Last updated
17 December 2015
Press Releases for
October, November & December 2009
29/12/09
The Senior track and field rankings for 2009 for the top
50 in each discipline have recently been published in Athletics Weekly magazine
and a number of athletes from Blackheath & Bromley feature.
Montell Douglas did not have her best of seasons but still
ranks 6th in the 100 metres and 8th in the 200. Also featuring in the top 10 in
two events is Shaunagh Brown. Although an under 20 she is 7th in the discus with
a distance of 50.81 and 8th in the shot with a putt of 14.51.
Another under 20 to feature highly is Lorraine Ugen. She
is 7th in the long jump with her leap of 6.29. In the javelin Christine Lawrence
is 9th with 48.13.
Highest placed male athlete is Scott Overall who is 6th in
the 5000 metres with 13.34.29 while under 20 Kola Adedoyin is 8th in the triple
jump with 15.63. Dwayne Grant is 9th in the 200 with 20.93.
Others to feature in the mens listings are 100 metres,
Dwayne Grant (16th 10.37); James Alaka (30th 10.49); Funmi Sobodu (40th 10.65);
200 metres, James Alaka (22nd 21.19); 400 metres, new member Luke Smallwood, who
has joined from Medway & Maidstone (49th 47.99) 1500, Michael Skinner (49th
3.45.36); 3000 metres, Scott Overall ( 11th 8.04.10) Michael Skinner (31st
8.15.62); 5000 metres, Michael Skinner (43rd 14.15.85); 10,000 metres, Peter
Tucker (46th 31.56.9); 3000 steeplechase, under 20 Alex Bruce Littlewood (32nd
9.23.49); 400 hurdles, Ed Harrison (22nd 52.51) and Derek Paisley (31st 53.27);
Pole Vault, Scott Huggins, who missed most of the outdoor season with injury
(11th 5.01) Triple Jump, Sam Bobb (43rd 14.43); Hammer, Karim Chester (13th
63.46) and under 20 Andrew Jordon (36th 55.55) Javelin, veteran Daryl Brand
(31st 63.11); Decathlon, Bomene Barikor (31st 5770 points).
Others to feature in the womens events are 100 metres,
Anike Shand Whittingham (26th 11.77) and Vicky Cole (35th 11.91); 200 metres
Vicky Cole (40th 24.39) and Anike Shand Whittingham (41st 24.41); 400 metres,
Montell Douglas (26th 54.95), under 20 Savannah Echel Thompson (39th 55.43) and
Rebecca Syrocki (49th 55.8); 3000 steeplechase, Shavaun Henry (18th 11.54.83)
and under 20 Rebecca Smith (23rd 13.16.27); 100 hurdles, under 20s Serita
Solomon (16th 13.89) and Sandra Seaton (38th 14.56); 400 hurdles, under 20s
Katrina Cosby (34th 62.57) and Megan Southwart (48th 63.90); high jump, Pamela
Hughes (11th equal 1.80); pole vault, Rachel Arnheim (17th equal 3.75), Liz
Hughes (29th equal 3.60) and under 20 Christina Moore (43rd 3.45); Lauren
Blackie, triple jump (34th 11.90); Shot, Under 17 Sabine Efiannayi (35th 12.48);
discus, another under 17 Samantha Milner, (22nd 43.19); Hammer, Rachel Blackie,
in her only competition of the year (23rd 50.27) and Shaunagh Brown (38th
46.78); Heptathlon, Katie Murray (37th 4151 points).
What the lists show is that the Club have talent spread
across the various disciplines, which was one of the reasons why both Senior
Mens and Womens teams were promoted in the National Leagues in 2009. The women
are now in the Premier Division of the UK Womens League for the first time ever,
while the men are in division one of the British Athletics League. The women
will be looking to maintain their place in the top flight while the men attempt
to gain promotion.
22/12/09
Members of Blackheath & Bromley were in festive mood as
they competed in the traditional 5 mile Christmas Yacht Handicap at West
Wickham. The normal course had to be adapted because of the recent snow and
numbers were down because of transport problems, but it was, nevertheless, a
successful event.
The yacht handicap means that the slowest person starts
first with the quickest last and, in theory, if the handicapper has done a
perfect job, all runners would finish together. It was perhaps Rafa Benitez
“perfect” as first home was Dick Griffin, who fooled everyone and showed the
benefit of shedding a few pounds pre Christmas, by finishing in 33.29 nearly
three minutes clear of Mark Ellison. Gareth Evans took third.
Fastest net time of the day came from Gareth Evans in
37.06 followed by Mark Ellison 39.14 and Steve Pairman 39.49. Quickest woman was
Sarah Dowling with 44.19 followed by Kate Pratten 46.15 and Rebecca Taylor, on
her return from Cambridge University, with 48.44. This was the fourth of the
nine race Bennett Cup series which takes place over the Winter months. John
Leeson is still out front on 198 points a huge 30 points clear of Steve Pairman
and Anne Cilia. A further five athletes have more than 150 points so there is
everything still to play for.
Two unexpected competitors in the Handicap Race were
Justine Eastbury and Carolyna Jones Baldock. They took part after the Clubs
group trip to Brussels for the Cross Cup had to be abandoned because of the
problems with Eurostar trains at present. This was a big disappointment for
everyone but particularly for some of the Clubs youngsters whose parents had
paid for the trip as part of their Christmas present.
Another to salvage something from the weekend was Alex
Bruce Littlewood who ran in the South Of The Thames Championships at Wimbledon
finishing in 13th place.
Every cloud has a silver lining and the cancellation meant
Con Giffins cat didn’t spend two days out in the snow; Nick Gasson was able to
get his Christmas turkey; and everybody benefitted from Ken Daniel staying off
the Belgian fish soup.
Elsewhere Greg Proctor finished 9th in the under 17 mens
race at the Holly Run in Reigate with Rob Yates 24th.
David Beadle was third in the latest 5km Parkrun at Norman
Park finishing in 20.48.
15/12/09
Michael Skinner finished in his highest ever position at
the European Cross Country Championships in Dublin. This was the fifth year in a
row that the Blackheath & Bromley athlete has represented Great Britain in this
event and he celebrated by finishing in 13th place against the best runners in
Europe. His efforts on the extremely muddy course helped the Great Britain team
to finish in second place.
Alex Bruce Littlewood showed that he is recovering well
from illness as he finished 8th in the latest round of the Surrey Cross Country
League running for his second claim club Hercules Wimbledon.
He was the first under 20 athlete to finish and coming at
the end of his highest ever mileage week, he was understandably pleased with is
performance. He races in Brussels this weekend along with a large Club
contingent.
The Club's older athletes enjoyed a successful afternoon
at the Kent Veterans Cross Country Championships at Tunbridge Wells picking up
medals in all five age group races. Highlight came in the mens over 50s race
where Alan Camp was an runaway winner. He timed 31.55 over the difficult 9500
metre course to win by over a minute from team mate Nick Kinsey. With Paul Ross
Davies in 5th place they scored an emphatic victory in the team race, 32 points
clear of runners up Kent AC.
The team positions were reversed in the over 40s race.
Here the Club were led home by Roy Smith who placed 10th despite having to stop
twice to tie his shoe laces. Mark Ellison took 22nd and Brendan McShane 23rd
with Mick Jones completing the scoring in 28th place to ensure silver medals.
Peter Hamilton picked up the bronze medal in the over 60s
race and with Jim Phelan 5th and John Fenwick 18th the Club were third in the
team race.
Jennie Butler just missed out on a medal in the womens
over 35s race but her fourth place, Sarah Dowling’s 8th and Carolyna Jones
Baldock’s 11th ensured the Club won silver medals in the team race.
Anne Cilia spearheaded the Club’s challenge in the over
45’s race leading the team home in 9th place. With Annie McDonough 12th and
Jackie Montgomery 18th they won team silver medals.
Also outdoors Karim Chester threw the Senior Hammer 61.00
at the Dacorum Invitational throws meeting. In the latest ParkRun 5km at Norman
Park Dave Beadle finished in second place in 18.36 with James Selway 8th in
20.42.
There were more medals for the Club’s athletes at the Kent
County Sportshall Championships at Tonbridge. In the under 13 girls age group
Alex Wainwright won gold medals in the vertical jump, the standing long jump and
the speed bounce. Aine Hurlock claimed a full set of medals with gold in the two
lap race, silver in the standing triple jump, and bronze in the standing long
jump. Samantha Leighton set a new Championship record of 82.4 as she won the 6
lap race. Emma Waugh won bronze in the four lap race. For the boys Bruno
Myszka-Redar struck gold in the four lap race.
Holly Fletcher was another to set a championship record as
she ran 78.0 in the 6 lap race and she added a bronze in the Speed Bounce.
The Under 13s National track and field rankings have
recently appeared in Athletics Weekly magazine and the Club’s athletes are
prominent in the girls throws. Ellie Lawrence is ranked 10th in the shot with a
putt of 9.78 with Jumoke Fatna 14th with 9.58. Also 10th ranked is Yemisi
Sofolarin in the javelin with her throw of 26.87. Yemisi and Ellie are also 13th
and 14th in the discus with 25.07 and 25.00. Shannon Clarke is equal 20th in the
high jump with her clearance of 1.45 while on the track Shannon Hylton is 11th
in the 150 metres having timed 19.9.
A large number of the Club’s athletes had their first
competitions of the Winter in the Metaswitch Indoor Open Meeting at Lee Valley.
Most successful athlete was under 13 Maya Bruney who won all three of her races.
She won two 60 metre heats in 8.45 and 8.43 and followed with a comprehensive
victory in the 200 metres in 28.27 and also won the long jump with a leap of
4.34. The previous weekend she ran 8.36 and 8.40 at the Windsor open meeting.
Under 17 Rhiannon Jones won both her 60 metre hurdle races
with Rachel Giannini fifth, this being their first races in the new age group.
Elsewhere on the track in the 200 Rachel Dickens was
second in her race in 25.84 while other performances were Amara Lalemi Jacobs
(27.14), Lauren Stevens (28.10), Charlotte Colegate (27.67), James Allen
(25.59), and Georgina Middleton (26.56).
Chelsea Crouser had a good start in the under 20 age group
timing 61.73 for 400. Rachel Robinson ran 66.59, Jonathan Pettet 53.03 and
Joshua Oyedele 56.76.
Back in the field Mark Longhurst was second in the triple
jump with 12.59 with Tom Jenkins 6th in 11.72. In the long jump James Allen
leapt 5.49 and Lauren Stevens 4.88. Meanwhile up at Sheffield Hannah Biddiss ran
44.32 for 300 metres.
This weekend as well as the South Of The Thames Cross
Country Championships at Wimbeldon, it is also the Christmas Yacht Handicap at
Hayes which incorporates the latest in the Bennett Cup Handicap series. In
addition a large group of runners will be competing in the various age group
races at the Brussels Cross Country meeting.
The Club is always looking for new members of all ages and
abilities in all events. Further details on Club and all its activities can be
found on the website at
www.bandbhac.org.uk/membership.html An email to
enquires@bandbhac.org.uk can
be passed on to those responsible for a particular area of interest.
8/12/09
Michael Skinner heads to Dublin this weekend to represent
Great Britain at the European Cross Country Championships. The Blackheath &
Bromley athlete won the Trial race in Liverpool two weekends ago to book his
place in the team. This will be the fifth year in a row that Skinner has run in
the Europeans and he will be looking to help Britain to equal or improve on the
bronze medals won last year.
Controversially he will not be joined by two other members
of last years squad. Clubmate Scott Overall who was the 5th eligible Briton to
finish at the Trials and Belgrave's Phil Wicks who was 4th, were left as first
and second reserves with places in the 6 man team awarded to three athletes who
did not compete in the Trials. There can be no doubt that Britain's number one
middle distance runner Mo Farah should have been included, but the selections of
Andrew Lemoncello and Chris Thompson has raised eyebrows as neither of them have
been racing on the country recently.
In fact both Overall and Wicks have run quicker in head to
heads with Thompson on the roads in recent weeks. At the BUPA Great South Run
Overall was 4th in 48.00 with a personal best for 10 miles. Wicks timed 48.38
and Thompson clocked 49.10. At the National 6 stage road relays Overall ran
17.03, Wicks 17.09 and Thompson 17.15.
Overall travelled to Switzerland last weekend where he
finished in 7th place in the Escalade Race in Geneva. He timed 21.12 for the
7.2km course and was the first non European to finish in a race won by Kenya's
Titus Mbishei.
Closer to home many Club members were in action at the
latest, and for the younger age groups final, round of the Kent Cross Country
League at Danson Park.
The Senior Women were not scheduled to compete at this
event but the Senior Men were but didn't. First home in the Senior race was
under 20 Alex Bruce Littlewood. He had another good run finishing in 5th place.
Alan Camp, an over 50, had an exceptional run coming home in 21st position. Two
more masters Ian Taylor and Graham Coates completed the scoring in 90th and 92nd
place which gave the Club 9th in the team race.
Jen Hamer finished in second place in the under 20 womens
race and Amy DeMatos secured the overall title for the season as she closed in
6th. Emily Nolan led home the Under 17 womens team with a 6th place. Supported
by Mel Kane in 9th and Krystal Galley in 11th they finished in second place in
the team contest and second overall for the season. For the men Sam Jackson was
first home in 10th with Greg Proctor 12th, Will Mercer, struggling with a knee
problem 16th and George Vacharopoulos 20th. Like the women they were second on
the day and second overall for the season.
Best individual performance of the day came from Amber
Reed who won the under 15 girls race by 12 seconds giving her the runner up spot
for the season. With Hope Stenning 12th, Ella Self 16th and Holly Fletcher 17th
the team were second on the day just edging out third place Invicta East Kent by
a point. The result also gave the Club another second place overall for the
season. First home for the boys team was Thomas Greenhill in 17th with Adam
Willis 21st and Jake Wade 37th. Thomas finshed 8th overall for the season.
Young Georgina Taylor had another good run in the under 13
girls race as she was second in the under 13 girls race. Samantha Leighton was
8th which left her fourth overall in the League for the season, an excellent
achievement. Lucy Sidey was 12th and 8th overall; Janae Galley 13th and Emma
Myers 18th. The girls were second on the day and second for the season.
First for the boys was William Fuller in 12th and with
Richard Webb 16th and Thomas Desborough 24th the team were 3rd on the day.
So medals for four of the teams for the season and the
athletes are all now preparing for the County Championships at the start of the
New Year.
On the road, a number of the Club’s runners were able to
take home a variety of seasonal produce as they dominated the leading places at
the Swanley Christmas Caper 4.2 mile race.
Andy Rayner won the race in 21.38 from Peter Tucker who is
now running first claim for the Met Police. Together they have won the race for
the last five years.
Dave McKinlay was 5th in 23.53 and Dan Ryan 8th in 25.00
before Elaine Murty came in 9th, the first woman to finish in a fine 25.10. Tony
Crowder was 10th in 25.38.
In this weeks 5km Park Run at Norman Park, Steve Pairman
was 4th in 20.21 with Rob Brown 5th, youngster James Selway 6th and David Carton
9th.
At the Luton Marathon Dick Griffin comfortably broke the
four hour barrier finishing 301st in 3.59.50 while Gerald Sterling was 373rd in
4.19.58.
Wilf Orton was 188th in the latest of the Mornington
Chasers Regents Park 10km races.
1/12/09
It was mission accomplished for Michael Skinner at the
European Cross Country Trials in Liverpool. The Blackheath & Bromley athlete won
the Senior Mens race to book his place in the Great Britain team which competes
in Dublin in two weeks time. This will be the fifth year in a row he has
competed in Europeans.
Team mate Scott Overall was the fifth GB Senior to finish
in 8th place but he will have to wait on the selectors to see if he is part of
the GB team.
Andy Rayner and Elaine Murty's afternoons ended in
complete frustration as their spike bags, vest and numbers were stolen while
they were warming up. They were unable to compete. Alex Bruce Littlewood
finished in 26th place in the under 20 mens race, his preparations for the
Trials having been hampered recently with illness. Greg Proctor was 72nd in the
under 17 mens race.
There was a small turn out of the Club's athletes in the
South Of The Thames Junior Championships at Sparrows Den. With no Senior Men
competing the Club were represented by a mixture of youngsters and Masters.
First home for the Club was Will Mercer who gave a good account of himself to
place 42nd overall and pick up the bronze medal for being the third fastest
under 20 of the day. Rob Yates recovered from turning his ankle last week to
finish 54th and another youngster Andrew Booth was 76th. Veteran Andy Lawes
completed the scoring in 103rd to help the team to 13th overall with Ian Swatton
132nd and Wilf Orton 185th.
A number of the Clubs athletes appear in the National
under 15 track and field rankings for 2009 which have recently been published in
Athletics Weekly magazine. Leading the way for the girls is Dina Asher Smith who
heads the 300 metres lists with 39.16, which, as well as being a Club Record for
this age group, is also the record for the under 17 women as well. Dina also
broke the Club records for the 100, 150 and 200 metres in 2009 and her times of
12.10 and 24.83 saw her rank second in the National lists with still another
year to go in the age group. Unfortunately Dina is currently on crutches having
broken a bone in her foot while playing hockey.
Also ranked second is Frances Read in the triple jump with
a leap of 10.59 with Jessica Moore 17th with 9.66. Rachel Dickens is 12th in the
300 metres with 42.2 and 14th in the 200 with 25.66.
Anton Daly had a very good year and his is 11th in the
boys 200 with 23.34 and 13th in the 100 with 11.43. Aaron Lloyd was forced to
miss most of the season but he still ranked 18th in the 80 metre hurdles with
11.89.
In the field Reon Gowan Wade leapt 6.04 to place 14th in
the long jump in his first year in the age group.
Katrina Cosby is the Jack Petchey Foundation Achievement
Award Winner for November. Like many of the winners Katrina is not only a
talented athlete she is also another who is putting her experience in Athletics
to good use by helping coach some of the Club’s up and coming stars.
24/11/09
Mike Skinner celebrated his 30th birthday last weekend and
will be looking to put the icing on the cake when he runs in the Trials for the
Great Britain team for the European Cross Country Championships this Saturday in
Liverpool. Should the Blackheath & Bromley athlete make the team, it will be the
5th year in a row he has competed for Britain in the Europeans. The
Championships take place in Dublin two weeks after the Trials.
Scott Overall will also be challenging for a place in the
team after running in the Europeans with Mike in Brussels last year. After a
string of fine recent performances he also has a good chance of gaining a place
on the team.
The Club were beaten in the first mob mach of the Winter
against Orion at Chingford despite providing the winner in Alex Gibbins who
finished over two minutes clear of the runner up. He timed 47.06 for the 7.5
mile course. Roy Smith was the only other B&B athlete to finish in the top 10 in
6th place and he is 47 and has an artificial hip. Third home was Paul Ross
Davies in 11th.
First woman to finish for the Club was Sarah Dowling in
42nd with Carolyna Jones Baldock 60th and Annie McDonough 81st.
The race incorporated the third of the nine race Bennett
Cup handicap series which takes place over the Winter months. First on this
occasion was Andy Riches with Mike Wade second and Roy Smith third.
Handicapper Professor Chris Haines will no doubt have
noticed that after three races Jon Leeson has a clear lead with 151 points.
Second is Adrian Stocks on 125 and Anne Cilia on 120 and a further nine athletes
have over 110 or points.
Will Mercer and Sam Jackson represented Surrey Schools at
the Inter Counties Meeting in Stoke on Trent on Saturday. In the Intermediate
Boys race Sam was 10th finisher and Will was 16th helping Surrey to victory in
the team race.
Some of the Club’s track and field athletes are dipping
their toes in the competitive waters by taking part in the various indoor open
meeting which are taking place throughout the country. At the open meeting at
Sheffield, Richard Davies, who is studying at Leeds University, timed a useful
1.22.83 to finish 2nd in the 600 metres. Welsh International Fabian Collymore
won his heats of 60 and 150 metres in 7.05 and 16.34 and new girl Hannah
Biddiss, who has joined the Club from Medway & Maidstone ran 8.49 and 20.04,
also for the 60 and 150 metres.
With the Club being National Young Athletes League
Champions for the fourth time in six years, it is not surprising that a number
of its athletes should feature prominently in the Under 17 track and field
rankings for Summer 2009 which have recently featured in Athletics Weekly
magazine.
Ben Hopkins in number one in the country for the 400
hurdles with his time of 54.32 and training partner Ben Parkin is just behind in
third with his 54.40. In fact the top four athletes are all called Ben! Ben
Hopkins is also 15th in the 100 hurdles with 13.8. Samantha Milner, who has
competed for the Club in the Junior League as a second claim member, tops the
discus rankings with her 43.19.
Multi talented Mark Longhurst is second in the pole vault
with his Club Record breaking clearance of 4.41. Sensationally under 15 Dina
Asher Smith is second in the 300 metres with her time of 39.16 and second
claimer Frederica Foster is third with 39.41. Dina is also 7th in the 200
(24.83) and 8th in the 100 (12.10) while Frederica is 19th in the 200 (25.05).
Sabine Efiannayi lies 5th in the shot with her putt of 12.48 and Samantha Milner
is 13th with 11.24.
Ainsley Campbell, who has recently joined the Club from
Windsor Slough Eton & Hounslow, is ranked 6th in the 400 metres with 48.88 with
Tom Bensted 10th with 49.14. Anna Huggins places 16th in the pole vault with her
clearance of 3.10 the same ranking as Chelsea Crouser in the 1500 steeplechase
with 5.54.34..
Ronnie Pocklington is 17th in the 200 metres (22.30) and
promising new member Harry Rogers, who has recently joined the Club from
Croydon, is 18th in the high jump with a leap of 1.90.
Jessica Matthews is the winner of the Jack Petchey
Achievement Award for October. Jessica is the current South of England Indoor
Champion in the under 20’s high jump and has been an important member of the
Club’s various age group teams for a number of years. Unfortunately she has had
more than her fair share of injuries but nevertheless she has continued with her
Sport and is already putting her something back in by helping with coaching some
of the Club’s youngest members.
The Club is always looking for new members of all ages and
abilities in all events. Further details on Club and all its activities can be
found on the website at www.bandbhac.org.uk
A mail to enquires@bandbhac.org.uk
can be passed on to those responsible for a particular area of interest.
17/11/09
Michael Skinner showed that his preparations for the
European Cross Country Trials are progressing well with a win at the Gateshead
International Meeting last Saturday. The Blackheath & Bromley athlete won the
9km event in 28.14 just four seconds clear of Tsegei Tewelde from Eritrea. The
Great Britain Trials for the Europeans take place in two weeks time in Liverpool
where Skinner, who turns 30 next week, will hoping to book his place in the team
which competes in Dublin in December.
He represented Great Britain last year when the European
Championships were held in Brussels as did team mate Scott Overall and Scott
showed that he will be challenging for selection in Ireland too by finishing
third at Gateshead. Andy Rayner finished in 19th while in the womens event over
8km Elaine Murty placed 28th.
Closer to home all age groups except the Senior Men were
competing in the latest Kent League fixture at Swanley. There were, it has to be
said, a mixed set of results, but, nevertheless, some good individual
performances not least from Under 20 Jen Hamer who ran in the Senior Womens race
and finished in third place overall. Fresh from warm weather training, Carolyna
Jones Baldock came 18th but there were no more competitors from the Club which
meant the Club did not finish a team.
Rebecca Smith was second in the under 20 womens race with
Emily Nolan 4th in the under 17s and Melody Kane 9th.
There was a very competitive race between Will Mercer and
Sam Jackson in the under 17 mens event which ended in a mad sprint for the line
with Will winning the battle to finish in 13th place and Sam in 14th. Both
recorded to same time. Georges Vacharopoulos made a big improvement from the
last fixture at Somerhill School to finish in 16th place, a jump of 11 places.
Amber Reed missed out on victory in the under 15 girls
race by just two seconds. After a 7th place in the first match she has improved
to third and now 2nd so perhaps it will be victory in the final match. With
Holly Fletcher 14th and Hannah Cook 17th the Club were 2nd in the team race.
The U15 Boys saw Tom Greenhill finish in 13th place, his
highest finish ever. Jake Wade completed the course in 32nd place.
The under 13 girls team were boosted by a number of the
Clubs sprinters and jumpers. Samantha Leighton was first home in fourth place
and with Charlotte Rhule in 8th and Janae Galley 10th the Club were 2nd in the
team race. There was fine back from Lucy Sidey 12th, Holly Walman 16th, Maya
Bruney 28th, Aine Hurlock 30th, Shannon Clarke 32nd and Shannon Cordell 33rd.
In the U13 Boys race Tom Desborough worked hard to finish
in 16th place and was rewarded with his highest ever placing. Jon Pairman made
his debut for the club in 20th place. So with one race left to go the Club are
in second place in the under 13 girls, under 15 girls, under 17 women and the
under 17 men.
One of the reasons why the Club was not at full strength
in the Kent League was that a number of youngsters were competing in the Lord
Mayors Show One Mile race. In the 15 to 17 year olds race Krystal Galley was
11th and Danielle Critchley 20th while for the boys Hector Kurtyanek was 64th.
The 13 and 14 year races saw Will Ruiz place 34th and
Anthony Moore 54th. For the girls Hope Stenning was 14th and Jessica Jones 23rd.
Best placed finisher of the day was Georgina Kennedy who
was 2nd in the 11 and 12 year olds race, an excellent performance.
The Parkrun series continues to prove an attraction to the
Club athletes. These are weekly 5km races which take place throughout the
country. Two weeks ago at Norman Park, Andy Tucker finished in 5th place with
Rob Brown 10th, Iain Swatton 17th, James Selway 19th and Mike Martineau 40th. At
the race at Bushy Park, Rhiannon Lloyd was 205th. Last Saturday Dave Beadle was
second in the race at Norman Park.
On the roads Colin Poole finished in 182nd in the Cornwall
Marathon. The more adventurous athletes were competing at the Hellrunner at
Longmoor Camp. No words can do this event justice. The pictures on the
website say it all.
The Club Annual Dinner took place last Friday evening. The
event was a sell out with Ian Stewart, Head Of Endurance at UKA, the principal
guest.
10/11/09
Two members of Blackheath & Bromley have been selected to
race for England in the Gateshead International Cross Country races on the 14th
of November. Mike Skinner and Scott Overall secured their selections after some
impressive performances on the road and country so far this Winter.
Scott ran the third fastest time at the National 6 Stage
Road Relays last month and followed this with fourth place in the BUPA Great
South Run in a field of over 20,000. Mike ran the fastest time at the National
Cross Country Relays last weekend, with Scott the second quickest. Their efforts
helped the Club achieve second place, their best result for years.
Many of the Club's future Senior Internationals feature in
the National Under 20 rankings lists which have appeared in the last two weeks
in Athletics Weekly magazine. The Club is enjoying huge success in the younger
age groups but unfortunately the price of success is more expense and this is
causing the Club some difficulty.
Shaunagh Brown is the number one in the country in both
the shot and the discus. The outgoing Junior Womens captain was way ahead on the
lists with distances of 14.51 and 50.81. Lorraine Ugen made a big breakthrough
this year going over 6 metres for the first time in the long jump and finishing
with a best of 6.29, the second best in the country.
Also ranked second is Serita Solomon in the 100 hurdles, a
remarkable achievement after spending two of her three years injured having
snapped both her achilles tendons. Her best for the year was 13.89 which is both
a Club Junior and Senior record.
Also second ranked is Kola Adedoyin in the triple jump. He
has also had more than his fair share of injuries and finished the season back
on crutches. However, prior to this he leapt 15.63, just 7 centimetres off the
Club Junior record, to qualify to represent Great Britain at the European Junior
Championships. Andrew Jordon is third ranked in the Hammer with a throw of
63.41.
Other first and second claim Club members to figure in the
top tens include Funmi Sobodu (100 metres 5th), Alex Bruce Littlewood (2000
steeplechase 5th), Samantha Milner (discus 6th), Savannah Echel Thompson (400
6th), Rebecca Smith (3000 steeplechase 6th), Katrina Cosby (400 hurdles 8th),
Sandra Seaton (100 hurdles 10th), and Richard AlAmeen (Hammer 10th).
This individual success has enabled the Club to be the top
Junior womens team in the country for the last five years, a remarkable
achievement. However, the reward for all the hard work and expense in achieving
this is much more of the same.
As National champions the Club has represented the UK in
the European Champions Club Cup for Juniors for the last four years with matches
in Moscow, the Czech Republic, Serbia and Bosnia. Next years venue has yet to be
confirmed but favourite at the moment is Istanbul. Competing at such fixtures is
not cheap both in terms of the amount of unpaid work contributed by volunteers
and the huge actual expense which this entails.
The Governing Body does make a contribution to the event
but the Club is still awaiting the £1800 promised for 2009, a 40% reduction on
the £3000 amount for 2008. This comes at a time when costs are increasing. For
example, new Airline legislation has meant that the Club had to transport the
poles for the vault by courier.
What this has meant is that for two of the last three
years the Club has had to fall back on reserves to represent the UK, thus,
compromising it’s ability to fund the activities which helped achieve the
success in the first place.
Paul Byfield, Head Of Active Athletics at Blackheath &
Bromley Harriers says “It would be disastrous for athletics clubs in this
country if lack of funding precluded competition at this level, especially as
these are stepping stones to senior competition. With the Olympic Games coming
to London in 2012 it is vital that our athletes compete in events like this”
Julian Golding, the Commonwealth Games 1998 200 metre champion gained his first
taste of International competition when he ran for the mens team in the ECCCJ at
Albi, France in 1992; and Senior Mens’ Club Captain Michael Skinner has
highlighted the importance of this competition in his development into a Great
Britain International.
3/11/09
Blackheath & Bromley's Senior men enjoyed their best
result for some years when they finished second in the National Cross Country
Relays at Mansfield. To add to the celebrations Michael Skinner and Scott
Overall ran the first and second fastest times of the day while there was a good
performance from the Senior women, a fine run from Alex Bruce Littlewood in the
under 20s race and more good efforts in the younger age groups.
There was a late call up for Alex Gibbins, who ran the
ultra competitive first leg. He closed in 44th on the 5km course in a useful
16.21, but significantly the Club were just 80 seconds down on the leaders with
firepower to come.
From here Skinner tore through the field moving up to 9th
place. His 14.47 was the fastest time of the day. He handed to Andy Rayner, who
arguably had the best run of the day, as, not only did he hold off the
challenges of Internationals Phil Nicholls (Tipton) and Andy Vernon (Aldershot),
he moved the team up to 7th place with a time of 15.28.45.
Things were nicely lined up for Overall and he didn’t
disappoint. Amid great encouragement from the Club supporters, he moved the team
up to 2nd. His time of 14.58.30 was the second quickest of the day but it was
not enough to overhaul a strong Bedford & County team who retained the title
they ran last year. 151 teams finished.
Both Michael and Scott will now prepare for the European
Cross Country Trials race, which takes place in Liverpool at the end of the
month, where they aim to qualify for the Great Britain that competes in Dublin
in December.
Joining them on Merseyside will be Alex Bruce Littlewood
who is targeting a place in the GB Junior team. He did his cause no harm as he
was the first athlete home in the under 20 mens race on the opening leg at
Mansfield. Unfortunately the Club didn't have any further runners. However, his
time of 9.00 was the fourth quickest of the day overall and he was pleased to
take some scalps.
The Senior Women also had a good result as the trio of
Elaine Murty, Bryony Proctor and Jennie Butler finished in 17th place. Elaine
was the quickest of the three as she finished 22nd on the opening stage in
10.49.40. Bryony moved through to 17th with 10.58.60 with Jennie anchoring the
team home in 11.45.20, a useful run considering she has spent most of the year
injured.
Jen Hamer closed in 22nd on the opening leg of the under
20 womens race with a time of 9.29.80 but the Club’s challenge ended here.
One of the most pleasing aspects of the Senior teams’
silver medals was the fact that three of the quartet have been competing for the
Club from a very early age. In fact Michael Skinner has been a Club member for
19 years and hasn’t yet turned 30, (November 21st if you want to send him a
card!) It was, therefore, a worry that the Club were only able to complete a
team in one of the six youngsters age groups.
The Under 17 men performed admirably with the A team of
Phil Sesemann, Sam Jackson and Will Mercer placing 18th, a fine result against
some of the best in the country. Phil’s time of 9.24.25 on the opening stage was
the 8th fastest of the day as he brought the team in 6th. Encouragingly a B team
was also in action with Greg Proctor, Robert Yates and Andrew Booth finishing
51st.
Adevekan Lipede was undaunted at making his Club debut for
the under 15s and performed well, but was the only athlete. Sean Sturrock and
Thomas Desborough flew the flag for the Club in the under 13s race.
Unfortunately there were no girls teams in action. All four members of the
Senior team will be visiting the Clubhouse in Hayes this Wednesday evening.
27/10/09
Scott Overall had an outstanding run in the BUPA Great
South Run at over 10 miles at Portsmouth. Competing in a field of over 20,000
runners, the Blackheath & Bromley athlete finished in 4th place in a time of
48.00 minutes. The only other Briton to beat him was former European Cross
Country champion Mo Farah who is the Country's top 5000 metre runner. Scott was
not the only athlete to figure prominently. Mike Skinner finished in 18th place
in 49.55, Andy Rayner was 25th (52.22), Alex Gibbins 37th (54.00) and Richard
Hall 94th (64.39).
With the most of the cream of the Club's middle distance
runners on the South coast it was inevitable that the Club would not be as
prominent as it would like at the Kent League at Tonbridge. However, that said,
the turn out in the Senior Mens race was still not good. First home was under 20
Alex Bruce Littlewood. He did the reverse journey to the others travelling up
from University in Portsmouth to finish in a very good 6th place. Ian Frith
closed in 26th with Martin Airey 46th and Brendan McShane finishing in his
highest ever League position of 62nd. Mark Ellison was 73rd, Graham Coates 89th,
Adrian Stocks 116th.
First home for the Club in the womens race, and also in
6th place, was another under 20 athlete, Jen Hamer. With Viv Mitchell 29th and
Carolyna Jones Baldock 37th the team finished 7th. Amy DeMatos was third in the
under 20 womens race.
There was a very good turn out of athletes in the under 17
age group. Amy Mitchell had another good run to place 6th with Danielle
Critchley 8th, Krystal Galley 14th and Clare Parkin 15th. They were second in
the team race.
Phil Sesemann was the first man to finish in 11th place
with Will Mercer close behind in 13th and Sam Jackson completing the scoring for
the team in 15th. Good packing saw Greg Proctor close 17th, Rob Yates 21st,
Hector Kurtyanek 22nd, Ross Braden 23rd and Georges Vacharopoulos 28th.
In the under 15 girls age group the squad were led home by
Amber Reed in 3rd place with Jessica Jones 11th, Hope Stenning 17th, Isabel
Jackson 18th, and Holly Fletcher 21st. Adam Willis was first for the boys in
18th with Thomas Greenhill 21st and Jake Wade 24th.
Georgina Taylor continued the promising start to her cross
country career by finishing 4th in the under 13 girls race. Encouragingly she
was joined in the top 10 by Charlotte Rhule in 6th and Samantha Leighton in 8th
which helped the team to second place with good back up from Lucy Sidey in 15th
and Bekkie Keyte in 16th. Thomas Desborough was 22nd in the boys race. Charlotte
Rhule and Maya Bruney finished first and second in the recent Croydon Schools
Cross Country races.
While a five mile cross country race may seem far enough
for most, a number of the Clubs athletes preferred something a bit more
challenging. They travelled to the coast to run the Beachy Head Marathon a
testing multi terrain course that is definitely not for those seeking fast
times. First to finish for the Club was Andy Tucker who was 47th overall in 3
hours 53 minutes followed by Dave King in 174th and Sarah Dowling 195th.
The current edition of Athletics Weekly features a two
page interview with one of the Club’s Vice Presidents Dr Costas Karageorghis.
Costas is a Sports Psychologist with particular interest in the role of music in
motivating athletes and improving performance. In his interview he reveals what
music Kelly Holmes listened to before winning double Olympic gold on the track,
and what one of his former students, Olympic rower James Cracknell played to
psyche him up for special events.
20/10/09
Following her win in the 100 metres, Helen Godsell picked
up her second gold medal at the World Masters Games in Sydney, Australia. The
Blackheath & Bromley athlete won the 200 metres in a time of 29.15, slower than
she had run in qualifying because of the wind, but a long way clear of the
opposition.
Allan Williams picked up silver in the over 55s pole vault
with a clearance of 3.55 which meant that, along with Daryl Brand who won the
javelin, all three Club members who competed came away with medals.
Scott Overall was the equal third fastest individual of
the day at the National 6 Stage Road Relay at Sutton Coldfield as Blackheath &
Bromley's Senior Men finished in a useful 14th place with the women closing in
26th.
The mens team ran faster than last year when they finished
in the top 10 but the standard was much higher this year.
On the highly competitive opening leg Alex Bruce
Littlewood brought the team home in 44th place. He set up Andy Rayner who cut
through the field moving up 15 places with a time of 17.56.
Alex Gibbins picked off another two teams with an 18.39
clocking before Mike Skinner swept up another 10 places with a very useful
17.23.
He passed to Scott Overall whose 17.03 took the team up
another five places before James Poole ran 18.30 to bring the team home in 14th.
The womens team finished in 26th place in the 4 stage
event from over 70 finishers. Bryony Proctor ran the opening leg coming home in
25th place in 15.21 before Elaine Murty moved the Club into 19th place, its
highest position of the day. She timed 15.38. Jen Hamer ran 16.41 on the third
stage to close 22nd and Jane Bradshaw (16.33) brought the team home 26th on the
last stage.
Both Scott and Jen were in action again the following day
in road races closer to home. Scott finished second in the Cabbage Patch 10 at
Twickenham in 50.05 just two seconds down on Newham’s Moumin Geele, who ran the
same time as Scott the previous day.
Jen was the first woman to finish in the Croydon 10km in a
time of 38.36 and she was not the only Club member to enjoy success as Cliff
Keen was the first over 50 to finish in a time of 37.01.
One result from last week was Andy Rayner’s win in the
Henley Half Marathon. He timed 71.12.
Closer to home James Selway finished 6th in the weekly
Bromley 5km park run at Norman Park. He timed 21.26 with Ian Swatton just behind
in 8th. Niamh Bridson Hubbard was first woman from the Club to finish in 11th
with Past President Mike Martineau 22nd.
13/10/09
There has been some great early news from the World
Masters Games in Sydney, Australia with two members of Blackheath & Bromley
becoming World Champions.
Helen Godsell took the womens over 55s title in the 100
metres with a time of 13.78 having dominated the qualifying rounds.
In the field British record holder Daryl Brand won the
Mens over 45 javelin with a throw of 57.17. With Helen still to compete in the
200 and Allan Williams in the over 55s pole vault there could be more medals on
the way.
Alex Bruce Littlewood and Jen Hamer both came away from
the Blackheath & Bromley Club 5 mile cross country championships with two titles
as, not only did they win the Junior races, they won the Senior races as well.
Alex, a student at Portsmouth University, won the overall
race in 28.15 nearly half a minute clear of Alex Gibbins with another youngster
Phil Sesemann in third. So Bruce Littlewood and Sesemann were first and second
in the Junior race with Robert Yates third. Dave Beadle was the first veteran to
finish in 6th place.
Jen was the first woman to finish in 8th place overall,
with Jane Bradshaw 2nd and another youngster Amber Reed third. Jen and Amber
were first and second in the Junior race with Melody Kane in third. Jane was
also the first veteran woman to finish.
The race incorporated the second of the nine race Bennett
Cup competition which takes place throughout the Winter months. Winner on this
occasion was Wilf Orton with Steve Haley in second and Alex Gibbins third. After
two events there are joint leaders in the contest with youngster Ross Braden
and, not so young, John Leeson both locked on 102 points. The next event in the
series is the Orion Mob Match on the 21st of November so there is plenty of time
for athletes to do some training to fool handicapper Professor Chris Haines.
The Club were celebrating this weekend with the news that
its greatest ever athlete Sydney Wooderson has been inducted into the England
Athletics Hall Of Fame. The former Club Past President, who passed away in 2006,
was a former World Record Holder for the mile, 800 metres and 880 yards. He also
won the European 5000 metres title and the National Cross Country Championships.
Twelve others were also inducted at the Awards ceremony at
Aston Villa on Saturday. Other inductees were Harold Abrahams, Malcolm Arnold,
Steve Backley, Lord Burghley, Steve Cram, Jonathan Edwards, Ron Pickering, Ann
Packer, Mary Rand, Alf Shrubb, Noel Thatcher and Dorothy Tyler. Further details
of the recipients can be found at
www.englandathletics.org
Latest receipient of a Jack Petchey Foundation Achievement
Award is one of the Club’s youngest members Ellie Lawrence. Ellie broke the Club
under 13 record for the shot putt this Summer with a distance of 9.78 beating
the previous best of International Shaunagh Brown by over 20 centimetres. Ellie
is a regular member of the Club’s young athletes team.
Jen Hamer was back in action again the day after the “5”
finishing 35th overall in the Ashford 10km in 38.32, the third woman to finish.
Alex Gibbins also raced two days in a row as he placed 3rd
in the Dulwich 10km in 33.46. Fran Green was the first woman from the Club to
finish in 65th place in 44.24.
More Club Fivers were in action at the Petts Wood 10km
with Dan Marks 2nd in 36.11 followed by Ross Braden 31st and Chris Pike 60th.
First woman from the Club was Annie McDonough in 182nd. A number of other
runners have been in competing in the various 5km park runs which take place
across the country each week. Mike Skinner won the Bushy Park event in a very
useful 15.02. Closer to home at Norman Park, youngster James Selway was 4th in
20.45 with Mike Peel 24th. Chris Hogg was 41st in the race at Wimbeldon Common
in 21.51.
The domestic track and field season is really over now but
in one of the final events of the Summer Richard Davies won the 400 metres at
the Leeds Varsity match. Competing for Leeds university he timed 52.4 in what he
described as a very slow easy race. Still he won and scored important points for
the team.
This weekend the Club travel to the Midlands for the
National Road Relays which take place on Saturday and Sunday. The Senior Men
have a very useful team in an action in the 6 stage event with Alex Bruce
Littlewod, Alex Gibbins, Scott Overall, James Poole, Andy Rayner, and Mike
Skinner set to compete. The Senior Women will also be in action on the Saturday
with the youngsters races on Sunday.
6/10/09
Alex Bruce Littlewood finished in his highest ever
position in a Senior Mens Kent League race when he placed second in the opening
fixture of the season at Capstone Park. The Blackheath & Bromley athlete is
still an under 20 but he opted to run against his elders as this would give him
better competition and the Club did not have a team in his own age group race.
Alex Gibbins closed in 9th and with Jean-Phillipe Delon 27th and Richard Daniel
50th the Club were third in the team race.
Brendan McShane was the Club's only other finisher in 83rd
place which meant the Club came no where near finishing a team in the 12 to
score race.
Siobhan Budd was over from France and was first home for
the Club in the Senior Womens race finishing in 4th place. With Jennie Butler
9th and Carolyna Jones Baldock 17th the Club were third in the team race. There
was good back up with Viv Mitchell 27th and new girl Sara Elmquist 31st.
Jen Hamer and Amy DeMatos were first and second in the
under 20 womens race but no Club finished a team in this age group. Both the
under 17 teams finished second. Emily Nolan was fourth in the womens race and
encouragingly there were four further finishers with Amy Mitchell having a very
good run for 7th, Melody Kane 10th, Michelle Fewster 12th and Clare Parkin 15th.
Sam Jackson was seventh in the mens race and again there
was good support with Rob Yates 10th , Hector Kurtyanek 11th, Will Mercer 14th,
Greg Proctor 17th and Ross Braden 29th.
Saffron Salih won the under 15 girls race by two seconds
to help the team to silver in the team race with Amber Reed 7th, Hannah Cook
12th, Jessica Jones 13th, Hope Stenning 14th, Isabel Jackson 15th, and Holly
Fletcher 16th. Tom Greenhill was the Club's only finisher in the boys race in
14th.
In the under 13s age group Georgina Taylor made a very
promising debut for the Club as she came second. Again the team came second with
some good runs from Samantha Leighton 7th, Lucy Sidey 12th and Holly Walman
14th. William Fuller made his debut in the League and was first home for the
Club in the boys race and with Richard Webb 17th and Tom Desborough 23rd the
team came 4th.
This weekend sees one of the oldest races in the world
take place at Hayes as the Club holds its annual 5 Mile Cross Country Race. The
first contest took place in 1880. This years event as usual will incorporate the
latest round of the Bennett Cup Handicap series which takes place throughout the
Winter season. The race gets under way at 2.30 with registration at the
Clubhouse from 1pm.
