Last updated
17 December 2015
Press Releases for
October, November & December 2007
18/12/07
Andrew Rayner continued his successful return to
competition by finishing 4th in the Senior Mens’ race at the Kent League at
Somerhill Park. The Blackheath & Bromley athlete’s position in a strong field
will give him confidence as he prepares for the County Championships at the
start of the New Year.
There was a fine run also from Alex Bruce Littlewood who
seems to improve with every race. A first year under 20 he placed 12th overall.
With David McKinlay in 23rd and Martin Airey the Club finished 4th in the 4 to
score contest and are third overall so far for the season.
Jamie Saunders had his best ever run for the Club in
finishing in 44th with promise of more to come. Nick Barber was the Club’s only
other finisher in 103rd place and so there was no place achieved in the 12 to
score.
Full details of the younger age group races have not yet
been received
A number of Blackheath & Bromley athletes were in action
at the London Championships and Southern Inter Counties Cross Country
Championships which took place in atrocious conditions at Parliament Hill
Fields. Best performance came from James Poole. He defied the wind, rain and
cold to finish in 5th place overall in the Senior Mens’ race. He timed 33.32 for
the six mile course and was the third under 23 to finish.
Alex Bruce Littlewood had another good run placing 24th
overall and was the 7th under 20 to finish. In the under 15s age group Hector
Kurtyanek placed 18th, a promising performance. Danielle Critchley was 36th and
Michelle Fewster 61st in the girls race.
In the under 13s age group Jessica Jones was 46th in the
girls race and Adam Willis 68th in the boys.
Daniel Haque has had a useful start to the indoor season.
Injured for much of the Summer, he finished second in the South East Students
Sports Association Championships at Lee Valley. The Imperial College student
timed 6.9 and 7.1 to win his heat and semi final before running 6.9 again to
take the runner up spot in the final.
The Under 15 boys rankings for the 2007 track and field
season have recently been published and a number of the Club's athletes feature.
Pride of place goes to Phil Sesemann who is the quickest 3000 metre runner in
the country. His 9.19.25 is nearly two seconds quicker than the second ranked
athlete.
Tom Bensted enjoyed an outstanding Summer winning both the
English Schools and England Athletics National titles at 400 metres. The John
Powell coached athlete's 50.96 was the second quickest in the country and he is
also ranked 5th in the 100 metres in 11.46 and 14th in the 200 with 23.36.
Matt Fletcher's 11.6 for the 100 also features in the
lists and despite an season plagued by injury he is 6th ranked in the long jump
with 6.27.
Ben Hopkins had a successful year and he is the 4th
fastest 80 metre hurdler in the country with 11.50.
Two athletes feature in the pole vault lists despite only
being in their first years in the age group. Charlee Debolla is 10th equal with
a clearance of 3 metres 11 centimetres. Mark Longhurst is 15th with 3.01 and he
is also 17th in the triple jump with 12.12.
Highest ranked girl is Jessica Nicol Smith who is fourth
equal in the pole vault with a clearance of 3 metres. Kelly Davey is 17th in the
shot with a putt of 10.58.
11/12/07
Blackheath & Bromley athlete Michael Skinner achieved his
top 20 finish goal at the 14th European Cross Country Championships in Toro,
Northern Spain this weekend. (Sunday 9 September)
Skinner, 28, finished 17th in the top class field in
32.31minutes. He was the third counter for the four-strong British team, with
the squad just missing out on the bronze by six points. The Championships were
featured in full in the BBC Sunday Grandstand show with Skinner prominent in the
main bunch until the closing stages.
Speaking from Spain after the race Skinner said: "I was
pleased with how I ran but it was gutting to miss out on the team medal. Coming
here I really wanted to make the top 20. But now, having run, I wish I had come
a bit higher up. The wind got stronger and stronger and that meant everyone was
bunching The course was very flat and conditions pretty good apart from a strong
wind. Looking ahead, I will probably be heading to Belfast for the International
Cross-Country race in early January and then to the Great Edinburgh
International Cross Country race on January 12th."
There will no time for seasonal excesses with Skinner
training even on Christmas Day. The dedicated former 1500m specialist has been
stepping up in distance and is aiming for a place in the UK team for the Beijing
Olympics next year at 5000m. Skinner added: "My winter training is going really
well and I am looking forward to getting on the track later next year and
running well going through to the Olympic trials. I have been running since I
was 10 and have had huge family support to get this far and to go to the
Olympics would be amazing and a fitting thank you for all my supporters. I am
still getting used to the longer distance and cross-country helps make the
transition."
Skinner combines an arduous training schedule with working
full-time for the Richmond Schools Sport Partnership - helping the athletes of
the future but this year has been helped with some local sponsorship £7,500 from
MB Allen and Co - solicitors in West Wickham and Addiscombe.
Skinner, who receives no Lottery funding, added: "The
money really makes a difference. Transport costs getting around the country to
compete alone cost nearly £2k a year and I spend £200 just on sports drinks! My
running shoes - for track and then cross country will also cost hundreds. And
after I have been putting in the miles on the track and working hard at the gym
a massage and sports physio sessions are crucial to my recovery times. These
medical costs come in at around £1,500 a year!
"I think sometimes people think that runners just pull on
their trainers and go for it but to compete at the highest level is a massive
drain and the MB Allen sponsorship means I can concentrate on running and not on
the bills! It is a 24/7 lifestyle with everything I do focused on my running."
MB Allen senior partner Nigel Leonard said: "Michael's
mother Pauline works at our West Wickham offices and we are so pleased with his
progress and delighted to be able to him achieve his Olympic dreams."
One of Skinner's training partners Scott Overall was the
winner of the Victory 5 mile road race in Portsmouth last weekend. Strong winds
prevented fast times but he still timed 24.43 to beat Highgates Ben Noad by six
seconds with one of Britain's fastest 1500 metre runners Michael East in third.
Not only was he the individual winner but he was also part
of a B & B squad that won team gold scoring 43 points well clear of Winchester
(64) and Southampton Running Club (90). Andrew Rayner returned to racing to
place 12th in 26.06 and two former Southern Cross Country Champions Dave Taylor
and Spencer Newport placed 14th and 16th in 26.47 and 27.04. Taylor and Newport
were first and second in the over 40s race. David McKinlay also had a useful run
in 21st place in 27.21.
Another former Southern Cross Country champion was in
winning form at the Elan Valley 10 mile road race at Rhayader. Tim Dickinson
proved too strong for the opposition winning by over a minute in 57.44.
Andrew Rayner was back in action at the Swanley Christmas
Caper. He won the race in 22.07 beating previous champion Peter Tucker in to
third place so depriving him of the race prize of a Christmas Turkey. There was
some consolation for Tucker as he won a Christmas Cake which he preferred to the
second place prize of a chicken which went to Dartford’s Sam Coombs. Nick Gasson
finished in 8th.
Clare Lodwig was the first woman from the Club to finish
in 67th place with Abigail Jacobs 187th and Jo Kift 438th.
The Club enjoyed great success at the Kent Veterans
Championships at Sparrows Den, West Wickham. Despite horrendous conditions they
won medals in all five age group races with pride of place going to the over 45
women and over 50 men who struck gold.
Angela Cook picked up a bronze in the over 45s race with
Annie McDonough 10th and Past President Anne Cilia 13th and good backing from
Amanda Taylor in 18th. For the over 50 men Tim Soutar had to settle for second
spot after leading most of the way with Cross Country Secretary Con Griffin
picking up a well earned bronze. Ken Daniel completed the scoring team in 6th
place. There was plenty of back up here with Graham Coates 15th, Peter Hamilton
17th, Rob Brown 21st, Andrew Lawes 22nd, Chris Pike 28th and Jim Bailey 31st.
There were silver medals for the over 60s team with Mike
Cronin in 8th place, John Fenwick 9th and Irish International John Robinson
14th. They were backed by Drew Grace in 15th and Colin Rowe 18th.
The over 35 women just missed out on silver medals by two
points with Rosie Ferguson 5th, Jane Bradshaw 6th and Bridget Davey 11th.
Miranda Porritt was 14th, Tara Emery 21st and Justine Eastbury 22nd.
It was third place also for the over 40 men for Roger
Beswick 6th, Gary Cook 17th, Andy Tucker 24th and Mark Ellison 28th with Mark
Russell 32nd.
With thanks to Trevor Frecknall and Emma Johns for their
help in compiling this report.
4/12/07
The indoor track and field season is underway and a number
of Blackheath & Bromley athletes were in action at the Data Connection Open
Meeting at the Lee Valley Athletics Centre. Isobel Ivy won the best female
athlete award for finishing first in the long jump with a leap of 5.18. There
were good 200 runs from Daniella Annon who timed 26.76 and for Helen Godsell
whose 28.8 was an impressive performance for an over 50 athlete. Katrina Cosby
ran a very useful 60.39 for the 400 metres.
For the men Dan Putnam looked strong in winning the 200
metres in 22.80 with Neil Francis third in 23.9. Ben Hopkins timed 54.19 in the
400 metres.
On the roads five Club members took part in the Luton
Marathon. First home was Dave King in 175th place in 3.38.32 with Pete Rogers
235th (3.48.41), Dave Leal 236th (3.49.23), John Turner 255th (3.52.23) and
Colin Poole 483rd (4.40.46).
Lauren Blackie is the latest Club Member to receive a Jack
Petchey Foundation Award. Each month a Club member aged between 11 and 25
receives a framed certificate and a cheque for £200 to be spent on a Club
project of the recipient's choice. As well as being a talented, Nationally
ranked athlete, Lauren also puts her time back into the Sport as one of the
regular coaches with the Bees Academy, the Club’s coaching scheme for school
years 4 to 7.
The Under 17 track and field rankings for the 2007 Summer
season have recently been issued with a number of athletes from Blackheath &
Bromley featuring prominently. Andrew Jordon heads the mens' hammer rankings
despite being in the first year of the two year age group. His distance of 67.54
is over four metres further than anyone else in the country has thrown. Training
partner Jake Haylock, another first year in the age group, is 10th with 54.95.
Elsewhere in the field events English Schools International Marcus Morrison is
placed 5th in the triple jump with 14.24 and Eddie Ekanem is 14th in the shot
with a putt of 15.04.
Best track athlete is Dan Putnam who features in both the
400 and 200. Another first year in the age group he is 6th in the 400 with 49.04
and 17th in the 200 with 22.56.
Stephen Cavey is 7th in the 800 with a time of 1.54.64
while Jermaine Alexander's 10.8 for the 100 would have featured highly in the
lists had it been recorded using electronic timing. Highest ranked women are
Chelsea O Rawe Hobbs and Katrina Cosby. Chelsea, an English Schools
International, is 2nd in the 3000 metre walk with 15.23.46. Katrina is the 2nd
fastest in the 400 hurdles with 64.38 and 4th quickest in the country over the
300 hurdles with 44.52.
Team captain Isobel Ivy is 7th in the triple jump with
11.30 with Jessica Matthews 19th with 11.06. Jessica is also 17th in the high
jump with 1.65 a good effort considering she was injured for much of the season.
Banke Jemiyo is placed 8th in the hammer with 43.20 and
Katherine Jones 11th in the shot with 11.03. Notably Jessica Nicol Smith's
clearance of 3 metres in the pole vault places her 13th despite the fact that
she is an under 15.
New member Harriet Lucas who has joined the Club from the
City Of Norwich is 10th in the 200 metres with 24.89 and 20th in the 100 with
12.37. Two athletes feature in the 1500 steeplechase. Amy DeMatos is 13th with
5.42.37 and Rebecca Smith 20th with 5.57.4.
It was not just the youngsters who enjoyed a successful
Summer. Both the Club’s mens’ and womens’ teams won the Southern Veterans League
Final in August after both becoming Kent League Champions. Many of those who
took part attended a Celebration Dinner at the Clubhouse last Friday together
with a number of guests. Celebration Dinner for Masters
photos.
27/11/07
It was mission accomplished for Michael Skinner at the
European Cross Country Trials in Liverpool. The Blackheath & Bromley athlete,
who celebrated his 28th birthday last week, finished in 3rd place just five
seconds down on winner Peter Reilly from Leigh Harriers over the muddy 9.8km
course.
Skinner timed 30.23 and his third place means he has
gained one of the three automatic places in the Great Britain team for the
Championships which take place in Toro in Spain on the 8th of December.
He is becoming quite a regular in the British team.
Earlier this year he was Britain's second finisher at the World Cross Country
Championships in Kenya and he will be aiming to help the British team to medals
in Spain.
Scott Overall did not fare so well at Liverpool finding
the mud hard going and he finished outside the top 10 in 13th place. James Poole
finished in 68th place.
In the womens race Shavaun Henry finished in 52nd place
while Alex Bruce Littlewood was 31st in the under 20s race.
Many of the Club's athletes were in action at the recent
Kent League races at Danson Park. There was no Senior Mens race but there was an
excellent turn out from the women with Jane Bradshaw having her best ever race
finishing in 7th place. With Rosie Ferguson 9th and Ella Fisher 13th the Club
placed second in the team race which means they are third overall for the
season.
Other finishers from the Club were Clare Lodwig (16th),
Carolina Jones Baldock (33rd), Annie McDonough (39th), Elle Harker (45th), Anne
Cilia (48th), Tara Emery (49th), Justine Eastbury (50th) and Amanda McSorley
making her Club debut in 74th.
Alex Bruce Littlewood enjoyed a comfortable victory in the
Under 20 mens race. He timed 16.07 for the 5km course to win by 39 seconds with
Alistair Cliff 7th. Alistair is 4th overall individual for the season.
It was 7th also for Stephen Cavey in the under 17 mens
race with Ben Greenhalgh 11th while Rebecca Smith placed 8th in the womens race.
Both the under 15 teams finished in 2nd place. Phil
Sesemann was 2nd in the boys race with Hector Kurtyanek 10th and Will Mercer
11th. There was good strength in depth here with Sam Jackson 16th, Ross Braden
17th, Greg Proctor 29th and Jonathan Halls 45th.
It was 2nd place also for Danielle Critchley in the girls
race with Michelle Fewster 4th and Sophia Maslin 11th. Again there was a good
turn out with Krystal Galley 13th, Mel Kane 21st, Sophie Gordon 26th and
Danielle Webb 33rd.
Adam Willis continued his good season by finishing 4th in
the under 13s race with Adam Owens 24th. Jessica Jones was first home in the
girls race in 6th place and with Hannah Cook 11th and Holly Fletcher 12th they
finished third in the team race. Kayleigh Leonard was 16th with Hope Stenning
21st.
Fresh from his success in Liverpool, Skinner was back down
at the Clubhouse on Sunday afternoon for an Awards Ceremony for the Club’s Young
Athletes. He joined three of the Club’s Olympians to help present Awards.
Jack Braughton was in the Great Britain team in the 5000
metres the last time the Olympics took place in London in 1948. To compete at
Wembley he had to take a half day off work and catch the number 12 bus to the
stadium! Twenty four years later Margaret Baldwin ran in the 800 metres at the
1972 Munich Olympics. More recently Club 100 metre record holder Dwayne Grant
was at the 2004 Athens Olympics as part of the 4x100 squad.
The Club’s Young Athletes were crowned National Champions
in 2007 and each member of the squad received a special medal from the Club. It
was also an opportunity to present Excellence, Colours and Merit awards for the
season plus certificates for those who contributed to the Club winning the Kent
Young Athletes League.
Finally Jack Petchey Foundation medallions were presented
to Aston Stockdale and Sarah McLellan. Each month the clubs selects one young
person, in the 11 to 25 age group to receive an Achievement Award. The month's
winner receives a framed certificate and a cheque (payable to the club) for £200
to be spent on a club project of the recipient's choice. Aston was the Award
winner for September and Sarah for July.
Latest winner of an Award for October is Alex Bruce
Littlewood. Despite only being a first year junior he has made a big
contribution to the Club’s Senior teams, running in both the Area and National
Road Relay teams.
Pictures from the Awards afternoon and further Club news
can be found on the Club website here...
20/11/07
Michael Skinner and Scott Overall travel to Liverpool this
weekend for the trial race for the Great Britain team for the European Cross
Country Championships. The Blackheath & Bromley duo should figure prominently
but it will not be easy to be selected for the Championships which take place in
Toro, Spain on the 8th of December.
Only the first three home are guaranteed selection with
the remaining three places being based on current form. Skinner finished fourth
in the first UKA Cross Challenge race of the Winter, two weeks ago while Overall
flew in from the States last week where he has been living and training
recently.
A small group of Club members were in action at the
Brighton 10km last weeekend with Peter Tucker first home in 10th place in 32.48.
The strong winds militated against fast times so Nick Gasson's 34.02 was
particularly pleasing after injury problems. He placed 23rd overall just one
place and five seconds clear of Jon Thorpe, with Con Griffin 104th, Trevor
Simmons 307th and Jim Bailey 463rd.
Chris Woodcock had a useful run at the Colyton 10km, a
race that was reduced in distance due to the poor weather. He finished 68th in
36.29 and was the first over 65 to finish and the second over 60.
The Club's Annual Dinner was a successful event with David
Bedford, Director of the London Marathon as the guest speaker. Pictures from the
evening can be viewed at
http://www.bandbhac.org.uk/club%20dinner%202007.html
13/11/07
Blackheath & Bromley’s Michael Skinner continued his build
up for the European Cross Country Trials in two weeks time with a fourth place
in the Gateshead International Races. The meeting was the first of the UKA
Challenge races, a series of four contests which take place between November and
March. Skinner timed 27.47 for the 8.7km course. He described his performance as
“ok”, a “solid run but shows there is still some work to do”. Club mate Shavaun
Henry had a good run in the Senior Womens race as she placed 21st in a time of
28.58.
Closer to home there was a good turn out for the Club 10
mile cross country championship at Hayes. After a two minutes silence to
recognise Remembrance Day an eventful race got underway with a bolting horse, a
runaway dog and some runners going astray.
Loughborough University student James Poole was home for
the weekend and he enjoyed a comfortable win on the testing course which
includes over a dozen stiles. He timed an impressive 58.15 to win by 50 seconds
from Alex Gibbins. Alex would probably have been closer but as the group were
heading up Boundary Woods they were chased by a small dog which he picked up and
returned it to his owner. This gave an advantage to Andy Rayner and Peter Tucker
who then contrived to go off course and let Alex back in the race. Andy
eventually got the advantage to take third place.
First woman home was Rosie Ferguson who placed 21st
overall with Fran Green, still recovering from her exploits in the Dublin
Marathon, in 2nd and Jane Bradshaw 3rd.
Surprise winner of the Handicap race was Justine Eastbury,
the surprise being that she won the last Handicap race as well, an extremely
rare occurrence but a deserved reward for another good run. Mike Gasson took
second place with Kevin May third.
A number of the Club’s youngsters were in action at the
Preston Park Races at Brighton. Best placed athlete of the day was Phil Sesemann.
He won the under 15 boys race in 12.10, just 10 seconds outside the record for
the course. The race was actually combined with the under 17s race where he was
2nd overall. Cameron Ward finished a good 4th in the under 17 mens race with
12.24 while Rebecca Smith was 5th in the womens race.
As well as Sesemann there was a good turn out in the under
15s with Will Mercer 12th, Sam Jackson 15th, Ross Braden 17th and Greg Proctor
20th. Michelle Fewster was first home for the girls with a fine third place
backed up by Melody Kane 18th and Rachel Robinson 21st. Bradley Taylor picked up
a medal in the under 13 boys race as he finished third with Adam Willis fourth.
It was 4th also for Jessica Jones in the girls race with Holly Fletcher 9th and
Kayleigh Leonard 13th.
The National rankings for the under 20 age group have
recently been published, and, with the Club being National Champions in this age
group, a number of its athletes figure prominently. Of the first claim members
the highest placed are Shaunagh Brown and Chelsea O Rawe Hobbs who are ranked
second in the discus and the 5km walk. Shaunagh represented Britain in the World
Youth Championships earlier this year and her distance of 51.18 was both and
Club Junior and Senior Record.
Chelsea, an English Schools International and still an
under 17 timed 27.20.96 for 5km on the track and is also second ranked for this
distance on the road, as well as being 4th on the road. The Club has a number of
top class sprinters at present and this was reflected in the list. European
Junior 4x100 gold medallist Anike Shand Whittingham is third in the 100 metres
with 11.60 and silver medallists in the men’s GB team James Alaka and Funmi
Sobodu are placed 5th and 7th with 10.51 and 10.58. James is also 9th in the 200
and Anike 10th.
Danny Doyley whose season was disrupted with injury still
placed 4th in the 200 thanks to the sparkling 21.22 which he ran indoors.
Promisingly for the coming season new member Harriet Lucas, an under 17 this
year who has joined the club from the City Of Norwich, has a hand timed 24.7
which would have place her in the top 20 had it been electrically timed.
In the hurdles, Serita Solomon’s 14.2 hand timed effort
would have ranked her 5th had it been recorded electronically and she would
undoubtedly been a lot quicker had she not been injured. Alex AlAmeen is 5th
over the Senior heighted hurdles and 8th over the under 20 height, just one
place behind second claimer Simon Merrill.
Elsewhere on the track Bryony Proctor is 9th in the 5000
metres; Alex Bruce Littlewood 16th in the 2000 steeplechase and Vanessa Nakangu
and Sarah McLellan 20th in the 400 and 400 hurdles respectively.
Back in the field Scottish Junior Record Holder Scott
Huggins ranks 4th in the mens pole vault with 4.81 while training partners Emily
Godley (3.51) and Rachel Arnheim (3.45) are placed 7th and 12th in the womens’
lists.
Other first claimers to feature are Flo Clark (9th
discus), Liam Presnell (18th discus), Richard AlAmeen (10th Hammer), Lauren
Blackie (12th triple jump), Marcus Morrison (15th triple jump, despite being an
under 17), and Banke Jemiyo (20th Hammer).
Second claimers feature even more prominently with Jade
Dodd (javelin) and Jay Thomas (shot) topping the lists. Kola Adedoyin and Jeremy
Odametey are third and fourth in the triple jump and new recruit James Groocock
is 5th in the long jump. Marcus Williams is 8th in the shot and Simon Hemmings
10th in the high jump.
6/11/07
Michael Skinner and Phil Sesemann were Blackheath &
Bromley’s star performers at the National Cross Country Relays at Mansfield with
each of them running one of the quickest times in their respective races.
Skinner catapulted the Senior Men’s team up the field from
60th to 13th on the second stage of the race. In doing so he flew past Telford’s
Chris Davies who ran the fastest leg at the National Road Relays two weeks ago.
His time of 14.33 proved to be the second quickest of the day and will give him
great confidence as he prepares for the trials for the European Cross Country
Championships in Liverpool on the 24th of November.
Sesemann ran a perfectly paced race in the under 15 boys
age group. He tucked himself in with the lead group on the opening leg and
covered any gaps that developed. Heading to the finish he opened up and sprinted
across the line in first place. His time of 6.12 proved to be the third quickest
of the day, an excellent effort from the quickest 3000 metre runner in the
country this year.
Skinner’s efforts helped the Senior Mens to finish in 17th
place on the day. Loughborough student James Poole had another good run timing
15.30 on leg three and there were solid performances from Peter Tucker 16.22 and
Alex Gibbins 16.20 which meant they were the first Kent Club to finish.
Unfortunately Shavaun Henry was the Club’s only Senior Woman in action. She
finished in 21st on the opening stage with 10.31.
It was a similar story in the under 20s age group with
Bryony Proctor finishing 6th on the opening stage with a class 8.42. The Men’s
team of Alex Bruce Littlewood, Richard Daniel and Danny Brewer finished in 22nd
place in what was a very strong field. Alex’s time of 9.12 saw him finish in
14th place on the opening leg. Like the Seniors they were the first Kent Club to
finish.
The under 17 men finished in 29th place. Best performance
here came from Ben Greenhalgh who timed a very promising 9.55 on the second
stage, a good run off limited training. Stephen Cavey (9.53) and Cameron Ward
(10.07) showed that the Club has a useful squad in this age group.
After Phil Sesemann’s outstanding start the Club were
always going to drop back especially when second leg runner Will Mercer was
rushed to hospital just before the race. Ross Braden was promoted form the B
team and timed a useful 7.16 before Hector Kurtyanek anchored the team home in
19th with 6.53. B team runners Sam Jackson and Greg Proctor timed 7.08 and 7.30
but the best news of the weekend was Will being released from hospital on the
Sunday morning.
Michelle Fewster was the quickest for the under 15 girls
team. She finished in 16th place on the opening stage with 7.23. Mel Kane (8.15)
and Sophia Maslin (7.45) helped the team to 25th place.
Adam Willis and Tom Scott were the Club’s only runners in
the under 13 age group, timing 7.31 and 8.12, promising efforts.
The previous week at the Kent League at Capstone Park the
previous week Ella Fisher was the Club's first woman home in 14th place with
Carolyna Jones Baldock 18th but with only two finishers the Club did not score
in the team race. It was a similar story in the under 20 and under 17 age
groups. Richard Daniel and Alistair Cliff placed 4th and 5th in the under 20
mens race with Cameron Ward 12th in the under 17's race while Rebecca Smith was
9th for the women.
Most successful team of the day were the under 15 girls.
Here Michelle Fewster finished in 3rd place and with Sophia Maslin in 6th and
Danielle Critchley 8th the trio won the team race. There was some strength in
depth here too with Mel Kane 23rd and Rachel Robinson 26th. The boys finished in
2nd in this age group led home by Hector Kurtyanek in 6th with Oliver Taylor 7th
and Will Mercer 9th. There was a good turn out here with Ross Braden 20th, Sam
Jackson 22nd, Greg Proctor 24th, Joseph Ewing 27th and Jonathan Halls 35th. The
under 13 girls finshed in second place with Hannah Cook first home for the Club
in 8th place. Lauren Heria in 11th and Kayleigh Leonard 17th completed the
scoring with Holly Fletcher 18th and Hope Stenning 19th.
Adam Willis continued his good Winter by placing 6th in
the boys race and with Anthony Moore 18th and Tom Scott 19th the team finished
in 5th.
The SECTA throws competition at Ashford saw a new British
Record for Barbara Terry. It came in the rarely contested 56lb shot contest. In
the over 60s competition she threw 2.90 metres. Gordon Hickey won the Greek
discus with 19 metres.
30/10/07
Blackheath & Bromley's Senior men and women both had to
settle for positions just outside the top 30 in the National Road Relays at
Sutton Park. The men placed 32nd with the women 34th but there was an excellent
9th place for the under 15 boys.
First year Junior Alex Bruce Littlewood ran a very useful
19.03 on the opening stage for the Senior Men but such was the quality of the
field that he came in 62nd. This set Michael Skinner up nicely on leg two as he
stormed through the field to move up to 31st. Veteran Bill Foster got a late
call up and timed 20.29 to close 49th. Loughborough University student James
Poole swept back up the field to 36th with 18.04 and Andrew Conway maintained
the momentum edging up to 35th with 19.38. Alex Gibbins anchored the team home
in 32nd with 18.53.
Shavaun Henry finished in 47th on the opening stage for
the womens team with 15.59, a reasonable performance as she was struggling with
a cold. St Marys student Bryony Proctor swept up the field on the second stage
with 15.25 to finish 31st. Carolyna Jones Baldock slipped a little to 38th on
leg three with 18.23 before Fran Green closed proceedings with 16.30 to finish
34th.
Hector Kurtyanek gave the under 15 boys a good start with
a solid 13.35. Phil Sesemann was the Club's quickest of the day with an
excellent 12.43 which saw him move up from 27th to 7th. Oliver Taylor had a good
run with 13.43 closing in 9th on the last stage. This was a big improvement on
last year when the team finished 26th.
Adam Willis made a good debut in these relays bringing the
under 13s home in 21st on the opening stage. Tom Scott timed 16.52 on the second
stage before Anthony Moore clocked 15.32 on leg three to bring the team in 32nd.
Encouragingly the Club were able to field a B team in this race with Will Mercer
just 30 seconds behind the A team on the opening stage. Greg Proctor, was the
most improved athlete on last years times and Jonathan Hall brought the team in
47th on the last leg.
Unfortunately the under 17 men and women could not
complete teams. Stephen Cavey brought the team home in 34th on the opening leg.
Cameron Ward moved up five places on the second stage but here the team
challenge ended. Rebecca Smith was the sole representative in the womens race
closing in 36th place.
Michelle Fewster came in 20th on the first leg of the
under 15 girls race but Melody Kane was forced to retire on the second stage.
The same weekend Jamie Atkinson made his marathon debut in
Amsterdam. He finished in 45th place overall in a huge field of more than 25000
runners. His time was 2.33.23 but he would have been quicker had he not suffered
over the last 5km. Up until then he had been producing consistent 5km splits and
had been on target for a sub 2.30 clocking. He will now assess his training as
he prepares to make his London Marathon debut next April.
Michael Skinner followed his leg at Sutton Coldfield by
winning the Lexus Croydon 10km. He finished nearly two minutes clear of the
runner up in 30.51. Gary Cook finished in 24th place and Chris Gentle 39th which
meant they won the team race.
There was more success in the womens race with Rosie
Ferguson 2nd and Jane Bradshaw third. They were the first two over 35s to
finish.
Peter Tucker was a comfortable winner of the Amida 10km.
Many of the Clubs athletes were in action again at the
second Kent League match of the season at Capstone Park. Alex Gibbins was first
home in the Senior Mens race in 6th place overall. Junior Alex Bruce Littlewood
closed in 11th with Dave McKinlay 19th and Steve Hough 31st. This gave the Club
third place again in the team competition which also leaves them third overall
with two matches to go.
They are also third overall in the 12 to score contest
despite not finishing the required number of athletes at Capstone Park. Those
who did finish were Jon Vintner in 45th, Ian Taylor 87th, Rob Brown 94th and Tom
Sutton 102nd.
Some of the Clubs more adventurous athletes were in action
in the Beachy Head Marathon. Run over the full marathon distance and taking in
the Seven Sisters this multi terrain course is not for the faint hearted.
First home for the Club was Darryl Hilliar in 29th place
overall in a time of 3.34.00, closely followed by Andy Tucker in 35th with
Clayton Aves 93rd.
Annie McDonough was the first woman from the Club to
finish in 159th in a time of 4.13.00 with Justine Eastbury 233rd and Kate
Pratten 365th.
16/10/07
Bryony Proctor was Blackheath & Bromley’s top performer at
the opening round of the Kent Women's and Young Athletes League at Sparrows Den,
Hayes. Still a Junior, the St Mary's student finished in 2nd place overall.
Veteran Rosie Ferguson was an excellent 8th with Carolyna Jones Baldock
completing the scoring with another good run in 18th place. This meant the Club
finished a useful third in the team race.
There was good back up with Ella Fisher 23rd, Angela Cook
25th, Captain Kate Pratten 35th, Annie McDonough 38th, Helen Godsell 44th, Anne
Cilia 45th and Elle Harker 55th.
Sadly the Club were not able to complete teams in a number
of the younger age groups. Alistair Cliff was 5th in the Under 20 men's race,
but there were no finishers at all in either the under 17 men's and women's
races.
There was a far better turn out from the under 15 boys
squad with Hector Kurtyanek first home in 5th place. With Will Mercer 10th and
James Clack 13th they finished second in the team race and they were well
supported by Ross Braden (15th), Sam Jackson (22nd) and Greg Proctor (32nd). It
was second also for the girls, led home by Michelle Fewster in 4th and Danielle
Critchley 6th. Amy Mitchell completed the scoring in 12th place with Rachel
Robinson 21st.
The Under 13 girls finished 3rd in a very close team
contest. Jessica Jones was first home in 4th place with Hannah Cook in 8th and
Laura Heria 12th. This gave them 24 points just four points behind winners
Ashford. Promisingly there was strength in depth here with Holly Fletcher 13th,
Kayleigh Leonard 18th and Hope Stenning 23rd.
Adam Willis had a good run in the boys event finishing in
7th place with Anthony Moore 19th.
The Club 5 mile cross country title went to Jamie Atkinson
who was the class act in a field which covered a broad cross section of the Club
ranging from teenagers to athletes in their 80’s. Atkinson’s victory never
looked in doubt as he took an early lead and he eventually prevailed by nearly a
minute and a half in 28.07.
Second place went to Alex Gibbins in 29.35 with Junior
Alex Bruce Littlewood in third with 29.55. Jane Bradshaw won the womens’ race
finishing in 23rd place overall in a time of 36.43 with Viv Mitchell second in
37.36 and Clare Lodwig taking third with 39.39.
As well as finishing third overall, Alex Bruce Littlewood
was of course the first Junior home with Alistair Cliff second and Richard
Daniel in third.
Rebecca Smith and Michelle Fewster both finished in 40.40
in the Junior Womens’ race with Rebecca just getting the verdict. Amy Mitchell
was just behind in third in 40.43.
The race incorporated the second of the nine Bennett Cup
series of Handicap Races. Winner here was Justine Eastbury in 22.30 with Peter
Lovell second in 23.18 and Andy Edwards third in 23.44. Leader overall after two
events is Dave Beadle on 98 points with Paul Hills second on 96 and Richard
Daniel third on 90.
9/10/07
Both Jamie Atkinson and Shavaun Henry had good runs in
their respective categories in the Chichester 10km which incorporated the UKA
and the South Of England Championships. The Blackheath & Bromley athletes both
finished in 30th places.
In the men's race Jamie timed a very useful 30.43 to build
on his recent run of good form. Shavaun timed an excellent 37.11 in the women's
race. Peter Tucker had another good run clocking 32.06 in the men's race to
finish 52nd.
Without many leading runners the Club were never likely to
win the first Kent Men's League match of the season at Sparrows Den, Hayes.
Third place in both the 4 and 12 to score was, therefore, a reasonable result.
Junior Alex Bruce Littlewood led the Club home in 12th
place timing 34.37 for the course of approximately 10000 metres. Andrew Conway
(18th) over 50 Alan Camp (19th) and Richard Daniel (23rd) completed the scoring
in the 4 to score. There was a good run from Roger Beswick in 26th place and
team captain Nick Gasson closed in 28th.
Jonathan Vintner (39), Neil Ayrton (44), Ken Daniel (54),
Mark Ellison (59) Graham Coates (61) and Andy Lawes (79) completed the scoring
in the 12 to score.
Full women's and young athletes results are not yet
available.
Club members of all ages turned out in force recently for
the Will Bolton Memorial Fund raising dinner. Will died in a car crash two and a
half years ago and the Fund set up in his memory aims to raise funds to offer
support to the Clubs up and coming athletes.
The organising Committee of Nick Gasson, Paul Patten, Anne
Cilia, Kate Pratten, Mike Martineau and Brendan McShane did the Club and Will proud and the
evening raised over £10,000.
Prizes in the auction on the evening included a signed
England football shirt, and signed Manchester United kit, plus autographed Great
Britain kit from the Club's leading athlete in 2007, Montell Douglas which
raised £125.
The Club is enjoying great success in the younger age
groups at present. They are National Junior and Young Athletes Champions and
monies raised at the Dinner will help provide valuable support to the athletes
as they progress to Senior level. Not all go on to achieve success in Athletics,
for example, one of its former members Andrew Sheridan was part of the England
team that defeated Australia in the rugby World Cup.
One of the Club's current Young Athletes Damien Benn, has
been invited by Mencap Sport for a trial with the England National Athletics
squad at the English Institute Of Sport in Sheffield. The squad is for talented
athletes from across the country from which athletes are nominated for GB and
International competitions. Damien, a pupil at the Glebe School has been chosen
for his ability in the high jump.
2/10/07
Blackheath & Bromley's Senior Men comfortably qualified
for the Nike National 6 Stage road relay as they finished in 9th place in the
Southern Relay at Aldershot. They were not the highest of the Club's teams of
the weekend, however, as the under 15 boys and girls teams finished in 6th place
in their respective races.
Jamie Atkinson got the men off to a fine start as he came
in second on the opening stage timing 18.12 for the 6km course. He was the 9th
quickest overall on the day. James Poole ran well on leg two but he slipped to
5th. The Loughborough University student timed a very useful 18.38. Alex Bruce
Littlewood made his debut in the event and clocked 20.01 to close in 9th. In
form Peter Tucker took over next and moved the Club up to 6th place with 18.53
before handing to Spencer Newport. Now a veteran, he showed that he can still
mix it with the Seniors, and, although he slipped a place he ran a solid 19.30.
Andrew Conway was called in late to the team and he ensured the Club qualified
for the National final as the top Kent Club, coming home 9th in 20.20.
Phil Sesemann had an outstadning run for the under 15 boys
team. Phil is the fastest in the country over 3000 metres on the track this year
and stormed home in the lead on the opening stage with a time 9.35. This proved
to be the second quickest of the day making him the Club's best runnner over the
under 13s and under 15s age group in recent years.
Although Oliver Taylor slipped a place on the second stage
his 10.23 was, nevertheless, a good effort. Will Mercer came in third on leg
three with 10.46. Despite a solid run on the final stage, Hector Kurtyanek
slipped to 6th with 10.28. This was a fine team performance with the quartet
just over half a minute off a medal place.
It was 6th place too for the Under 15 girls team with
Sophia Maslin getting the trio off to a lightning start with an 11.28 clocking.
This brought the team in 13th on the opening stage. Danielle Critchley ran a
second quicker on the second stage and moved the team up 9 places to 4th.
Michelle Fewster slipped to 6th on the final stage with a useful 11.41 so the
team finished less than half a minute outside the medals.
Bryony Proctor had another good run in the Senior Womens
race. She came in 7th on the opening stage in a time of 13.36 which was the 16th
quickest of the day overall. Ella Fisher (16.27), Rosie Ferguson (14.50) and
Clare Lodwig (16.21) completed the quartet as the team finished in 21st and like
the men were the first Kent team to finish.
The under 17 men finished in a useful 19th place. Cameron
Ward ran a useful opening stage, despite suffering with a cold. He was the
quickest from the Club on the day timing 13.09 and coming in 22nd. Andrew York
(13.38) edged up two places on the second stage before Julian Ayisi (14.07)
moved up to 19th, a position Stephen Cavey (13.41) maintained on the anchor leg.
The over 50s team looked to be in contention for a medal
after good legs from Peter Hamilton (22.59) and Tim Soutar (21.18). However on
leg three Con Griffin took a wrong turning and lost well over ten minutes of
running time. Alan Camp edged back up a few places on the last leg with a time
of 21.31 as the team finished 17th.
Unfortunately the under 13 boys did not have a complete
team but there were promising performances from Anthony Moore (12.18) and Tom
Scott (12.36).
Many of the Club’s top vaulters attended a special
competition at Norman Park in memory of Past President Jim Day who died earlier
this year. Jim was passionate about his Sport and vaulting in particular, and he
would have been proud of the enthusiasm and commitment of the organisers and
athletes who took part.
Former Olympian Allan Williams was the driving force
behind the event with the assistance of the rest of his Polestar training group.
The event saw athletes from all over the South attending with the aim of ending
their seasons with personal bests. Many did just that including Rosa Williams
who cleared 3.11 to move to 2nd in the UK rankings.
Mark Longhurst was the only Club Member to set a new best.
The under 15 cleared 3.01 the same as Charlee Debolla.
Fresh from her success at the European Champions Club Cup
in the Czech Republic, Rachel Arnheim cleared 3.41 in the under 20s age group.
In the under 15 girls contest there were clearances of
2.91 and 2.11 for Jessica Nicol Smith and Anna Huggins. Siobhan Parr went over
2.01 in the under 13 age group.
It was pleasing to see Scottish Junior Record holder Scott
Huggins helping out by officiating at the event, just three days after
attempting to vault over a double decker bus in a promotional event for the
London 2012 Olympics!
Many pictures from this event can be viewed on the Club
website at www.bandbhac.org.uk
Out in the States Scott Overall is settling into a new
training environment with the Team Indiana Elite Distance Training Group. The
mission of Team Indiana Elite “is to provide a group training environment and
key living, training, and support resources for committed, elite distance
runners, with a goal of helping athletes make national teams and achieve
international success”.
His most recent race was a 5km at the Irish Fest Run and
Walk. He won in a time of 14.29. Training partner when he is in England, Michael
Skinner was in action in the 3000 metres road race with preceded the Great North
Run on Tyneside. He finished in 18th place in a high quality field.
Alex Bruce Littlewood won the Puma Urban Escape 10km trail
race at Epping Forest. In a field of over 200 finishers he was around a minute
clear at halfway. However the lead bike disappeared from view here and he got
lost. He rejoined the field and managed to work his way back to the front
although he didn’t actually know he’d won!
