Lydia finished eighth, but she’s on cloud nine!

Despite the slight disappointment of her eighth placed finish, Lydia Church enjoyed every moment of her trip to Japan to compete in the F12 shot put at the Paralympics.

The Peterborough & Nene Valley AC ace has been managing a shoulder problem which limited her range of movement. She is undergoing an operation to rectify the problem later this month.

The competition was held on an evening of torrential rain in Tokyo, which caused a slippery shot putting circle.

Church was one of a number of throwers to take a tumble, falling on her already damaged shoulder.

She hit back with a best throw of 11.41m on an evening when all the athletes found the going tough.

After landing back at Heathrow on Saturday evening Church said “It’s been an amazing experience, and one I will never forget.

“The facilities were really good, and the Paralympic village was everything and more than I had imagined.

“My performance wasn’t what I wanted, however it was still amazing considering the weather conditions and how I absolutely stacked it.

“I’m now bruised and in pain, but this has been a great experience for me. I’m looking forward to working with my coach James Edwards on my technique, once I’m fully fit from my shoulder surgery.”

BRONZE MEDAL FOR YOUNG CAPES

Donovan Capes won bronze at the UK School Games at Loughborough. The Peterborough & Nene Valley AC youngster threw 15.38m for his third place finish.

Capes then travelled to Moulton College in Northampton to represent the England under 18 team in a home international throwing fixture which took place on Saturday and Sunday.

Capes placed fifth and, although slightly below his best, he gained valuable experience for next year when he will still be competing in the under 18s category. Capes has the home schools international to finish off a fine season on September 25.

Other PANVAC athletes were also throwing at Moulton. James Dods threw 14.51m in the shot. Becky Hall and Elizabeth Moorhouse also took part in the shot and threw 11.75m and 12.02m respectively.

BRAWN WINS OVER 40S RACE

Kirk Brawn of PANVAC clocked 1:16.52 when finishing first over 40 and fifth overall at the Wissey Half Marathon in Norfolk.

A contingent of Yaxley Runners also took part and Darren Hillier finished 20th in 1:24.35. Micheal Branston placed 30th with a time of 1:28.11, ahead of Darren Maddison who came in 36th in 1:29.33.

Abi Branston clocked 1:35.01 in what was her first half marathon.

Paralympic competitor Lydia Church