YDL u13/u15 match, 23 June 2019

30 June 2019

Round Three of the Lower Youth Development League took place on the weekend of June 23, with the Under 13 and Under 15 athletes from Cheltenham well placed to make the most of their strong results in the League to date.

This fixture took place in the surroundings of the brand new track at Yate, in weather that was overcast but warm, making it an ideal day for competition.

Whilst the boys’ teams in particular were hit by problems of availability due to injury and calendar clashes, those that were present put in some very strong performances. The girls  squad was able to draw on athletes who have competed consistently through the season in all events to date, and were able to post some excellent results.

In the Under 15 Boys, Billy Buxton looked good to take 3rd place in the A High Jump with 1.50m, and moved on to take 3rd in the Discus with 30.19m. Cheltenham had further success in the Javelin, Joe Coley placing 3rd in the A string with 34.97m; Oli Risborough 2nd in the B with 29.10m.

In the Under 15 Girls, Lorna Willmott powered out of the blocks to take 1st in the A race in 12.9s, and followed this with 2nd in the Long Jump with 4.73m.

Making her debut in the team, Ruby Brook put in some excellent performances, placing 2nd in the 300m in 43.66s; and another 2nd place in the 800m in 2:21.0.

In the 1500m , Kiya Dee showed her quality to win the A string some 8 seconds clear of the field, in 04:46.6. In the B race, Seren Jones again put in a strong run to finish 3rd in 05:07.9

In the Field Events, Celia Darwent cleared a new PB of 1.40m to take 4th in the High Jump.

Mimi Davis had a brilliant afternoon, throwing a new PB to win the Shot Put with 8.33m and shortly afterwards, going on to win the Javelin with a throw of 31.08m.

In the 4×300m relay, the team of Amy Jackson Fawkes, Lulu Skurek, Hetty McCartney and  Ruby Brook looked composed in fighting off the challenge from Yate and Swansea to take a well deserved 3rd place in 03:05.5.

The Under 13 Boys contributed well. Barney Heath-Smith took a well deserved 2nd place in the 100m in a PB of 13.54s. He then took  2nd in Long Jump with 4.26m.  

Also in the Long Jump, William Doody won the B string with 4.11m.

Fred Fowler was another athlete to post some outstanding performances. He won the Hurdles in a  PB of 12.54s, then won the 200m in a PB of 27.4s. Doody featured in the B string 200m, taking 3rd in 28.7s.

The boys team then pulled together to win a fantastic 1st place in the 4×100m relay, posting a new PB for the squad of 53.79s.

In the Under 13 Girls, the 1200m provided what was probably the best track race on the day. The A and B race are run together, and Ellis Woolley and Alice Stalberg put on a tremendous display to take a double first for Cheltenham. Stalberg drove the pace to lead for much of the race, with Woolley having a lot of work to do with 40m to go. In a near photo finish, Woolley just made enough ground to edge the overall win in a PB of 04:06.15, with Stalberg second overall but a clear winner of the B race in a PB of 04:06.38. Both athletes were over 5 seconds clear of the rest of the field.

In a quality 800m field, Milly Foster was looking to make it three wins from three for the League but was squeezed into 4th on the day, in 02:36.9. In the B race , Georgia Howell continued her good showing this season, taking 3rd in 02:42.7.

In the Hurdles, Emily Brown took 3rd in the A string with 12.9, and Flo Hampton similarly taking 3rd in the B with 14.0. The pair showed their versatility later, with Brown placing 2nd in the B Shot with 6.22m; Hampton placing 3rd in the High Jump A with 1.20m and then 2nd in the Javelin A with 20.95m. Kitty Ellis completed a good showing in the Javelin, winning the B string with 14.06m.

Cara Walsh had a real challenge in a high quality 150m, but posted a new PB of 21.6. In the Long Jump, Walsh went on to take 4th in the A string with 3.82m, with the consistent Tilda Barter taking a very good 2nd in the B string with 3.81m.  Alana Hazell, on her first outing for the squad, jumped well to win the B High Jump with 1.20m.

In what was another excellent relay performance for Cheltenham, the team of Emily Brown, Cara Walsh, Kitty Ellis and Tilda Barter completed some faultless baton changes to take 2nd in the 4×100m relay in a time of 56.56s.

With the slightly depleted team on the day, Cheltenham came in 5th. 

However, due to their previous placing of 2nd in Round Two and 3rd in Round One, they finished the League overall in 3rd place. This means that, for the second year running, the Team have qualified for the Regional Championship Round, to take place at the end of July. 

The team can now look forward to this Championship Round, with the possibility of progressing to the National Finals. They can also celebrate an excellent season to date, secure in the knowledge that they are guaranteed to hold their place in the Premier next season.