Harriers make a strong start to league campaign
THE first league event of the season saw Cheltenham Harriers’ Under-20 and Under-17 athletes competing in the Upper Youth Development League in Yate.
Indoor multi-event star Jessica Duncton opened her outdoor season with a best of 5.62m in the long jump, a long way clear of the club Under-20 record, but the strong wind meant it won’t count.
The performance added 44cm to her PB set during the indoor season and was her first jump over 5m outdoors.
Duncton also competed in the Under-17 200m and 80m hurdles, winning the A races in 25.43 and 11.43 respectively.
She was joined in the long jump by Isobel Burfitt who added 13cm to her PB with 4.55 and was joined by Lily Marchant in the 200m who ran 27.81.
The Under-17 100m and 300m events featured double PBS with Emily Brown and Flora Hopcraft running 13.98 and 14.03 respectively over 100m and Marchant and Tamsin Hatton ran 44.42 and 47.00 in the 300m.
Milly Foster and Isobel Watt competed in two distance events, as Foster ran 2:47.08 in the 800m and then ran 5:38.58 over 1,500m, while Watt completed the 1,500m in 5:28.51 and the 3,000m in 12:03.22.
The steeplechase saw Abigail Thornley run 6:28.70 over 1,500m.
In the field Maia Bliss produced a best throw of 21.83 in the Under-17 discus adding 72cm to her PB. Hatton added to her 300m PB with a shot put PB of 7.96 and Alana Hazell scored a high jump PB of 1.45.
Hazell also competed in the javelin throwing a best of 20.58, while Florence Hampton took on three events, clearing 1.40 in the high jump and throwing 9.17 in the shot put and 25.52 in the javelin.
Under-17 men Max Lancett and Ralph Nicklin teamed up to take on the 100m and 200m. Lancett ran 12.87 and 26.03 while Nicklin achieved a 100m PB of 12.26 and ran 24.91 in the 200m and George Quartermaine made his debut in the 800m in 2:49.44 and completed the 3,000m in 11:30.43.
Bexley Turbard opened his outdoor season in the pole vault clearing a best of 3.30m, 10cm below his PB, and made his steeplechase debut running 5:11.20 for the 1,500m distance.
In the throwing events Luca Colombini and Ruben Lombard competed in the shot, discus and javelin. Colombini produced bests of 10.13 (shot), 25.68 (discus) and 41.68 (javelin) while Lombard threw 8.83 (shot), 19.90 (discus) and 53.60 in the javelin.
First up for the Under-20 women was Ruby Brook in the 200m and 400m. Brook ran 26.33 in the 200m before knocking over half a second off her 400m PB with 58.42.
Kiya Dee cruised to victory in the 1,500m with 4:44.55 and also took the win in the 1,500m steeplechase in 5:07.00 while Ciara Thornley finished two seconds slower than her PB in the 3,000m to finish in 9:55.73 and Mimi Davis threw 35.33 in the javelin.
Under- 20 men Sam Howell and Oliver Spencer opened their outdoor seasons with runs of 11.72 and 12.56 respectively in the 100m. Howell then competed in the 200m running 22.94 while Spencer jumped 5.28 in the long jump.
Philip Hunt ran a 200m PB of 26.69 and competing in the 400m, Oliver Risborough ran 60.25 before he also competed in the shot, throwing 10.23, and javelin, throwing 42.63.
Another athlete to take on several events was Sulaiman Ouiles, who competed in the long jump, high jump, pole vault, discus and hammer throw.
He cleared a PB of 5.05 in the long jump, jumped 1.55 in the high jump and 3.60 in the pole vault, and produced bests of 25.75 in the discus and 19.71 in the hammer.
In the 4x100m relays the Under-20 men’s team of Spencer, Hunt, Risborough and Howell came third in 47.3 and the Under-17 men, Nicklin, Lombard, Colombini and Lancett, were fourth in 48.44. There was a win for the Under-17 women’s 4x100m team in 50.60 thanks to the efforts of Brown, Marchant, Hazell and Duncton, and the Under-20 women’s 4x400m relay team of Brook, Burfitt, Thornley and Hatton ran 4:20.35.
Other Harriers youngsters started their outdoor seasons at the Gloucester Open.
Under-15 Oliver Belbeck started with the 75m and ran 9.6, and achieved a PB of 2:25.1 in the 800m before he equalled his long jump PB with a best of 5.28, his longest leap outdoors.
Fellow Under-15 Benjamin Parker also jumped a PB in the long jump with 3.94, and in the 75m he ran 11.2.
The 75m also saw Under-15s Izzy Cook, Charlotte Smith, Esme Rolfe and Charlie Phillimore run 10.7 (PB), 10.8, 11.1 and 11.2 respectively, while Under13 Amber Tandy ran 11.6 and M65 Robert Mcgowan 11.4.
Many of our sprinters doubled up to compete in the 150m, Cook ran 21.6, Smith had a PB of 21.7, Rolfe ran 21.9 and Mcgowan 24.0.
The Avery twins also ran that distance, Evie running 23.3 and Olivia 23.8.
They also both ran 800m PBS, Evie in 2:33.2 and Olivia 2:34.3, while Under13 Oliver Wilson and Under-15 Josh Hill also ran PBS of 2:40.9 and 2:43.2 respectively and Under-15s Kate Mills and Leo Soakell finished in 2:44.8 and 2:32.5.
The 3,000m brought two PBS for Under-15 Sam Wilson (9:52.7) and U15 Harriet Smith (11:38.50) while F65 runner Kathryn Morton ran 13:21.0.
In the long jump Charlotte Smith jumped 3.86, Charlie Phillimore 3.88 and Under-13 Megan Amey cleared 3.72.
The Open also featured a Quadkids event which was won by Bertie Brookes after a win in the 60m in 9.5, a throw of 32.3 in the howler, a win in the standing long jump in 2.07 and finishing it off with a 600m time of 2:09.9.
George Phillimore had 10.1 in the 60m, a throw of 30.65 in the howler, a standing long jump of 1.77 and a 600m time of 2:16.6.
In the girls’ event, Sophie Gaskell won the 60m in 9.8, threw 11.3 in the howler, and won the standing long jump with a best of 1.78 and the 600m in 2:15.20.