joanna South was amply demonstrated with a new under 13s
100 metre record of 13.4 and an excellent 28.0 clocking in the 200.
Clare Cooper had a
busy afternoon with a 2nd place in the 75 hurdles and 3rd
in both the 100 metres and long jump; Manisha Wynter set a new best of 20.47 in
the discus; and there were promising Club debuts from Venita Akpofure in the 800
and Leanne Anderson in the 75 hurdles.
For the seniors
Siobhan Budd was outstanding in the middle distance winning the 3000 and
finishing 2nd in both the 800 and 1500. Louisa Guthrie and Katy
Benneworth took maximum points in
the 100 metres, while in the field Lydia Henderson Boyle threw a useful 21.88 in
the discus.
More current Club
Record holders were also in action albeit at the other end of the age group
categories, with three of the Clubs more senior members competing the European
Veterans Championships in Jyvaskyla, Finland. Bob Minting took silver in the
over 50s 400 metres in 54.9 and was also the fastest qualifier for the 800 metre
final having timed 2.10.69 in his heat.
Also in the over 50s,
Dennis Wallington finished 8th in the long jump with a leap of 5.47
and was then 11th in the pentathlon with 2935 points. He also timed
12.73 in the heats of the 100.
The remarkable Jim
Day just missed out on a medal. The West Wickham based athlete, who will be 67
next month, soared over 2 metres 80 in the pole vault and would have taken
bronze but for a last gasp clearance at the third attempt by another athlete. It
was 4th again in the 100 metre hurdles where he timed 20.02. He was
also 17th in the high jump with 1.27.
There was some
disappointment, however, at the men's National Junior Athletic League match at
Enfield where a greatly weakened team finished in 5th place. It will
now take a huge effort to finish in the top four and qualify for the National
Final.
Despite the team
result there were a number of excellent individual performances. Mark Awanah was
just 5 centimetres off the league record with a winning leap of 7.21 in the long
jump; Dwayne Grant cruised to victory with a 10.7 clocking in the 100; and
Daniel Ayrton made a welcome return from injury to run under 9 minutes for 3000
metres. A number of personal bests were achieved including Chris Daniel (2.06
for 800); and Matt Gipon (55.9 for 400).
This weekend three
Club members will be representing Great Britain in the under 23 match against
France and Germany in Liverpool. Jonathan Barbour runs in the 100, 200 and
4x100; Chris Moss goes in the 800; while in the field Emeka Udechuku competes in
the shot and discus. It will be a busy weekend for Udechuku as the following day
he is in the Blackheath squad who travel to Rugby for the Gold Cup semi final.
The Clubs women's
team make their first ever Jubilee Cup semi final appearance when they travel to
Eton. A good result their could qualify them for the Plate Final which is for
the best placed non UK Women's League teams.
Also this weekend is
the AAAs Olympic 10,000 metres trial at Watford. Mark Steinle, who has already
gained Olympic selection in the marathon is set to race, and a number of other
Heathens will be competing in the various supporting development races.
For further
information about the Club please contact Dave Liston on 01322 663504 or visit
Norman Park track on a Tuesday or Thursday evening from 6.30.
9
July 2000
Blackheath Harriers
Bromley are just one match away from a return to Division One of the British
Athletics League after a gripping Division Two match at Peterborough. The team
actually finished 3rd on the day but they remain 2nd in
the overall table, three league points ahead of Trafford with a superior match
points total. In effect, to go up, Trafford would need to beat Blackheath by
four places in the remaining match at Enfield on 6th August to push
them out of one of the two automatic promotion places.
With the Olympic
Trials now only five weeks away many athletes with selection for Sydney in mind
were in action. Last weekend Mensah Elliott competed for Great Britain as a
replacement for Tony Jarrett in the 110 hurdles. At Peterborough the two met
head to head with Jarrett just getting the verdict in a tight finish. Elliott
timed an excellent 14.1 in blustery conditions.
Both Bomene Barikor
and Paul Graham defeated Dalton Grant in the high jump. 18 year old Barikor was
equal 1st in the competition clearing 2.00 metres and Paul Graham’s
1.90 3rd place in the B string was still sufficient to beat Britain’s
top jumper as Grant progressed no further than his opening height of 1.70.
Emeka Udechuku
celebrated his 21st birthday two days early with a win by 6 metres in
the discus, but was then surprisingly pushed into 2nd in the shot by
New Zealander Fale Seve who competes for Cardiff.
The middle distance
again proved a source of good points for the Club with a double first from Dave
Heath and Martin Airey in the 1500 and a 2nd and 1st place from
Anthony Draper and Michael Skinner in the 800. Performance of the day, however
came from Jeremy Bradley who set a new best of 9.14.8 to finish 3rd
in the steeplechase before running 15.17.1 for 3rd in the B string
5,000, his 2nd fastest ever time for the distance. Veteran Bill
Foster clocked an excellent 14.51.9 for 4th in the A race.
Top sprinters were
out in force which explained why Lash Lashore was only 6th in the 100
in his first race back from injury. Jonathan Barbour was beaten into 5th
place in the 200, but Michael Champion made amends with an emphatic victory in
the B race, and he was also a key member of both relays teams, as the Club moved
from 6th to 3rd place in the last 5 events of the day.
With the match finely
balanced the 4x100 team of Champion, Barbour, Lashore and Darren Burley equalled
the Club Record of 41.0 that they set in the last match at Enfield finishing
second to a powerful Cardiff quartet. After good legs from Dave Gardiner, Steve
Cooper, and Paul Fisher, in the 4x400, Champion clocked a best ever 47.6 split
to anchor the team to another 2nd place.
Match result. 1.
Woodford Green 351. 2. Harrow 294. 3. Blackheath Harriers Bromley 291. 4.
Trafford 267. 5.Enfield And Haringey 262. 6. Cardiff 252. 7. Peterborough 249.
8. Edinburgh 212.
The Club also had a
successful weekend at the English Schools Championships at Sheffield, the so
called “mini Olympics”, which features top schools athletes from around the
country. Great Britain junior international Dwayne Grant from Penge took gold in
the 200 in 21.2. Mark Awanah returned from injury to leap 7.11 for 2nd
place in a long jump competition he lost on count back, with just one centimetre
separating 1st to 3rd places. Paul Archer’s reward for
some hard training at Norman Park was a fine 2nd place in the Senior
Boys shot with a putt of 14.31.
For the girls Anisha
Barnaby smashed the Senior Women's Club Record for the 100 metres timing 12.17
as she finished 6th in the Senior Girls 100 metres in 12.17. Sam
Singer just missed out on a medal in the 800 finishing 4th in
2.13.03. Katy Benneworth jumped 5.17 in the intermediate girls long jump while
Anita Oliver putt the junior girls shot 9.13.
Other good
performances came from Neil Simpson with a 6th place in the
Intermediate Boys 400 in 50.51and from Joe Sweeney with a 4.24.50 7th
place in the Junior Boys 1500.
At Norman Park there
was another win for the Kent Boys And Colts team. Good performances all round
mean the Club is set to win the League for the 20th year in a row.
New member Daniel Casey had a gun to tape victory in the under 13s 800 and Ray
Campbell timed an impressive 2.15.1 in the under 15s race.
Elsewhere there were
useful performances from Will Edet who timed 55.9 for 400 and Andrew Johnson who
won the under 15s 80 metre hurdles in 12.0.
The previous day at
the same venue the Senior men's Southern League teams had been in action with
the division 2 team finishing 3rd
while the Division Five team had their 4th successive team win.
The Club now has two
of its members chosen for this years Olympic Games. Following Mark Steinle’s
selection for the marathon, Sian Brice has been picked to represent Great
Britain in the triathlon in the first year of it being an Olympic sport. Brice
is no stranger to competing at major championships having represented the Isle
Of Man in the 1500 metres at the 1986 Commonwealth Games at the age of 17.
Although athletics is not now her main sport, she still occasionally runs for
the Club in cross country events. She will be one of Britain’s hopes for a
medal in Sydney having finished 6th in last years World
Championships.
The Club is always
keen to welcome new members. For further information please contact Dave Liston
on 01322 663504.
3 July 2000
Blackheath Harriers Bromley have
received a resounding endorsement of it’s Club Development Policies with the
signing of a new sponsorship deal with BG Electrical Associates Ltd and
Sportsmatch worth £10,000 a year. BG Electrical Associates Ltd have agreed to
support the Clubs youngsters with £5,000, and this has been equalled by
Sportsmatch, a business sponsorship incentive scheme that is administered by the
Institute of Sports Sponsorship on behalf of the Department for Culture, Media
and Sport.
The new injection of money will be used
to expand the Clubs links with local schools in the Borough allowing coaches to
attend classes to provide specialist advice to youngsters.
Managing Director of BG Electrical, Ken
Tonkin, was delighted that his firms support for the Club had qualified for
Sportsmatch funding, as was the Clubs Schools Liaison Officer David Liston. “This
is exciting news for the Club and allows us to greatly expand our activities in
schools in the Borough. We are very grateful for the support from BG Electrical
Associates and Sportsmatch and also to Tina Slater of the Bromley Sports
Development Unit who gave advice on our Sportsmatch application”.
The Clubs ability to discover, nurture
and develop young athletes was admirably demonstrated on a weekend which saw
three of its former young athletes representing Great Britain in the Norwich
Union Challenge match against the USA in Glasgow.
Former Junior captain and Commonwealth
200 metre champion Julian Golding continued his steady build up for next months
Olympic Trials with a 5th place in the 200 in 20.89. Current Senior
captain Mensah Elliott made his Great Britain debut in the 110 hurdles and
finished 6th in 14.39 in a race won by World Champion Colin Jackson.
In the field Emeka Udechuku completed a
hectic weekend by finishing 5th in the discus in 56.84. The previous
day the ex Young Athletes captain had been competing at the AAA’s Under 23
Championships at Bedford where athletes from the Club won an astonishing 5 gold
medals.
These age group championships aim to
bridge the difficult gap between the junior and senior age groups and the
British selectors will use the results to pick teams for two forthcoming under
23 international matches, the first of which is in Liverpool against France and
Germany in three weeks time.
Udechuku booked his place in the
International with wins in both the shot and discus, and, he will be joined in
Liverpool by two other Heathens.
19 year old Jonathan Barbour continued
his sensational season with wins in both the 100 and 200 metres in times of
10.32 and 21.04. He has already equalled Julian Golding’s Club 100 metre
record this season but the 200 record is perhaps out of reach at present. “I
won’t be doing too many more 200s. They’re too far” said the new rising
star of British sprinting.
Former World Junior Championship
finalist, Chris Moss ran a perfect tactical 800 metres to win in 1.50.11, while
Michael Skinner had to settle for 4th place in the 1500 after being
well positioned with 250 metres to go.
Club Records have been tumbling
recently and the latest to go was the senior womens 400 metres as Sam Singer
timed 55.4 while representing the South Of England at the Inter Regional Junior
Match at Watford.
Also at the meeting Dwayne Grant
returned from a mid season training trip to Portugal to win the 100 in 10.67.
The Club were also in action in the
latest round of the McDonalds Young Athletes League For Boys And Girls. The Boys
were 2nd in their Southern Premier Division Match at Havering, while
the Girls finished 3rd in their match at Newham. In the McDonalds
Girls National Rankings for the season Katy Benneworth currently lies 10 in the
under 17s long jump with 5.14.
The
Club had such a response to its recent races for under 11s that it will be
holding more competitions at Norman Park track on Wednesday July 12th.
Girls and Boys from 6 to 10 are invited to take part in races of 150 metres and
600 metres. Entry is 50 pence. The first race is 6.30 pm. For further details
please contact Dave Liston on 01322 663504.
This
weekend see the 3rd of the 4 British Athletics League Division Two
matches at Peterborough. The Club are currently joint top of the table and will
be fielding a number of its top athletes in an effort to secure promotion back
to Division One. The B and C teams will be in action at Norman Park while many
of the Clubs youngsters will be competing in the so- called “mini Olympics”,
the English Schools Championships at Sheffied, which bring together the top
athletes in the country.
26 June 2000
Blackheath Harriers
Bromley are set for an immediate return to British Athletics League Division One
after winning the second of the four Division Two matches at Enfield, and an
afternoon of top class competition culminated in the 4x100 metres team breaking
the Club Record which has stood since 1984.
Early in the
afternoon things had not looked so good as the Club were unable to fill the B
string pole vault and Levi Edwards, a bronze medallist at the Inter Counties
Championships injured himself in the long jump. The earliest points score saw
the team positioned in 7th place out of 8 teams.
An inspired team
performance followed, with Emeka Udechuku and Alexis Sharp providing the
backbone in the field events. Udechuku won the discus with 54.76 and the shot in
17.22. Sharp was 2nd in the B string discus, 3rd in the B
javelin and 6th in the A long jump. Both also scored vital points in
the hammer.
On the track the
middle distance squad were in outstanding form winning 7 out of 8 events.
Anthony Draper comfortably took the 800 metres in 1.51.3 ahead of the country’s
6th fastest runner from last year and Michael Skinner and Martin
Airey won both strings of the 1500. Dave Lee took the steeplechase for the 2nd
match in a row in 9.09 and in a dramatic sprint Jeremy Bradley just snatched a
win in the B race by 0.1 of a second in 9.24.
In the 5,000 metres
Mark Steinle, Britains number one at the marathon , had to settle for 3rd
in the A race after losing out in the last 600 metres. He timed a very useful
14.18.8 off a slow early pace while super veteran Bill Foster won the B race in
14.48.5 in his 21st season in the Clubs British League team.
Joe Mills win in the
B string 800 was another notable performance as it was his fourth race in a
week. Last weekend he finished 2nd in the Welsh 800 metre
Championships at Cwmbran. He then travelled with the Welsh squad for two races
on the continent. On Tuesday he won a tactical 1500 metre race in 3.47.46 in
Estonia. His prize was a microwave oven which he then took on to Riga in Latvia
where he was just outside 1.50 in the 800. Arriving back in the country late on
Friday night, and not having time to unpack, he travelled, with microwave, to
Enfield for the B race which he won in 1.56.4.
Team captain Mensah
Elliott was also in Riga, where, representing England he finished 3rd
in the 110 hurdles in 14.11. He is the 2nd fastest hurdler in the
country at the moment and won his event at Enfield in 14.1.
Michael Champion was
an impressive winner of the 200 metres in 21.3 following his 10.9 in the 100;
and Darren Burley was just one tenth of a second behind former Commonwealth 200
metre champion Marcus Adam in the B 200.
Both were excellent
performances but these did not prepare the spectators for what followed in the
4x100. The team had just moved into the lead with 15 of the 19 events completed
and needed a good result to maintain their position. Rising to the occasion the
quartet of Burley, Champion, Elliott and an almost fit again Lash Lashore
defeated an Enfield And Haringey team containing Tony Jarrett, Adam and Solomon
Wariso to win by a tenth of a second in 41.0. In doing so they broke
the Club record which has stood for 16 years.
The win leaves the
Club joint top in the table with Woodford Green on 14 points, 2 clear of
Trafford who have 12.
Meanwhile the Clubs B
and C teams were in action in the Southern League with mixed results. In their
Division Two match at Deangate the B team were the strongest team on the track
but a lack of field eventers meant they had to settle for 4th place.
The C team continued their unbeaten season with another comfortable win in their
Division Five match at Bournemouth.
At the same venue
there were a wealth of quality performances from the womens team in their
Division Three match. Siobhan Budd continued her outstanding season winning both
the 3000 and 1500; and there were double wins also for Sam Singer (400 and 800);
Katy Benneworth (100 B and 80 Hurdles) and Claire Cooper (under 15s 100 and 75
hurdles). There were also wins for Karyn O Mahoney in the B 800 and Louisa
Guthrie in the 200 in the seniors; and from Joanna South in the under 15s B 200.
Elsewhere Julian
Golding followed a 2nd place in the 200 metres in Latvia with a
useful 10.51 clocking in the heats of the 100 at the Grand Prix meeting in
Nuremburg, Germany. Closer to home at Battersea, Dave Heath again timed 8.42 for
the steeplechase at the London Marathon Endurance Initiative Meeting.
This weekend Golding
runs in the 200 metres at the Great Britain v USA match in Glasgow. Mensah
Elliott may get a late call up for the 110 hurdles. Meanwhile Alexis Sharp
competes for Britain in the European Cup Combined Events Championships at
Esbjerg in Denmark.
A number of Heathens
feature in first rankings list of the season including three in the top ten of
the 100.
100. 5. Jonathan
Barbour 10.28. 8=. Lash Lashore
and Julian Golding 10.38. 200. 2.
Golding 20.64. 800. 8. Anthony
Draper 1.48.78. 5000. 3. Dave
Heath 13.57.50.
Marathon. 1. Mark Steinle 2.11.18.
3000s/chase. Heath 8.42.04.
110hurdles. 2. Mensah Elliott
14.03. Shot.
4. Emeka Udechuku 17.74. Discus. 5.
Udechuku 58.84. Decathlon. 3. Alexis Sharp 7133.
20 June 2000
Jonathan Barbour
catapulted himself amongst Britain’s sprinting elite with a stunning
performance at the Southern Championships at Brighton. Still only 19, the
Blackheath athlete won his first
senior 100m title in a time of 10.28 equalling Julian Golding’s Club Record.
Barbour won the AAA’s
junior indoor 60 metre title in 1999 but then spent all of last summer injured.
Now training with Golding under coach Mike McFarlane, he will be sure to win a
senior international vest in the very near future.
It proved another
highly successful championships for the Club as there were another three gold
medals won as well as two bronze. Emeka Udechuku celebrated the end of his exams
at Loughborough University by setting a new best of 17.74 in the shot putt. He
also won the discus by nearly three metres with a throw of 57.46.
Mensah Elliott
retained his Southern title in unusual circumstances as the final had to be
rerun. Having broken 14 seconds for the first time with a wind assisted 13.99 in
the heats Elliott thought he had got silver in the final. However two athletes
had pulled up at the start thinking they had heard a recall gun. Judges agreed
that the starters gun had produced an echo which could be interpreted as a
recall and ordered the race to be run again.
After another hour
the race got underway again. First out the blocks the Blackheath captain broke
the Club Record with a legal 14.03 to win by nearly two tenths of a second.
Levi Edwards
continued his excellent season with a third place in the long jump with a leap
of 7.08. Like Barbour, Michael Champion also made a breakthrough in the sprints.
Currently in the form of his life after suffering injuries in recent seasons, he
finished 3rd in the 200 metres in 21.18 just behind former
Commonwealth Champion John Regis.
Current Commonwealth
champion Julian Golding was in action at Lille, France and opened up his
European season with a promising 20.64 for second place in the 200 metres. He
also ran a 10.54 for the 100 as a warm up. “I was glad to get a couple of
races under my belt and was pleased with the times” said Golding. “Training
has gone well and I’m looking forward to some good racing on the European
circuit.” He runs in Riga, Italy on Thursday and then at Nuremburg, Germany
next Sunday.
Golding’s main aim
this year is the Olympics and Dave Heath is looking another possible selection
for Sydney after timing 8.42 for the 3000 steeplechase at the Wythenshawe BMC
races. It was his first chase for a number of years and having started
cautiously he was more than happy with his finishing time. The Olympic
qualifying time is 8.28 and he is confident of getting a lot closer to that when
he races again at Battersea this Sunday.
Also at Wythenshawe
Michael Skinner timed 3.46 for 1500 with Jeremy Bradley clocking 3.51.
Meanwhile the Club
had a tough fixture in the second match of the Southern Premier Division of the
National Junior Athletics League at Haringey. The blazing hot conditions made
for a difficult afternoon so in the circumstances the efforts of team captain
Daniel Moore were exceptional.
He started his
afternoon by clearing 2.70 in the pole vault and then followed this with a 3rd
in the 400 hurdles, 4th in the 110 hurdles and rounded off the day by
winning the B 2000 steeplechase. Winner of the A chase was Robert Laming who had
earlier won the B 800 by over 50 metres.
David Moulton was 2nd
in the A 800 despite not being fully recovered from glandular fever and he also
contributed a useful leg in the 4x400.
Bomene Barikor got a
good 2nd place in the high jump with a 1.90 clearance and there were
useful points scored in the throws from Amit Patel, and Robin and Philip
Shelley. The team finished 5th on the day in a highly competitive
division with the top four progressing to the National Final in September. There
are now two matches to go and there are 5 Clubs in contention for the four
places.
The girls were also
in action at Deangate in the Medway division of the League. Best performances
here came in the throws with two personal bests from Lydia Henderson Boyle with
21.70 in the discus and 7.64 in the shot. Emily Oliver also set a new best in
the hammer with 25.72 and also threw an excellent 32.55 in the discus. Cath
Castledine defied the blazing heat to win the 3000.
At the Kent under 13s
championships Adam Berry won the 75 hurdles in 14.1 and also took silver in the
150 metres with 21.1. It was silver also for Alex Al-Ameen in the 80 metres in
11.8 and there was a bronze for Chris Place in the 600 metes in 1.51.5.
The Club welcomes new
members of all ages. For further details please contact Dave Liston on 01322
663504 or ask for Dave at Norman Park track on a Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday
evening from 6.30pm.
13 June 2000
Blackheath Harriers
Bromley produced a shock result in the Womens Jubilee Cup First Round match at
Eton by beating many more fancied teams, and are now waiting to see if they have
qualified for the semi final next month.
Two matches take
place at the same venue with the six teams for each match only confirmed by a
random draw of 12 Clubs on the morning of the fixture. On paper Blackheath
appeared to have been pitted in by far the stronger match with all the
opposition coming from teams from the National League and higher placed teams in
the Southern League.
However, an
outstanding team effort saw them clinch 2nd spot just 5 points behind
Newham And Essex Beagles but ahead of National League Division Two Club Essex
Ladies and local rivals Croydon. The winners of each match qualify for the semi
final plus the better of the two 2nd placed teams at each venue. With
the Blackheath match being the stronger of the two, the squad now await the
decision of the organisers to see if they have qualified for the Cup Semi Final
for the first time.
There were a number
of individual winners with Louisa Guthrie taking the 100 in a personal best of
12.2, and Sam Singer and Karyn O Mahoney winning the 400 and 800. Newstead Woods
schoolgirl Helen Thomson won the high jump and the meeting finished with a
rousing victory in the 4x400.
Siobhan Budd,
recovering from a dose of tonsillitis, still managed 2nd places in
the 1500 and 3000 and Anisha Barnaby clocked an impressive 25.4 in the 200.
Just as important on
the day were the points scored in events where the first choice athletes were
unavailable. Lisa Edwards picked up a pole for the first time and after a brief
coaching session vaulted 1.60 for 4th place. Singer and O’Mahoney
helped out in the long and triple jumps, while Guthrie had a rare excursion over
the sprint hurdles.
Edwards and Emily
Oliver also scored useful points in the throws despite being up against two
Commonwealth Games representatives and a Southern Champion.
The clash with the
Cup meant a much weakened team being fielded at the latest round of the Kent
Womens League at Norman Park. Highlight of the afternoon was a 5.41 personal
best and English Schools qualifying distance for Katy Benneworth in the long
jump.
In the under 13s
Annabel Atkins was in outstanding form throwing the discus out to 19.41 and also
finishing 2nd in the high jump with a leap of 1.26. Aimee Boyle ran a
gutsy 3.29.6 for 2nd in the 1000; Claire Cooper was 2nd in
both the 75 metres and the long jump; and Joanne South ran a useful 21.2 in the
150 metres.
Meanwhile some of the
Clubs top seniors warmed up for this weekends Southern Championships with some
impressive performances at the Bedfordshire International Games. Jonathan
Barbour put a season of injury misery behind him by running the fastest time of
the day for the 100 metres clocking 10.36 just 7 hundredths outside Julian
Golding’s Club Record. Also in the sprints Dwayne Grant timed 21.41 for 2nd
in a 200 metre race against fellow Junior international Tim Benjamin from
Cardiff.
In the field Emeka
Udechuku set a meeting record and personal best in the shot with a putt of 17.52
and then finished 2nd in the discus with 56.56. At Watford the
previous Wednesday Anthony Draper ran one of the fastest times in the country
this year when he won the BMC 800 race in 1.48.7.
At the Kent schools
at Ashford on the Saturday there were wins in the Senior Boys events from
William Bolton in the 1500 and Paul Archer in the shot; while for the girls Sam
Singer had a comfortable win in the 800.
Joe Sweeney was just
two tenths outside the English schools qualifying time in winning the 1500 in
4.23.2 and there were also wins for Brendan Early in the 400 and Simon Childs in
the 800. Other medallists included Dwayne Bovell, James Sharpington and Andrew
Johnson with silvers in the 100, 200 and 80 hurdles; and 3rd places
for Dennis Sawyerr and Colin Smith in the 100 and 80 hurdles.
On the Sunday the
Club had another team victory in the Kent Boys And Colts League at Dartford.
They now head the League by over 200 points and look set to win the title for
the 19th successive year, an unprecedented achievement.
The Club welcome new
members of all ages and standard. For further details please contact Dave Liston
on 01322 663504 or ask for him at the Norman Park track from 6.30 on a Tuesday,
Wednesday or Thursday.
6 June 2000
On another hectic
weekend of athletic competition members of Blackheath Harriers Bromley were
again in action at the cutting edge of the sport with success spread across the
age groups.
17 year old Dwayne
Grant was the star performer at the European Inter City Under 23 match to
celebrate the opening of the newly revamped athletics track at Battersea Park.
Competing for London against teams from Madrid, Berlin, Amsterdam and Dublin,
the newly crowned Southern junior 100 and 200 champion, blasted to victory in
the 100 in a time of 10.6 before helping the 4x100 team to gold in an impressive
40.11.
Fellow Heathen Darren
Burley was also a member of this relay team and he also gained a useful 3rd
place in the 200 metres. It was 3rd bronze also for Michael Skinner
in the 1500 in 3.50.07. Dave Heath ran in the special invitation Mile race and
was just outside 4 minutes in a blanket finish, a time which was just outside
his best of 3.59.36 set in 1989.
Meanwhile, more
Harriers were appearing live on Sunday Grandstand at the Road To Sydney
International Match at Bedford. The meeting incorporated a 4x100 metre relay for
the top 8 Club teams in the country and despite being without a number of the
Clubs top stars, a squad of Ejike Wodu, Michael Champion, Mensah Elliott and
Levi Edwards ran a useful 42.23 for 6th place.
In the International
Event, Chris Moss, competing for the England Under 23s team, had a frustrating
race in the 800. Perfectly positioned for the first 550 metres, he suddenly
found himself boxed in and was never able to find a space to break through. He
timed 1.50.55, a seasons best, but was convinced that if a gap had opened he
would have won the race.
Team mate Emeka
Udechuku was 3rd in the shot with a putt of 16.93. His coach, former
Commonwealth Games silver medallist in the shot and Blackheath life member, Mike
Winch, has recently been appointed the new chairman for track and field for the
AAA of England. Winch is still 4th on the British all time list for
the shot with a best of 20.43 and hopes that in his new role he will be able to
“re-establish the base of our sport, which in my opinion has been very sorely
neglected.”
Part of the
competition pyramid in Britain is the Area Leagues and there was more success
for the Club as both the Senior Mens B and C teams strengthened their promotion
challenges in the Southern League. In the Division Two match at Harrow the B
team, competing against many other Clubs A teams, missed out on victory by just
two points, but the result still leaves them with 9 out of 10 League points so
far this season. The C team have maximum points after a win in their Division
Five match at Brighton.
The Clubs youngsters
were also in outstanding form in the latest round of the McDonalds Young
Athletes League For Boys. They won their Southern Premier Division match by a
mighty 126 points scoring 272 to Basildon’s 146 with Belgrave on 131 and
Oxford City on 116. This keeps the team on course for a place in the National
Final at Birmingham in September where the Club has won the National title an
unprecedented 9 times in the last 11 years.
Fabrice Serybi took
the Field Events Man Of The Match award for his 9.22 putt in the shot in the
under 13s age group where the Club dropped just 6 points the whole afternoon.
Adam Berry clocked a useful 13.4 in the 100 and new boy Chris Place timed an
excellent 5.07.5 to win the 1500.
In the under 15s Alex
Pope set a new best of 2.50 in the pole vault; while on the track Dwayne Bovell
and Dennis Sawyer had powerful runs in the 200 both timing 25.0; and Joe Sweeney
set yet another new best in the 1500 with a time of 4.23.9. Asando McCloud again
showed great promise as he won the discus with a throw of 37.98 and also jumped
5.05 in the long jump and was 1st in the B string 400.
A number of athletes
were unavailable because of exams which meant some athletes competing in more
than their main events. Dan Snow, for example won the 1500, B javelin, and the
1500 steeplechase. Stephen Brockwell was another triple winner taking the 100
hurdles, 400 hurdles and triple jump. Joe Godsell was just outside the English
Schools qualifying time with 51.7 in the 400 and Darren Watson set a new best of
1.85 in the high jump.
The latest round of
the Kent Womens League also saw more good performances from the Club’s
athletes. For the Seniors there was a double win for Louisa Guthrie in the 100
and 200 and a first also for Siobhan Budd in the 1500.
Helen Thomson soared
over 1.58 to win the under 17s high jump while in the same age group Katy
Benneworth was a double winner taking both the 80 metre hurdles and long jump.
Anita Oliver set a
new Club Record in the under 15s javelin when she threw 25.82. Also in the field
Sandra Alaneme won the high jump in 1.55 and there was victory on the track for
Eve Bugler in the 800.
The multi talented
Claire Cooper won the under 13s long jump with 4.04 and Annabel Atkins was
another to impress with a new best of 1.30 to win the high jump.
The Club prides
itself in the ability of its coaches to develop novice athletes of all ages to
medal winning performers. For further details of the Clubs Development Programme
please contact Dave Liston on 01322 663504 or ask for him at the track from
6.30pm onwards on a Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday evening.
30 May 2000
Emeka Udechuku moved
closer to revising his Club discus record when he threw the 2kg implement out to
58.84 at the Halle International throws meeting in Germany. The Mike Winch
coached 20 year old was just over 2 metres down on his best of 60.97 and, with
it still being early season, there seems every likelihood that there is better
to come.
Two other members of
Blackheath Harriers Bromley have also just returned from abroad having completed
the finishing touches to their summer preparations. Julian Golding and new
member Jonathan Barbour have been training in California and, while out there,
took the opportunity to take part in some US meetings. At Irvine on May 7th
Golding timed 10.38 for the 100, just nine hundredths outside his best. He wasn’t
so fast a week later when he clocked 10.55 at a meeting at Eagle Rock. In fact
Barbour actually ran faster in his heat timing 10.51, only 3 hundredths of a
second behind established British international Marlon Devonish.
Emphasizing the Clubs
strength in depth in the sprints came two more impressive performances from the
weekends major domestic Championships. At the Inter Counties Championships at
Bedford, Kent 200 metre champion Michael Champion set a new best of 21.12 in his
heat and then, despite suffering with a sore toe, finished 4th in the
final in 21.28.
Also on the track
veteran Bill Foster finished 5th in the 10,000 in 31.18.66; and
Michael Skinner and Stephen Pratt timed 4.21.06 and 56.93 in the heats of the
mile and 400 hurdles.
Outstanding
performance in the field came from Levi Edwards who set a new personal best in
finishing 3rd in the long jump with a leap of 7.35.
Meanwhile at the
Southern Under 20 Championships at Watford, Dwayne Grant continued his
outstanding start to the season as he took gold in both the 100 and 200 Under
20s events. He won the 200 in a new best of 21.2, and then was equally
impressive in the 100 with a 10.6 clocking.
It proved yet another
successful Championships for Blackheath athletes against the top athletes from
an area spanning from Suffolk down to Cornwall. Further golds came from Katy
Porter in the 100 hurdles in 14.57; and from Sandra Alaneme who set a new best
of 1.65 to win the under 15s high jump.
Back in the sprints
Anisha Barnaby took silver in the under 20s 100 in 12.34, and there was bronze
and a new Club Record for Lisa Edwards in the discus with a throw of 33.87.
There was another
Club Record in the under 15s discus where Anita Oliver threw a new best of 26.17
and to cap a fine start to her season she then putt another best of 9.79 in the
shot. Alaneme threw even further with 9.96.
Emily Oliver was just
outside her best in finishing 5th in the under 17s discus in 32.66
while Katy Benneworth was 5th in the long jump with a leap of 5.23.
Elsewhere Robert
Laming was 9th in the under 20s 1500 final with Stuart Simmons
setting a new best in the heat.
On the roads
internationals Mark Steinle and Dave Taylor were in action in at high quality
race at Stevenage. The Fila Leisure Experience 5km attracted some of the best
runners in the country with Kenyan Julius Kimtai winning in a course record of
13.45 from former Commonwealth 5000 metre champion Rob Denmark . Steinle,
running far below his Olympic marathon distance, finished in 12th
having seen Taylor sweep past him in the final 400 metres as he moved through to
10th.
The Club will be
featured live on Sunday Grandstand this weekend when they compete in a special
invitation Clubs 4x100 metre relay race which has been incorporated in the
latest Road To Sydney meeting at Bedford. The fastest 8 Club teams in the
country have been invited to meet head to head with the winners receiving prize
money of £2000. Many of the Clubs other top athletes will be competing there
and also at the European Inter City match at Battersea Park. The Club will also
be fielding teams in the Southern Mens League and the McDonalds Young Athletes
League for boys.
For further
information about joining the club, please contact Dave Liston on 01322 663504
or ask for Dave at Norman Park track on a Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday evening
from 6.30 onwards.
