Evergreen Roger Bruck strikes gold again

Roger Bruck, 77, brought his indoor season to a successful conclusion at the British Masters Championships at Lee Valley. Competing in the M75 category, Bruck took golds in the 200m, high jump and long jump, recording 35.78, 1.21m and 3.34m respectively. He also secured bronze in the 60m in 10.41. All four performances were season’s bests.

At the other end of the age spectrum, Maayan Radus, 12, represented Camden Borough to place fourth in the London Schools Year 8 Championships at Eltham.

James Bongart, 20, came within a metre of his javelin PB with a throw of 57.56m at the Loughborough Winter Throws meeting.

Rachel Ayrton, 17, set an indoor 800m PB of 2:30.93 in the Lee Valley Middle Distance Open.

Israeli participation in the European Indoor Championships at Belgrade ended after just 7.54 seconds. The country's only competitor, Diana Vaisman, was eliminated in her heat of the 60m despite coming close to her own national record of 7.50 seconds.

Around and about

In her first year competing in the senior race, Hannah Viner, 20, placed 28^th out of 788 competitors in the English National Cross Country Championships at Nottingham.

Viner started hard in her 8km race to gain a good position. "As always the case with the Nationals, there was a fast start, and it was a tough race”, she commented. ”In some places the going was firm, but much of the course was boggy with some deep and wide ditches to wade through. I think I chose the right strategy, even though I lost a few places towards the end."

Sophie Dowson, 18, placed fifth in the England Athletics U20 pole vault Championships in Sheffield with a clearance of 3.60m. Eden Davis, now 18, narrowly missed a place in the 60m final.

James Bongart, 20, came within a metre of his javelin PB with a throw of 57.56m at the Loughborough Winter Throws meeting.

Rachel Ayrton, 17, set an indoor 800m PB of 2:30.93 in the Lee Valley Middle Distance Open.

Israeli participation in the European Indoor Championships at Belgrade ended after just 7.54 seconds. The country's only competitor, Diana Vaisman, was eliminated in her heat of the 60m despite coming close to her own national record of 7.50 seconds.

Contrasting fortunes in the National Cross Country Championships

Hannah Viner, 20, and Richard Goodman, 23, experienced contrasting fortunes at the sharp end of the English National Cross Country Championships at Nottingham. Viner placed 28^th out of 788 competitors in the senior women's race, while Richard Goodman was forced to pull out of the senior men's event after suffering a serious spike wound.

Viner started hard in her 8km race to gain a good position. "As always the case with the Nationals, there was a fast start, and it was a tough race”, she commented. ”In some places the going was firm, but much of the course was boggy with some deep and wide ditches to wade through. I think I chose the right strategy, even though I lost a few places towards the end."

Goodman entered his race with realistic expectations of medalling. "I was in the leading group on the first full lap when I lost a shoe in the mud," he recounted. "I continued for another lap but was forced to take off the other shoe in order to balance my stride. Then a spectator shouted out that my ankle was bleeding and I needed to stop. I had been unaware of it, but the wound needed twelve stitches. I only hope that my enforced layoff proves to be a blessing in disguise."

Lia Radus, 15, and her sister Maayan, 12, had successful outings in the U15 and U13 events. Lia helped Blackheath & Bromley secure team bronze while Maayan led the club home to team gold medals.