LYDL Regional Final - 30/07/22

11 August 2022

So far this year the U13s and U15s have enjoyed a dream season winning all three fixtures of the Midland South West Premier Division of the Youth Development League and securing their place in the Regional Final. Up against opposition from much bigger clubs, including Milton Keynes, Cardiff and Birchfield it was guaranteed to be tough. The athletes were unphased by the challenge though and ran, jumped and threw beyond all expectations finishing 2nd overall on the day and qualifying for the National Final in Manchester. This is the first time ever the club has qualified for such a high calibre event and it couldn't have been achieved without the hard work and dedication of the whole team, including athletes, parents, team managers and officials.

Beginning with the U13 boys 6 athletes all competed in at least two events, with the majority doing three, gaining valuable points for the team. Caleb Green took a fantastic A string victory in the long jump with a best of 4.38. Green took 2nd in the A 800m in 2:28.29 and 3rd in the A 75m in 10.5, both performances were his second quickest times ever over the distances. Club 75m record holder Aidan John took a clear victory in the B 75m race running just 0.01 slower than his PB with a time of 10.31. John ran 13.16 for 3rd in the A 75m hurdles and threw 4.93 for 4th B in the shot put. In the 150m Jack Johnson knocked 0.26 off his PB running 20.14 for 2nd in the A race. Similar to his teammate, Green, Johnson then produced his second best performances ever in his next two events. In the 800m Johnson ran 2:25.89 to win the B race and in the long jump he cleared 3.86 for 3rd B. Samuel Jeenes had a good day finishing 4th in the B 150m in 22.26, equalling his PB in the high jump to finish 2nd B with 1.35 and throwing the javelin out to 21.73 for 3rd A. Oliver Wilson took advantage of an incredibly fast 1200m race, running hard from the start and holding on well to finish 4th A in 4:12.23. Bertie Travis was 3rd in the B race in 4:24.03. Wilson took 5th in the A shot put with 5.05, while Travis jumped a high jump PB of 1.35 for 3rd in the A and threw 11.17 in the javelin for 5th B. 

One athlete who stood out on the day was Megan Amey who won the A string in three events! Amey competed in the 70m hurdles, long jump and high jump looking comfortable on her way to the win in all three events. In the hurdles Amey ran 12.70 just 0.1 slower than her PB and she jumped a best of 4.41 in the long jump just 4cm behind her PB. After getting so close to her PB twice it was well deserved to see her soar clear of her high jump PB, ending with a best of 1.44, just 2cm off the club record and a clearance that sees her move to 16th in the UK rankings. Amey was joined in the high jump and long jump by Lexie Wiggett. Wiggett added 5cm to her high jump PB to win the B event with 1.30 and won the B long jump with a best of 4.06. Wiggett also threw 15.03 in the javelin for 6th A. 3 Harriers competed in the 75m, with Amber Tandy the quickest running 10.67 for 2nd in the A race, Lottie Cook ran 11.40 for 3rd in the B and Zara Collins ran 11.39, a PB, in the non-scoring event. Collins then took 5th in the A 150m in 22.86 and threw a shot put PB of 7.08 for 4th A. Kitty Buckland ran a 150m PB of 22.33 to win the B race by over half a second. Buckland was 2nd in the B 70m hurdles in 13.54. In the 800m Evie Avery was just 0.38 slower than her PB and club record when she finished 2nd in the A race in 2:28.88. Eleanor Thomson ran well to win the B race in a PB of 2:37.99. Avery also threw a shot put PB of 6.04 for 3rd B and came 4th in the B javelin with a best of 11.96. It was double PBs in the 1200m with Olivia Avery running superbly to finish 3rd A in 4:05.19 and Scarlet Eagland securing maximum points in the B event winning in 4:10.55. 

There were two A string victories for the U15 boys through Oliver Belbeck and Charlie Mason, both athletes competed in 3 events securing a huge number of points for the team. Belbeck won the A 80m hurdles in a PB of 12.27 moving him into the top 30 in the UK rankings, meaning he now ranks in the top 30 in 11 events this season (across indoor and outdoor)! Belbeck took 3rd in the A high jump and long jump with bests of 1.50 and 5.23 respectively. Mason’s victory came in the javelin with his third farthest throw ever, 47.39. Mason placed 3rd in the A hammer with a throw of 26.86 and 5th in the A shot put with 9.94. Maximum points were taken in the javelin with Fred Parry matching Mason’s victory in the B event with a PB of 36.32. Parry had a successful day also throwing PBs in the shot and discus with best of 9.35 for 4th B and 28.66 for 3rd A respectively. Our track athletes also competed across a large number of events making it a tough day for them all. Sam Wilson lowered his 1500m PB by 0.15 to place 2nd A in 4:27.45 and threw 14.90 in the discus for 5th B. Tom Wightman was 4th in the B 1500m in 5:03.54 a strong performance alongside a 6th place finish in the A 200m in 29.15 and a 4th place in the B hammer in 9.80. James Pound was in the form of his life with PBs in the 100m, 300m and pole vault. Pound took 3rd in the A pole vault with 2.20 and 6th in the B 100m and 300m in 14.74 and 48.94. Robin Nishimura knocked a huge 0.74 off his 100m PB to finish 6th in the A race in 13.95. Freddie Coombe finished a fantastic 4th in a highly competitive 800m race, running a 3 second PB of 2:09.74. Coombe was also 3rd in the A 300m in 41.63. In the B 800m Luke Johnson was 2nd in 2:18.56. Johnson took 1st in the B high jump with 1.50 and 2nd in the B long jump with 4.88. 

Last but not least the U15 girls proved a vital part of the overall team's success. One Harrier that proved to be invaluable was Isla Pain. Pain cleared 1.60 in the high jump to win by 10cm, just 2cm shy of her PB. Pain was then 2nd in the A long jump in 4.47 and 3rd in the A 75m hurdles in a PB of 13.26. Zoe Arrenberg competed across three throwing events placing 2nd in the A hammer with 21.36, 3rd in the B discus in a PB of 12.90 and 4th in the B hammer with 10.97. Kat Mills took 3rd in the A javelin with 17.32, Rosie Reynolds took 2nd in the A discus with 18.81, Esme Rolfe threw a PB of 7.19 for 3rd in the A shot put and Shalotte Smith was 1st in the B shot with 6.80. Reynolds also competed in the 300m running a PB of 46.77 for 4th in the B race, while Rolfe took 3rd in the B high jump with 1.30. Smith competed in the 100m running 14.29 for 5th B and long jump where she jumped 4.17 for 3rd B. Izzy Cook completed a sprint double with 6th in the A 100m in 14.12 and 5th in the A 200m in 28.24, her 3rd quickest time ever. Senni Ho took 5th in the B 200m in 29.63. Georgia Howell ran well to finish 4th in the A 300m in 43.37. In the distance events Bluebell Heath-Smith was 4th in the A 800m in 2:28.47 and Ellie Woolley was 3rd in the B 800m in 2:34.71. In the 1500m Maddie Thomson finished 5th in the A race in 4:51.00 and Harriet Smith was 5th in the B in 5:37.96. 

The athletes then teamed up for the 4x100m and 4x300m relays, with every point to play for it was a vital conclusion. The u13 girls team embraced the challenge winning the 4x100m in 57.04, a superb performance. The u13 boys ran well to finish 2nd in 56.19, the U15 boys and girls were both 6th in 54.93 and 55.35 respectively. The u15 teams also matched each other in the 4x300m event, both finishing 5th, the girls in 3:09.20 and boys in 2:50.93.

(Photo: Winning U13 girls relay team)