European Clubs Cup bronze for Sophie Dowson

Sophie Dowson, 18, overcame more favoured competitors and atrocious weather conditions to take bronze in the European U20 Champion Clubs Cup in Brno, Czech Republic. Her performance contributed to Blackheath & Bromley's third-place finish in the competition. Dowson reported, "The conditions were the worst I have ever competed in. It wouldn’t stop raining and the ground was so wet that we couldn't fix markings to guide our run-ups. The poles were too slippery to grip without our hands sliding down. In the circumstances I was happy with my clearance of 3.40m."

Gabriel Nicholls, 14, entered the national U15 lists in three events at the Trafford AC Open Meeting. He recorded shot, discus and javelin marks of 11.17m, 23.77m and 30.73m respectively.

Rosalind Zeffertt gained V55 national discus ranking with a personal best throw of 14.37m at the Highgate & City of London Open Meeting at Parliament Hill.

Stone, Nachshen and Bloom win Middlesex road relay medals

David Stone set his Shaftesbury Barnet team on their way towards gold medals in the Middlesex Under 17 3x3km relay championships at Hayes. His opening leg of 9:16 was 15 seconds faster than any other competitor on the day, and his teammates never relinquished the lead that he set. In the Under 15 event, Gilad Nachshen (10:16, 3rd fastest leg of the race), and Bini Bloom (10:42, 6th fastest) helped Shaftesbury secure silver medals, competing against ten other club teams.

Sisters Jessica and Rebecca Hurley joined forces to form the Shaftesbury Barnet team for the U20 1500m steeplechase at the Youth Development League National Final in Birmingham. Jessica, 17 at the time, placed fifth in 5:51.72, less than a second outside her personal best. Rebecca, 19, recorded 6:35.70 in what was her first Shaftesbury race of the season and first steeplechase ever.

Nachshen closing in on the two minute barrier

Gilad Nachshen, 13, set a new 800m best of 2:04.44 at the Watford Open Graded Meeting, to reaffirm his standing as the second fastest runner of his age in the country. His performance came three days after chasing home Jamie Rashbrook, one of the fastest 14-year-olds in the country, in a close race at the Eastern Young Athletes League Final at Bedford. Nachshen commented, "I surprised myself in both races, in that I had only done one training session in the previous fortnight. In the EYAL race, Jamie and I broke away from the field early on and ran virtually together. I pulled ahead with 150m remaining, but perhaps I surged too soon because he took me back in the final few metres. At Watford I ran at my usual tempo to pass 400m in 62 seconds, and was pleased to maintain that speed to the end.
The season has gone really well for me in terms of improving both my speed and my technique. In particular, running 1500m events has taught me to conserve my energy up to the end of the race!"

Contesting the high jump in his first competition of the year at the same Watford Open Meeting, William Levy, 17, cleared the bar at 1.60m.

Adam Firsht, 14, placed fifth in the Southern Counties U15 800m Championships in Oxford. He recorded 2:09.45, having run slightly faster in the heats earlier in the afternoon.

Sisters Jessica and Rebecca Hurley joined forces to form the Shaftesbury Barnet team for the U20 1500m steeplechase at the Youth Development League National Final in Birmingham. Jessica, 17 at the time, placed fifth in 5:51.72, less than a second outside her personal best. Rebecca, 19, recorded 6:35.70 in what was her first Shaftesbury race of the season and first steeplechase ever.

Rachel Ayrton, 18, improved her 400m PB to 65.64 at Watford.

And it looks like the summer is over

Rain, cold and blustery wind damped down performances at the Youth Development League National Final at Birmingham. Sophie Dowson, representing Blackheath & Bromley, needed a clearance of just 3.40m to win the U20 pole vault. Lia Radus, competing for Shaftesbury Barnet, placed second in both the U17 1500m and 3000m, hampered by the mysterious disappearance of her spiked running shoes. Her teammate Emma Taylor, 16, recorded her second best ever javelin throw of 31.81m.

Competing for Highgate AC one day before turning 17, Idan Gal-Shohet gained a long jump victory and triple jump second place in the Southern League at Parliament Hill. Gal-Shohet's triple jump mark of 12.44m was a personal best.

Rachel Ayrton, 18, improved her 400m PB to 65.64 at the latest Watford Open Graded Meeting.