Farquhar keen to stick to short, sharp sprints

Scotland junior international Robbie Farquhar sees his future in the long jump and sprints – and he definitely will not be persuaded to try any middle distance events.

During lockdown some athletes have experimented with different types of training, occasionally taking themselves well out of their comfort zones.

Farquhar is no exception, although there was one day he is not keen to repeat any time soon.

He said: “I was nominated to do a 5km run which I did in 20min 39secs.

“But never again. I’ll stick to the sprints.”

Farquhar, 19, steps up to under-23 level after the summer and is keen to establish himself in that age group after making his mark in the junior ranks.

He has enjoyed great success in the long jump over the past 12 months, setting an Aberdeen AAC indoor under-20 record of 7.26m.

But he is no slouch over short sprint distances, setting an Aberdeen junior indoor 60m record of 6.97secs and clocking 10.85 for 100m outdoors which places him third on the club’s under-20 alltime best performers list.

He said: “I’ll continue to focus on the long jump and the sprints and I want to keep improving my PBs.

“I believed this summer I could get to around 7.50m in the long jump but in the longer term I’d like to get Duncan Mathieson’s Aberdeen senior record of 7.62.

“That’s 100% for sure a target.

“But 2021 will be my first year in the older age group so I’ll just try to get as high up the rankings as possible and see where that takes me.

“I’d like to do well in the Scottish and British championships then look at trying to get whatever international opportunities there are in the years ahead.”

Junior international Robbie Farquhar