Ian Graham | Bournemouth Athletic Club

Hampshire XC League, Inter-Counties XC Championships and general XC

Ian Graham — Sat, 23 Mar 2024 17:51:10 +0000

Ben Collins, Rob McTaggart, Geoff Newton, Szymon Chojnacki, David Crowther, Tim Hughes, Adrian James, Bryn Smith, Alex Goulding and Jud Kirk (Josh King and Ryan Pegoraro absent)

The Hampshire Cross Country League 2023/2024 season drew to a close at Kings Park, Bournemouth on Saturday 10 February, with the BAC‘s Senior Men all but safe in Division 1, but still requiring a decent result to be sure. Fortunately this was delivered by Josh King, Rob McTaggart, Bryn Smith, Szymon Chojnacki and Ryan Pegoraro all of whom ran exceptionally to finish 12th, 20th, 26th, 32nd and 34th respectively, with Ben Collins in 38th position just missing out on a team place. The team were 5th of 10 on the day, 7th for the season, ensuring a Division 1 competition next year. In all, 12 BAC senior/veteran men competed, with the veteran mens’ team of Szymon, Adrian James and Alex Goulding securing an incredible 2nd team place on the day, 9th of 16 teams overall for the season. BAC‘s Senior Women also put out a team of Sian McIlwaine, Julia Austin and Nikki McTaggart, with Daisy Musk the essential back-up. The team were 15th of 18 on the day, 16th of 18 for the season. There were some notable performances from BAC‘s younger athletes at Kings Park, with Riley Austin and Connor Grocott 1st and 2nd respectively of the U13 boys, Isabel Cherrett 2nd U15 girl and Oliver Canavan 7th U15 boy. Many congratulations to Connor, who concluded the season as the 1st U13 Boy of the League for the season, to Riley, the 3rd U13 Boy of the League, and to Isabel, 2nd U15 Girl of the League. Many thanks to Simon Saunders, who has taken over the organisation of this fixture, for a successful day, including laying on good weather!

Daisy Musk, Sian McIlwaine, Nikki McTaggart and Julia Austin

Results (BAC): Senior/Veteran Men: 12. Josh King 32.37, 20. Rob McTaggart 33.54, 26. Bryn Smith 34.31, 32. Szymon Chojnacki 35.24, 34. Ryan Pegoraro 35.33, 38. Ben Collins 35.49, 51. Adrian James 37.21, 76. Alex Goulding 38.58, 142. David Crowther 45.07, 143. Jud Kirk 45.12, 163. Tim Hughes 47.21, 170, Geoff Newton 51.08; Senior/Veteran Women: 58. Sian McIlwaine 28.00, 69. Julia Austin 29.09, 82. Nikki McTaggart 30.31, 93. Daisy Musk 32.33; U17 Men: 21. Nathan Mearns 22.58; U15 Boys: 7. Oliver Canavan 14.26, 23. Steven Kiff 17.06; U15 Girls: 2. Isabel Cherrett 14.50, 24. Elizabeth Davie 21.08: U13 Boys: 1. Riley Austin 10.54, 2. Connor Grocott 10.58, 22. Callum Pearson 12.58, 29. Solly Abu-Ghaba 13.39; U11 Boys: 15. Edward Davie 8.27, 28. Leo Sims 9.18, 29. Timo Green 9.20, 37. Joshua Wells 9.59, 38. Anderson Peaty 10.15; U11 Girls: 27. Imogen Savage 10.20, 29. Alicja Mysliwska 10.26.

Josh King leads the BAC team

Ryan Pegoraro completes BAC’s team

The Inter-Counties Cross Country Championships took place at Wollaton Park, Nottingham on 8 March with at least 21 BAC athletes supporting the Dorset team. Bryn Smith, Ben Collins and Chris O’Brien all competed in the Senior Mens’ race, and amongst the 18 or so BAC youngsters taking part there were some very creditable performances. Bearing in mind the huge numbers racing for Counties the length and breadth of England, Isabel Cherrett‘s 19th finish in her age category was outstanding (Isabel was 3rd in her age category in the South West Cross Country Championship). The same can be said of Connor Grocott‘s 56th placing (Connor actually won his age category in the Hampshire Cross Country Championship), also of Hugo Richardson‘s 79th placing (Hugo was 3rd in his age category in the Dorset County Championship, as were Imogen Pope and Isaac May in their categories), of Oliver Canavan‘s 12th (yes, 12th!) placing (Oliver won his category in the Dorset County Championship), of Riley Austin‘s 32nd placing (Riley was 5th in his category in the South West Cross Country Championship), and of Ellie Taylor’s 62nd placing (Ellie was 4th in her category in the Dorset County Championship). Referring to earlier Championships, in their categories Seb Crowe was 3rd in the Dorset County Championship, and Oscar Newbery was 8th in the South West Championship.

Simon Saunders has written: “BAC Juniors coached by Nick Marshall, Chris O’Brien, Leon Hurst-Atkins, Simon Hearn & Simon Saunders have represented the club and county over the cross-country at Wessex & Hampshire Leagues, Dorset & Hampshire County Championships, SW County Championships, South of England Championships and Inter-Counties Championships

Over 100 performances from BAC Juniors who have represented BAC and or Dorset / Hampshire at county, regional or national level.

Many of the Juniors also represented Dorset / Hampshire at this past weekend’s English Schools Cross-Country in Pontefract drawing the season to a conclusion.

We would like to thank all the officials, parents, coaches and athletes for representing their club and we look forward to translating this into strong performances on the track.”

Maybe it’s worth listing all those youngsters to whom Simon refers: Aiden Blagden, Albha O’Brien, Amy Betts, Ava Richmond, Callum Pearson, Clodagh O’Brien, Connor Grocott, Constance King, Edward King, Elizabeth Davie, Ellie Taylor, Emily Coltman, Esmee Hurst Atkins, Finley Hurst Atkins, Harry Butcher, Hugo Richardson, Imogen Pope, Isaac May, Isabel Cherrett, Isabella Crawford, Isla May, Jack Webb, Jessica Long, Matilde Blagden, Nathan Mearns, Oliver Canavan, Oscar Newbery, Riley Austin, Samuel Brewer, Seb Crowe, Solly Abu-Ghaba, Steven Kiff, William Moss. In an exercise such as this there is always the risk that someone has inadvertently been left out, and sincere apologies if this has occurred.

There remains the National Cross Country Championships, in which Bryn Smith will be competing. This was scheduled for 24 February at Weston Park, Shropshire, but a deluge of rain a day or two before meant it was impossible to proceed (mainly because of car parking difficulties rather than the course itself). It is now scheduled for September 14, and we wish Bryn the very best of luck.

Finally, here are some photographs of the Inter Counties Cross Country Championship at Nottingham.

Dorset U17 Men

Dorset U20 Men

Dorset U 15 Boys

Dorset U15 Girls

Dorset U 13 Girls

Isabel Cherrett on her way to finishing 19th

Senior Women Start

General View

BAC athlete’s (Henry B-R) life saving action at Popham and Cross Country Round-Up

Ian Graham — Fri, 01 Dec 2023 15:42:26 +0000

Henry Bramwell-Reeks racing at Popham before his life saving skills were called into action

As I was just starting the last lap of the Hampshire Cross Country League fixture at Popham on Saturday 11 November, I was met by someone who appeared to be suggesting I cut off a corner. I thought at the time that this was an invitation, perhaps kindly meant, to an elderly athlete at the tail end of the field to save a bit of time and energy which would not in any way affect the race result. Naturally, I was having nothing of this, and continued along the proper course. However, very soon I realised what the point of all this had been. On the course an athlete was lying on the ground, with medics in attendance, and someone (who I discovered later was BAC‘s own Henry Bramwell-Reeks) applying compressions, so clearly this was a very, very serious incident. I kept out of the way, so I couldn’t at the time identify any of the individuals involved, and continued to finish the race. Just how serious the incident was became clear when not only an ambulance appeared, but also a helicopter, which eventually took off, we assumed taking the casualty to hospital. Later I heard a rumour that Henry, who had earlier lapped me and was running well, had become involved in the incident so I started digging to see what had happened. It appears that following the collapse of the athlete, who later identified himself on the League FaceBook page as Piers Puntan, of Overton Harriers, a runner had started compressions, from whom Henry took over, having voluntarily attended the scene of the incident, and Henry continued the compressions till handing over to the air ambulance. In his post on the League website Piers wrote “I was in no position to know who came to my aid but thank you as you almost certainly saved my life”. Henry is a qualified Lifeguard and knew, not only exactly what to do, but also that he might have been able to assist and so took the initiative to go to the scene. So well done, Henry, your quick thinking and actions on that day really did make a difference. Later I was able to put Piers in touch with Henry, and Piers has emailed Henry to thank him for his intervention and explained that Henry‘s intervention not only ensured that he survived but also that he has minimal heart damage and no oxygen starvation brain damage. Piers also said “apparently only 7% of cardiac arrest patients survive where it occurs outside of a hospital”. Thanks to Henry, Piers was amongst those 7% of survivors.

As far as the race is concerned, Henry was among a number of star BAC performers that day, finishing the senior mens’ race an astonishing 15^th in 33.55. There were also incredible runs from Henry’s twin sister, Poppaea, 11^th in the senior womens’ race in 24.29, Hugo Richardson, 5^th U17 man in 18.25, Isabel Cherrett, 2^nd U15 girl in 15.26 and Connor Grocott, 3^rd U13 boy in 11.25. The only complete BAC teams at Popham were the senior and veteran men and also the U15 boys. The senior mens’ team was completed by Rob McTaggart (31^st in 34.430), Ben Collins (79^th in 38.34), Ryan Pegoraro (74^th in 38.26), and Rich Brawn (97^th in 39.38). The senior mens’ team were 7^th of 10 division 1 teams on the day and are also 7^th 0f 10 aggregate for the season so far, so remain out of the relegation zone. The veteran mens’ team of Rich, Patrick Kingston (156^th in 42.50) and Jud Kirk (242^nd in 48.24) were 14^th team on the day and lie 16^th of 21 teams aggregate. I (Ian Graham) was the rock holding up the mens’ teams, finishing 282^nd in 62.46. Joining Poppaea in the senior womens’ race was Nikki McTaggart (106^th in 32.36) and joining Hugo in the U17 mens’ race was Nathan Mearns (29^th in 20.39). As mentioned, BAC‘s U15 boys fielded a team of Jack Webb (19^th in 15.26), William Moss (20^th in 15.32) and Steven Kiff (33^rd in 16.24) the team finishing 5^th of 7 teams on the day. BAC was represented in the U17 womens’ race by Matilde Blagden who was 11^th in 24.02. Joining Isabel in the U15 girls’ race was Elizabeth Davie (38^th in 19.06). Connor‘s sister, Skye, ran in the U13 girls race and was 42^nd in 19.06 and joining Connor in the U13 boys’ race was Aiden Blagden, finishing 34^th in 13.49.

Whilst reporting, I may as well bring the cross country scene up to date. The season opened on 1 October with the Wessex Cross Country fixture at Learoyd Road (see earlier report dated 26 October). Next came a very busy weekend, with the Hampshire Cross Country fixture at Aldershot on 28 October, and the Wessex fixture the next day at Bryanston School. There were wins at Bryanston by Rob McTaggart, Oliver Canavan and Ellie Taylor, and 2^nd placings by Hugo Richardson, Finley Hurst Atkins, Mabel Jundi and (at Aldershot) Connor Grocott, but the greatest praise must be reserved for Oliver Hill, who, alone amongst BAC athletes, competed both at Aldershot and Bryanston.

The BAC results from Aldershot (Hampshire) on 28 October were as follows: Senior Men: 31. Henry Bramwell-Reeks 34.48, 70. Ben Collins 37.25, 74. Ryan Pegoraro 37.33, 142. Patrick Kingston 41.40, 150. Grzegorz Kazaniecki 42.12, 225. Jud Kirk 47.22; Senior Women: 10. Poppaea Bramwell-Reeks 23.32; U17 Men: 24. Oliver Hill 22.47; U15 Girls: 6. Isabel Cherrett 15.18; U13 Boys: 2. Connor Grocott 10.49, 5. Riley Austin 11.09.

The BAC results from Bryanston (Wessex) on 29 October were as follows: Senior Men: 1. Rob McTaggart 31.21, 3. Rich Brawn 33.39, 11. Seb Crowe 35.27 (Seb was 2^nd U20 Man), 17. Chris O’Brien 37.26, 26. Leon Atkins 40.43, 31. Jud Kirk 42.18, 44. Ian Graham 56.09; Senior Women: 11. Nikki McTaggart 35.02, 13. Daisy Musk 36.31; U17 Men: 2. Hugo Richardson 14.28, 7. Sam Brewer 16.02, 8. Oliver Hill 16.09, 9. Nathan Mearns 16.23; U17 Women: 6. Matilde Blagden 19.22, 7. Emily Coltman, 12. Mariah Marshall; U15 Boys: 1. Oliver Canavan 13.26, 5. Jack Webb 14.11, 6. William Moss 14.14, 9. William Hayward 14.48, 10. Steven Kiff 15.05; U15 Girls: 3. Constance King 14.40, 4. Albha O’Brien 14.42, 5. Clodagh O’Brien 14.50, 9. Esmee Hurst Atkins 16.31, 13. Amy Betts 17.56, 14. Elizabeth Davie 18.45; U13 Boys: 2. Finley Hurst Atkins 11.35, 7. Aiden Blagden 12.20, 11. Edward Ryan 12.30, 15. Edward King 12.49, 17. Sebastian Wallis 12.52, 18. Solly Abu-Ghaba 13.02, 21. Callum Pearson 14.03; U13 Girls: 1. Ellie Taylor 12.11, 3. Jessica Long 12.31, 9. Ava Richmond 13.27, 15. Isabella Crawford 14.19; U11 Boys: 3. Edward Davies 7.15, 7. Jake Ryan 7.18; U11 Girls: 2. Mabel Jundi 7.25, 12. Erin Ryan 8.12.

Cross Country season under way at Canford

Ian Graham — Thu, 26 Oct 2023 15:51:06 +0000

Simon Saunders with the BAC lads from the Under 17 Men’s race

Bournemouth AC‘s 2023 cross-country season got underway with the first Wessex League held at Learoyd Road, Poole this on Sunday 1 October. Every start line was chock-a-block with yellow and blue vests with BAC fielding athletes in every race and teams in almost every age group both male and female. Well done to those athletes who turned up and represented the club in this first outing of a season that lasts into March of 2024! Team results on the Team Dorset webpage are awaiting update (team placings are on my calculations with *first 4 to score). We had nine podium finishers, over thirty finishers in the top ten, six teams in the top three and four first place teams (TBC). The real success was the turn-out of forty-two BAC athletes, including several new members to the club, representing their club for the first time, in the first of this three race series.

Oscar Newbery

Hugo Richardson

Sam Brewer

Oliver Hill

Nathan Mearns

Well done to Ian Graham and coaches for pushing the entries. To achieve individual and team placings you need to be there to score for you and your club. Please turn up and participate in the next two races prior to the new year and help us perpetuate this success. The second race will be at Bryanston School on the 29th October and the finale is the combined Dorset Championships* and Wessex League race on 17th December. Team selection for Dorset in the UKA Inter-Counties Cross-Country Championships held next March in Loughborough is based on Wessex League, Hampshire League and county champs performance. Race numbers for a significant number of athletes who did not attend but who have been registered by the club are available at the next two league meetings. Come and see us in the BAC team tent when you arrive. The address for the entry to the DCAA XC Champs: https://poolerunningevents.co.uk/events/dorset-county-athletics-association-cross-country-championships-2023/ Congratulations from – Simon Saunders / Simon Hearn / Ian Graham

Chris O’Brien

Jud Kirk

Geoff Newton

Ian Graham

Nikki Whittaker

Jola Dewerenda

Results: U11 Boys – 3rd Team 41 points. (5 competitors) Excellent placings from Ben & Ed and great packing from Jake, Ted & Timo. 5th Ben Trimby* 7th Ed Davies* 14th Jake Ryan* 15th Ted Fewings* 16th Timo Green U11 Girls (2 competitors) After a fast start Mabel only just lost out on 1st place and Erin had a solid run for 14th place. 2nd Mabel Jundi, 14th Erin Ryan U13 Boys – 2nd Team 36 points. (5 competitors) Great individual and team result led home by Austin and Finley with good team packing from Aiden & Seb. Congrats to Callum Pearson in his first race in a BAC vest. 1st Austin Riley* 3rd Finley Hurst-Atkins* 15th Aiden Blagden* 17th Sebastian Wallis* 18th Callum Pearson U13 Girls – 1st Team 19 points. (5 competitors) Wow! 19 points for 1st place team is excellent running. Four scoring team members plus Jess in the top ten, great running ladies! 3rd Isla May* 4th Imogen Pope* 5th Ellie Taylor* 7th Ava Richmond* 10th Jessica Long U15 Boys – 1st Team 13 points. (7 competitors) Another Wow! Only one athlete was able to disrupt an almost perfect team performance. Well done Oliver, starting the season as he means to go on, Isaac and Harry both having a great first outing of the series and amazing battle between fourth placer Jack Webb and William Moss. We are happy to have seven BAC athletes pushing each other on to greater things in this age group. 1st Oliver Canavan* 3rd Isaac May* 4th Harry Butcher* 5th Jack Webb* 6th William Moss, 10th William Hayward, 13th Steven Kiff U15 Girls – 1st Team 18 points. (7 competitors) Isabel is looking strong at the start of the season and is obviously in great form coming in 4th overall in the U15 combined race closely followed by scorers Constance King, Albha and Clodagh O’Brien plus Esmee – all in the tope ten finishers. Amy Betts back on form, and well done to Elizabeth Davie, who although she is training with a sprint group right now, turned out to compete and got in a good training run. 1st Isabel Cherrett* 4th Constance King* 6th Albha O’Brien* 7th Clodagh O’Brien* 8th Esmee Hurst-Atkins, 14th Amy Betts, 15th Elizabeth Davie U17 Men – 1st Team 25 points. (5 competitors) Another 1st team! Happy to see Oscar, 3rd and Hugo, 5th facing some strong competition in this race which came as a surprise but they ran hard. Great placings too from Sam Brewer, Oliver Hill and the ever present Nathan Mearns. 3rd Oscar Newbery* 5th Hugo Richardson* 8th Samuel Brewer* 9th Oliver Hill* and 13th Nathan Mearns U17 Women (2 competitors) Congratulations Laras and Freya! Great running from both ladies, and first turn out in a BAC vest for Freya. 3rd Laras McKenna, 6th Freya Sclater Senior Men – 124 points (4 competitors) The old boys made it around in one piece 😉 12th Chris O’Brien* 26th Jud Kirk* 40th Geoff Newton* 46th Ian Graham* Senior Women (2 competitors) Not so old ladies, hopefully they will be joined in by a few more team members in the next two races. 7th Jolanta Dewerenda, 12th Nicola Whittaker

Ian Graham

Geoff Newton

Ian Graham

Geoff Newton

Division 1 status in Hampshire XC League retained plus BAC involvement in National XC Championships

Ian Graham — Tue, 07 Mar 2023 14:39:48 +0000

BAC’s U11 Boys prepare for their race at Kings Park

The strongest performance of the season by BAC‘s senior men at the final fixture of the Hampshire Cross Country League season, at Kings Park on Saturday 4 March, rescued the team from what had seemed inevitable relegation to Division 2. There was also a very strong performance from BAC‘s senior ladies and good team efforts from the U17 men and U15 girls. There are a number of BAC athletes who finished in the top 10 in their categories, an excellent achievement in a very strong cross country league. Hugo Richardson is to be congratulated on his 5th overall position amongst the U17 men, as is Connor Grocott, 5th U13 boy, and Constance King, 7th U13 girl. At one point Szymon Chojnacki was heading towards the leading veteran man of the league, but unfortunately child care duties prevented him from competing in enough races.

Szymon Chojnacki was one of the top vets in the league

There were three relatively new (to BAC‘s cross country team) athletes forming part of the senior mens’ team, which, on the day, was 5th of 8 complete teams, with the result that, on aggregate, the team is 8th of 10, and, as one team is relegated, is safe in Division 1 for next season. Henry Bramwell-Reeks had yet another amazing run to finish 17th, closely followed by Matt Dicks, 20th. Szymon Chojnacki was BAC‘s 3rd over the line, with Jeremy Shott and Matt du Cros completing the team. Henry, Matt and Jeremy have only recently being competing for BAC in cross country, so what a valuable contribution! BAC‘s veteran men have had quite a strong season, with Szymon, Adrian James and Alex Goulding making up the team at Kings Park and finishing an excellent 5th of 18 teams – aggregate for the season 6th of 18 – well done!

Henry Bramwell-Reeks and Matt Dicks

Szymon Chojnacki

Matt du Cros

Jeremy Shott

Adrian James

Alex Goulding

No fewer than 10 BAC senior/veteran women competed at Kings Park, including a very strong team of Poppaea Bramwell-Reeks, Caitlin Peers and Harriet Slade finishing an amazing 3rd of 18 teams. A final aggregate position of 8th of 15 teams is very respectable. BAC‘s veteran womens’ team of Julia Austin, Kirsty Drewett and Lea Lohk (with Jayne Wade as the ever present and vital back up) were the 9th team of 11 on the day.

A very strong Bournemouth AC senior women’s team

Poppaea Bramwell-Reeks

Caitlin Peers

Harriet Slade

Julia Austin

Lea Lohk

Jayne Wade

Although team positions for the day for the U17 men have not been published, it appears that the team of Hugo Richardson (5th finisher in the race), Harry Dolman and Sam Brewer (with Nathan Mearns as back up) were 3rd, only one point behind a very strong Winchester in 2nd place. The U15 girls, led by Isabel Cherrett, who flew round the course to finish 4th, supported by Esmee Hurst Atkins, Lara McKenna and Matilde Blagden were 5th of 7 teams on the day. One pleasing aspect of the fixture at Kings Park were the 68 competitors in the U11 boys’ race (the third biggest field of the day, although not part of the league), with Finley Hurst Atkins, Reuben Holleran and Seb Wallis all in the top 20. In a smaller U11 girls’ race Imogen Pope, Mabel Jundi and Ava Richmond were all in the top 10.

Harry Dolman was competing in the U17 men’s race

Some of BAC’s U11 Girls ready to race at Kings Park

Imogen Pope on her way to 5th U11 Girl at Kings Park

This was the second fixture of the season hosted by BAC, the club having stepped in to rescue the final fixture for which no venue had been found. Many thanks are due to the organisers, officials, marshals and volunteers without whom it would not have been possible to put on either fixture.

Henry Bramwell-Reeks and Matt Dicks

Szymon Chojnacki

Adrian James and Matt du Cros

Patrick Kingston

Jud Kirk

Szymon Chojnacki

Matt du Cros

Adrian James

Results (BAC): S/V/U20 Men: 17. Henry Bramwell-Reeks 31.20, 20. Matt Dicks 31.44, 40. Simon Chojnacki (7th V) 33.29, 57. Jeremy Shott 34.14, 60. Matt du Cros 34.29, 73. Adrian James (20th V) 35.37, 100. Alex Goulding 37th V) 37.06, 105. Patrick Kingston (41st V) 37.29, 176. Jud Kirk (98th V) 42.55: S/V/U20 Women: 5. Poppaea Bramwell-Reeks 20.53, 10. Caitlin Peers 21.45, 19. Harriet Slade 22.31, 22. Becky Knapton 22.41, 58. Jola Denerenda 25.50, 62. Sian Mcilwaine 25.59, 76. Julia Austin (33rd V) 27.13, 86. Kirsty Drewett (39th V) 27.55, 103. Lea Lohk (53rd V) 30.59, 116. Jayne Wade (65th V) 33.49: U17 Men: 5. Hugo Richardson 19.20, 19. Harry Dolman 21.08, 20. Sam Brewer 21.15, 26. Nathan Mearns 22.09: U15 Boys: 19. Oliver Canavan 14.28, 27. Oliver Thomson 15.16: U15 Girls: 4. Isabel Cherrett 14.59, 21. Esmee Hurst Atkins 17.09, 22. Lara McKenna 17.20, 25. Matilde Blagden 18.17: U13 Boys: 5. Connor Grocott 11.14, 10. Riley Austin 11.37: U13 Girls: 8. Constance King 12.22: U11 Boys: 17. Finley Hurst Atkins 8.15, 18. Reuben Holleran 8.16, 19. Seb Wallis 8.20, 34. Toby Sims 8.48, 39. Petya Mott 8.59, 40. Aiden Blagden 9.00, 59. Rory Dixon 10.34, 66. Jude Wallis 11.14, 68. Leo Pink 11.35: U11 Girls: 5. Imogen Pope 8.29, 8. Mabel Jundi 9.04, 9. Ava Richmond 9.12, 14. Anya Mott 9.55, 18. Skye Grocott 10.19, 19. Bella Crawford 10.24, 21. Phoebe Clark 10.57.

Start of the senior women’s race

Caitlin Peers led the women’s race on the first lap

Sian Mcilwaine and Jola Dewerenda

Harriet Slade

Becky Knapton

Julia Austin

Lea Lohk

Caitlin Peers

Jola Dewerenda

Sian Mcilwaine

If anyone was in any doubt as to whether Bournemouth AC members give their all – this photo proves that they do!!

One week earlier, on Saturday 25 February the National Cross Country Championships took place at Bolesworth Castle, Chester. Unusually there were no BAC senior or veteran men or women taking part, so it was left to Mariah Marshall and Connor Grocott to fly the BAC flag. Connor was 73rd (in a field of 287) U13 Boy in a time of 11.28, and Mariah was 198th of the U17 Women in 28.14. Well done and congratulations to Connor and Mariah, and their families, for making the long journey and ensuring there was BAC representation at this prestigious event.

Connor Grocott and Mariah Marshall at the National XC Championship

Mariah Marshall at Bolesworth Castle

Connor Grocott races in front of the castle

An impressive venue!

The U17 Women line up at Bolesworth Castle

Hampshire Cross Country League at Popham Airfield

Ian Graham — Sat, 18 Feb 2023 15:47:06 +0000

The fourth and penultimate fixture of the Hampshire Cross Country League took place at Popham Airfield on Saturday 11 February. All the age group races saw numbers running well down on normal expectations, which may have been the result of the fact that this was the first day of the school half term break. This was reflected in the BAC presence, a total of no more than 13 athletes with, for example, none of the usually strong U17M team being present, and it was known that some, if not all, of our athletes in this category being away on school trips. As will be seen below, both Henry and Poppaea Bramwell-Reeks for the senior men and women respectively, and Connor Grocott for the U13 boys and Constance King for the U13 girls all had spectacular runs at Popham.

Henry Bramwell-Reeks has just crossed the finishing line in 11th position

Before the fixture, BAC‘s senior men were looking at relegation from Division 1, and this remained the case at the end of the day. Only five senior men attended, which meant that a struggling Ian Graham became the team’s 5th scorer. However BAC‘s leader, Henry Bramwell-Reeks, stormed round the course to finish 11th in 33.49, an excellent achievement. Ross Smith is enjoying his return to running and his increasing fitness showed in his 74th position in 39.55. Patrick Kingston is a very welcome regular at these fixtures and was the 3rd BAC athlete home, 86th overall in 41.11. Another regular is Jud Kirk, who did his usual ‘taxiing’ to the venue, which is much appreciated, and was BAC‘s 4th finisher in 47.14 (140th overall). Jud also completed BAC‘s veteran men’s team, ensuring they retained a respectable position in the table. Ian Graham was discovering that a bowl of porage at 7.30 am simply does not provide enough energy for a cross country race at 2.30 pm, and struggled, with elements of walking, to finish the course 173rd (not quite last!) in 64.33. So the final result was that BAC‘s senior men were 9th of 10 teams in Division 1 on the day, and are also 9th aggregate for the season so far, and it is going to take a really spectacular team performance at the final fixture in Kings Park on 4 March to lift the team out of the relegation zone. For the veteran men the picture is brighter, with the team of Ross, Patrick and Jud being placed 11th of 18 teams on the day, and the BAC veteran men’s team lies 7th of 19 teams aggregate for the season to date. Szymon Chojnacki travelled to Popham but unfortunately arrangements to take care of his son at the last minute weren’t possible, so Szymon was unable to compete. However, Szymon‘s commitment, and the encouragement he gave at the course, were very much appreciated.

Poppaea Bramwell-Reeks on her way to finishing 3rd

Turning to the ladies, Henry‘s twin sister, Poppaea, as would her brother an hour later, ran superbly well and finished an amazing 3rd in the senior/veteran ladies‘ race in 22.24. What a valuable brother and sister for BAC! The senior ladies‘ team was completed by Kirsty Drewett, 71st in 29.34, and Jayne Wade, 105th in 36.48, both ever present at cross country fixtures for their club, which meant that the senior ladies‘ team were a very respectable 9th of 17 teams on the day, and lie 10th of 17 teams at this stage of the season.
Although there were no BAC U17 men at Popham it is worth mentioning that Hugo Richardson is at present 6th U17 man in the League for the season so far, and may well cement this in Kings Park on 4 March.

Connor Grocott 5th U13B

In the U15 boys‘ race both Harry Butcher, 18th in 14.38, and James Davie, 28th in 16.35, flew the BAC flag, as did Jamie‘s sister, Elizabeth, 26th in 18.30, in the U15 girls‘ race. Two of BAC‘s rising stars competed in the U13 races, with Connor Grocott finishing an amazing 5th in the U13 boys‘ race and Constance King a highly creditable 11th in the equivalent girls‘ race. Connor is 5th U13 boy for the season so far, and Constance is 8th U13 girl.

Elizabeth Davie 11th U13G

As ever, a big thank you to Simon Hearn for coming along with the BAC tent so providing a comfortable base for the athletes and their supporters. Unfortunately Simon Saunders, who normally helps in this way as well, wasn’t too well on the 11 February and we wish him a speedy recovery.

Ross Smith shows the way

Patrick Kingston striding out

Jud Kirk about to finish

Kirsty Drewett ever present at cross country

Jayne Wade also ever present

Harry Butcher 18th U15B

James Davie, Harry’s U15B teammate

Cross Country Roundup

Ian Graham — Thu, 09 Feb 2023 18:59:18 +0000

There has been plenty of cross country running activity involving BAC athletes recently, including the Dorset Schools Championships in Kings Park on 19 January, the Southern Championships in Beckenham Place Park on 28 January, and on 4 February both the SE Schools Inter Counties at Reigate Priory and the BUCS Championships at Pembrey Country Park, Wales. On 4 February the South West Schools Championships also took place at Bristol.

Hugo Richardson at the Southern XC Champs. Hugo also ran in the SE Schools Inter Counties 9 days later

There were many excellent BAC performances in Kings Park when the Dorset Schools AA held its Cross Country Championship in Kings Park on Thursday 19 January and, in mentioning some of them, that is in no way to take away from the achievements of all the athletes. There were two winners on the day, Connor Grocott in the Minor Boys category and Isla May in the Primary Girls. Second placings were achieved by Finley Hurst Atkins in the Primary Boys and Isabel Cherrett in the Junior Girls, whilst Isaac May (Junior Boys), Seni Purnell (Junior Girls) and Seb Crowe (Senior Boys) were all fourth in their respective races. The full BAC results are set out below, although this information has been obtained trawling through the results, so sincere apologies to anyone who may have inadvertently been missed. Results (BAC Kings Park 19 January): Senior Boys (U20/U17): 4. Seb Crowe 24.47, 8. Sam Rayner 26.32; Senior Girls: 17. Neve East 18.45; Inter Boys (U17/U15): 20. Alfie Stopler 20.59, 23. Ewan Brown 21.13, 33. Harry Butcher 22.20, 59. Thomas Massie 24.27, 63. Ben Worsley; Inter Girls: 17. Emily Coltman 16.54, 25. Laras McKenna 17.43, 30. Matilde Blagden, 36. Ida Waring, 45. Mia Richardson, 46. Mariah Marshall; Junior Boys (U15/U13): 4. Isaac May 14.42, 12. Harry Butcher 15.24, 13. Oliver Canavan 15.26, 19. Oliver Thomson 15.51, 27. Jake Selwood 16.15, 70. Steven Kiff, 17.31, 80. Alfie Weston; Junior Girls: 2. Isabel Cherrett 11.49, 4. Seni Purnell 12.25, 13. Esmee Hurst Atkins 13.24, 47. Hannah Shane 15.02, 56. Katie Kilburn 15.20; Minor Boys (U13): 1. Connor Grocott 11.38; Minor Girls: 34. Jessica Long 11.32; Primary Boys (U11): 2. Finley Hurst Atkins 9.23, 24. Benjamin Trimby 10.24; Primary Girls: 1. Isla May 9.49, 5. Ava Richmond 10.35.

Isabel Cherrett on her way to 14th at Beckenham. Isabel was also competing 9 days later at Bristol

Nine days later, on 28 January, the Southern Cross Country Championships were held at Beckenham Place Park, Beckenham, historically in Kent but now part of Greater London. This event at one time was a major fixture for BAC, particularly when it took place at iconic venues such as Parliament Hill, but recently for some reason which isn’t entirely clear interest has dropped off, and this time there was not one single senior/veteran man taking part. Nevertheless congratulations to all who did compete, particularly Isabel Cherrett who was 14th U15 Girl of 184 and also Hugo Richardson and Seb Crowe, 64th and 76th respectively in a field of 168 U17 Men, and Harriet Slade, 107th of 418 Senior Women. Results (BAC Beckenham Place Park 28 January): S/VW: 107. Harriet Slade 32.16, 194. Sian Mcilwaine 35.05, 230. Kirsty Drewett 36.19; U17M: 64. Hugo Richardson 20.16, 76. Seb Crowe 20.27, 130. Sam Brewer 21.48; U17W: 112. Mariah Marshall 30.47; U15B: 184. Oliver Canavan 17.41; U15G: 14. Isabel Cherrett 16.02.

Seb Crowe not far behind Hugo Richardson in the U17M race at Beckenham

Not long afterwards Hugo Richardson was again in action on 4 February at the South East Schools Inter Counties Cross Country at Reigate Priory. Hugo competed in the Inter Boys and excelled himself to finish 14th of 93 competitors in a time of 21.34. Hugo was competing for Hampshire and his race was surely a major contribution to Hampshire‘s 2nd placing of 12 teams. Hugo said of his race “muy bien”, with every justification!

Oliver Canavan in the pack at Beckenham

On the same day Ollie James (pictured at the head of this article, third from left) was competing for Durham University at the BUCS (British Universities & Colleges Sport) Cross Country Championships at Pembrey Country Park, Wales. Ollie showed that he is thriving at university by finishing 79th of 256 competitors in the ‘mens long race’, a distance of 10.5k in a time of 36.17 despite tripping in the first 100m. Ollie then made his way through the pack and justifiably describes himself as “pleased with the final result”. As with Hugo at Reigate, Ollie surely contributed very significantly to Durham University’s final team position of 8th.

Also on 4 February, amongst the BAC athletes competing at the South West Schools Championships at Blaise Castle, Bristol were Connor Grocott and Isabel Cherrett who flew round their respective courses to finish, respectively, 3rd and 4th Minor Boys and 9th Junior Girl. In the case of Connor, his run was an important part of Dorset being the winning Minor Boy team, and Isabel helped her team to 3rd. Another team member was Seb Crowe, 20th Senior Boy, part of the Dorset team which was 2nd. Congratulations also to the other BAC athletes who travelled to Bristol – Oliver Hill, 50th Intermediate Boy, Isaac May, 34th Junior Boy and Emily Coltman, 52nd Intermediate Girl. Don’t forget that these championships are attended by schools from all over the south west, in huge numbers, with massive fields in each race, so finishing positions in the 50s are still impressive performances. Information about these championships isn’t easy to come by, so sincere apologies to anyone inadvertently omitted.

Hampshire Cross Country League – mud and swamp at Reading

Ian Graham — Mon, 23 Jan 2023 09:09:24 +0000

The third fixture of the Hampshire Cross Country League season took place at Prospect Park Reading on Saturday 14 January. A lot of rain had fallen in the days before the race, and on the morning itself so that, although the rain has ceased by the afternoon, the course had become a mixture of thick deep mud and, alongside the playing fields, a soggy wet surface which was just asking to remove the athletes’ shoes. Whether it was these conditions, or the distance to Reading, or competing fixtures which led to a limited BAC presence at Reading isn’t known but those who did make it were certainly made aware of what a true cross country course is!

Barry and Harry Dolman ready to race

The senior men’s struggle to remain in Division 1 is still alive, thanks in no small part to the last minute appearance of Henry Bramwell-Reeks, who stormed round the course to finish 30th, a tremendous achievement in a very strong cross country league. Not far behind Henry was the ever present Szymon Chojnacki, with Barry Dolman, another regular, the third BAC finisher. Ross Smith has made, for BAC, a very welcome return to athletics, after a very successful few years in mountain biking, in which he has represented his country, and, although Ross claims not yet to be back to full running fitness, he still had an excellent run at Reading to finish as BAC‘s fourth senior man. Patrick Kingston, who also regularly turns out to support his club, completed the BAC team – Patrick‘s run made a significant difference to the team’s position in Division 1. On the day BAC were 8th of 10 teams, with an aggregate position for the season of 8= of 10 teams, which is effect means joint last, as three teams (BAC, Poole AC and Reading Roadrunners) are 8=. Without Patrick (and, indeed, every one of the team), BAC would have been 10th, last, out on its own. So there is still the opportunity to save BAC‘s Division 1 status with strong team performances at the next two fixtures (Popham, 11 February and Kings Park, 4 March). The situation for BAC‘s veteran mens’ team is much healthier. The team of Szymon, Barry and Ross were 6th veteran mens’ team on the day with an aggregate position for the season so far of 6th of 23 teams. Of the individual veteran men, Szymon is 6th after three fixtures.

Szymon Chojnacki in action

Also featuring in the individual rankings is Hugo Richardson, who is 8th U17 man. Hugo had a typically strong run at Reading, leading in BAC‘s U17 mens’ team, which was completed by Nathan Mearns and Harry Dolman.

The mud just got everywhere!

Turning to the ladies, Kirsty Drewett, Jola Denerenda and Jayne Wade battled through the mud to claim a team position. BAC‘s ladies were 15th of 15 teams on the day, but it must be borne in mind that most of the competing clubs did not field a team at all. Looking at the aggregate for the season so far, the team is in quite a healthy position, lying 13th of 20 teams.

Two of BAC‘s youngsters ran extremely well at Reading – Constance King was an amazing 13th of the 35 U13 girls, and Edward Davies was 17th of 41 U11 boys. The U11 races are not actually part of the league, so congratulations also to Edward King who made the long journey to Reading to take part.

Szymon handled the slippery conditions very well

Many thanks are due, once again, to Simon Hearn and Simon Saunders for their support and the provision of the BAC tent which makes so much difference to the day’s experience, and also thanks to those who ‘taxied’ – particularly Jud Kirk who drove much of the senior mens’ team to Reading.

Full results (BAC): S/VM: 30. Henry Bramwell-Reeks 36.50, 42. Szymon Chojnacki 37.48, 84. Barry Dolman 41.36, 96. Ross Smith 42.42, 107. Patrick Kingston 43.19, 178. Jud Kirk 50.39, 210. Ian Graham 62.20; U17M: 12. Hugo Richardson 20.09, 22. Nathan Mearns 21.49, 25. Harry Dolman 22.26; U11B: 17. Edward Davies 10.52, 31. Edward King 12.22; S/VW: 60. Kirsty Drewett 26.33, 75. Jola Denerenda 27.27, 105. Jayne Wade 36.40; U13G: 13. Constance King 13.09.

Mud to the front……

……and to the back!

Hampshire Cross Country continues at Kings Park and Wessex Cross Country concludes

Ian Graham — Sat, 31 Dec 2022 16:24:27 +0000

The second fixture of this season’s Hampshire Cross Country League (with three more fixtures to go) took place at Kings Park, Bournemouth on 3 December 2022, hosted by Bournemouth Athletic Club, and the third and final fixture of the Wessex Cross Country League was hosted by Wimborne Athletic Club at Canford School on 18 December.

Harriet Slade and Rebecca Knighton start their race in Kings Park

A total of 50 BAC athletes (including the U11 boys and girls whose races don’t form part of the League) competed at Kings Park with, on the one hand, some excellent team and individual results, but, on the other hand, perhaps a little disappointment that the club didn’t capitalise fully on a home fixture. Rob McTaggart led the senior mens’ team to the finish line, followed by Szymon Chojnacki, Ben Collins, Craig Palmer and Adam Corbin, with the team scoring 9th of 10 teams on the day. Well done to everyone who supported the club on the day, including the 7 further athletes who followed the team to the finish, but more strength is going to be needed in the subsequent fixtures if BAC is to avoid relegation to Division 2. Simon was the first BAC veteran man over the line, with Richard Brawn and Adrian James completing the team, which was the 4th team of 24 teams on the day – a very good result! Simon, after two fixtures, at 9th, is amongst the top 10 veteran men in the League. BAC‘s senior womens’ team of Harriet Slade, Rebecca Knapton and Jolanta Dewerenda achieved an excellent 8th position of 18 teams. The veteran womens’ team of Debbie Lennon, Julia Austin and Lea Lohk also had a very good day, finishing 7th of 11 complete veteran womens’ teams. BAC‘s normally strong U17 mens’ team was weakened at Kings Park as the fixture clashed with a schools’ cross country fixture, with the result that only Hugo Richardson and Nathan Mearns competed at Kings Park. Hugo‘s excellent run propelled him into the top 10 U17 men in the League. It’s pleasing to report that both BAC‘s U15 boys and U15 girls fielded teams at this fixture. The U15 boys’ team of Harry Butcher, Oliver Thomson and Oliver Canavan (closely supported by Ewan Brown) were the 4th of 8 teams on the day, and, for the U15 girls, Isabel Cherrett, Matilde Blagden and Laras McKenna (supported by Emily Stuckey) were the 4th of 5 teams – most of the competing clubs not fielding complete teams at all. Isabel showed her good form and ability, finishing 3rd on the day, and is now 3rd U15 girl in the League. Conor Grocott and Seni Purnell also showed their form in the U13 boys’ and U13 girls’ races respectively, both finishing 2nd on the day, and both now lying ranked 2nd in their age category in the League. There were also some impressive runs amongst the 16 boys and girls who ran in the U11 races, with Imogen Pope finishing 2nd U11 girl and Finley Hurst Atkins 6th U11 boy. A huge thank you is due to all the officials, marshals and volunteers who made staging the fixture in Kings Park possible, and let’s hope for a strong BAC presence (particularly the senior men to improve the club’s Division 1 position) at Reading on 14 January.

Full results for 3 December (BAC); S/V Men: 41. Rob McTaggart 33.07, 51. Szymon Chojnacki 33.47 (6th veteran), 54. Ben Collins 34.00, 74. Craig Palmer 35.09, 81. Adam Corbin 35.35, 94. Matt du Cros 36.10, 100. Richard Brawn 36.25 (V 26), 108. Adrian James 36.39 (V 32), 126. Alex Goulding 37.45 (V 41), 168. Simon Hearn 39.50 (V 69), 216. Jud Kirk 44.10 (V 107), 238. Tim Hughes 48.01 (V 127); S/V Women: 24. Harriet Slade 23.07, 25. Rebecca Knapton 23.13, 61. Jolanta Denerenda 25.37, 72. Debbie Lennon 26.05 (V 17), 75. Sian Mcilwaine 26.31, 91. Julia Austin 27.48 (V 29), 110. Lea Lohk 31.26 (V 45), 118. Jayne Wade 33.21 (V 51); U17 Men: 7. Hugo Richardson 19.41, 26. Nathan Mearns 22.43; U15 Boys: 18. Harry Butcher 15.04, 22. Oliver Thomson 15.31, 23. Oliver Canavan 15.32, 24. Ewan Brown 15.33; U15 Girls: 3. Isabel Cherrett 15.11, 28. Matilde Blagden 17.37, 32. Laras McKenna 18.03, 39. Emily Stuckey 19.28: U13 Boys: 2. Conor Grocott 11.09, 6. Marni Purnell 11.26; U13 Girls: 2. Seni Purnell 11.58, 15. Constance King 12.58; U11 Boys: 6. Finley Hurst Atkins 8.12, 27. Edward Davies 8.42, 35. Harry Selwood 8.47, 39. Ted Fewings 8.58, 40. Jake Ryan 9.02, 42. Aiden Blagden 9.05, 44. Toby Sims 9.08, 47. Rory Dixon 9.13, 50. Petya Mott 9.22, 75. Jude Austin 11.44; U11 Girls: 2. Imogen Pope 8.27, 12. Ava Richmond 9.26, 15. Ruby Lakey 9.57, 16. Skye Grocott 10.15, 17. Anna Mott 10.19, 21. Erin Ryan 10.26.

Is it worth it? Chris O’Brien ‘enjoys’ the mud at Canford

Oliver James (right) and Simon Chojnacki on their way to winning at Canford School

True cross country weather arrived for the final fixture of the Wessex Cross Country League season at Canford School on 18 December, with pouring rain, strong winds and lots and lots of mud! As a result, numbers in all the races were down on previous fixtures (which often occurs at the last fixture anyway), and BAC were represented by 28 athletes, albeit 2 running as guests as there was no registration for the league after the cut off date. Finley Hurst Atkins again showed his form, finishing 2nd U11 boy and in the U11 girls’ race Isla May impressed with her win. Isla had a good season in this league finishing 2nd overall U11 girl – well done Isla! The O’Brien family again stood out in the U13 girls’ race, with Albha O’Brien winning and Clodagh O’Brien finishing 4th. Albha concluded the season as 1st U13 girl overall, with Clodagh 3rd, and Amy Betts demonstrated that it is worth competing in all the fixtures, as Amy also finished as 3rd= U13 girl overall with Clodagh. Isaac May, running as a guest, was 3rd U15 boy, and in the U15 girls’ race Isabel Cherrett, impressive as ever, finished 2nd on the day resulting in an aggregate position of 2nd U15 girl in the league for the season – Isabel is one to watch!! With no competing fixtures elsewhere BAC‘s U17 men were again present in some strength, with Seb Crowe 2nd, Hugo Richardson 3rd and Nathan Mearns 4th, with Seb achieving 1st U17 man overall. In the U17 women’s race Emily Coltman finished 7th which put her 3rd in the league for the season. Mariah Marshall was 11th in the race, putting her 5th in the league for the season. Oliver James has clearly been keeping up his training at University, as he won the U20/S/V mens’ race by some distance from Simon Chojnacki who is himself in excellent form. Szymon was the first veteran man to cross the line and finishes the season as 1st man overall. Amongst the senior and veteran women Debbie Lennon and Kirsty Drewett have had excellent seasons, with Debbie concluding as 1st woman overall as well as 1st veteran, and Kirsty 2nd overall and 2nd veteran. On the day Caitlin Peers finished 2nd in the race, with Jola Dewerenda, running as a guest, also performing well.

The men and women line up for the Under 17s race at Canford School

Mariah Marshall and Emily Coltman

Albha O’Brien on her way to victory

Full results for 18 December (BAC); U20/S/V Men: 1. Oliver James 27.01 (1st U20 man), 2. Simon Chojnacki 27.56 (1st veteran), 15. Chris O’Brien 32.50 (V 8), 21. Jud Kirk 36.41 (V 12), 26. Geoffrey Newton 40.29 (V 16); S/V Women: 2. Caitlin Peers 20.00, (Jola Dewerenda – guest – 22.52), 7. Debbie Lennon 23.20 (V 1), 8. Kirsty Drewett 23.30 (V 2); U17 Men: 2. Seb Crowe 15.24, 3. Hugo Richardson 15.41, 4. Nathan Mearns 16.22; U17 Women: 7. Emily Coltman 19.15, 11. Mariah Marshall 23.39; U15 Boys: (Isaac May – guest – 15.02); U15 Girls: 2. Isabel Cherrett 15.18, 6. Matilde Blagden 19.13, 7. Elizabeth Davie 19.16; U13 Boys: 4. Austin Riley 13.01: U13 Girls: 1. Albha O’Brien 17.16, 4. Clodagh O’Brien 18.09, 10. Amy Betts 20.18; U11 Boys: 2. Finley Hurst Atkins 5.17, 8. Ted Fewings 5.37, 13. Edward Davie 5.59, 15. Aiden Blagden 6.12; U11 Girls: 1. Isla May, 6. Mabel Jundi 5.52.

Other BAC athletes at Canford School included:

Caitlin Peers

Clodagh O’Brien

Kirsty Drewett

Debbie Lennon

Jud Kirk

Geoff Newton

Chris O’Brien – and more mud!

Wessex Cross Country League continues at Bryanston School and Hampshire Cross Country League commences at Aldershot

Ian Graham — Fri, 18 Nov 2022 16:34:44 +0000

The second fixture of the Wessex Cross Country League took place in the magnificent grounds of Bryanston School, Blandford on Sunday 30 October, and the first fixture of the Hampshire Cross Country League went ahead at Aldershot on Saturday 12 November.

The Wessex fixture also doubled as the County Cross Country Championship, although it had been necessary for athletes to enter the championship separately from the league, with the result that many who ran at Bryanston, who hadn’t entered, didn’t count for the championship. There had been heavy rain earlier in the day, which fortunately more or less stopped for the races, and the rain didn’t have too much of an impact on the going, which remained reasonably firm.

BAC’s ladies – Debbie Lennon, Elissa Clark, Jayne Wade, Kirsty Drewett and Helen Ambrosen

There were some outstanding results amongst the 36 BAC athletes who competed, but credit must go to everyone who attended and and ran and flew the BAC flag, and also to the coaches, parents, etc., especially Simon Hearn and Simon Saunders, who once again came along with the BAC tent, providing a base and a refuge, without which the whole experience of cross country running would be very much diminished. Thanks, too, to Debbie Lennon and Jayne Wade, who provided delicious cakes to look forward to whilst running!

Seb Crowe in full flight

There were wins, second and third places in virtually all of the younger age group races, with Finley Hurst Atkins third U11B, Isla May second U11G and Seni Purnell and Albha O’Brien first and second U13Gs respectively with one second separating them! Combining her second place with her win at the first fixture at Canford, Albha is now leading the aggregate U13G league table. Amy Betts, who was fifth at Bryanston, is second aggregate in the table. In addition, Seni and Albha both took the trouble to enter the County Championship, which earned them County Gold and Silver Medals respectively – well done Seni and Albha! Isabel Cherrett was second U15G and, combining this with her result at Canford, Isabel is top of the U15G aggregate table. BAC fielded a very strong U17M team, with Hugo Richardson finishing second and Seb Crowe fourth. Seb also had entered the County Championship, and earned himself a bronze medal. The U17M team was completed by Sam Brewer (with Nathan Mearns close behind just in case) and the team not only won on the day, but is first aggregate in the table. There were no fewer than 9 BAC athletes competing in the senior/veteran mens’ race, which is unusual for this league – long may it continue! Although a guest runner was the first over the line, not counting in the results, the first, second and third athletes in the race itself were all BAC, in the form of Rob McTaggart, Szymon Chojnacki and Richard Brawn, so that BAC would be the winning team on the day was beyond question. BAC‘s veteran mens’ team, consisting of Szymon, Richard and Chris O’Brien, was also the winning veteran team on the day. BAC‘s senior and veteran women were no less impressive, with Debbie Lennon finishing second and Kirsty Drewett fourth in their race. Elissa Clark completed the senior womens’ team – the winning team on the day. The veteran womens’ team of Debbie and Kirsty, completed by Helen Ambrosen was also the winning team on the day. Debbie and Kirsty are first and second aggregate respectively in the league table after two races, and both had entered the County Championship, earning themselves gold and silver medals – well done!

Rob McTaggart on his way to victory

So it can be said to have been a successful day for BAC, and hopefully the momentum can be maintained for the final fixture at Canford School on 18 December.

Richard Brawn completing BAC’s winning team

Full BAC results at Bryanston are as follows: U11B: 3. Finley Hurst Atkins 6.47, 13. Aiden Blagden 7.50, 15. Edward King 7.59; U11G: 2. Isla May 7.22, 5. Mabel Jundi 7.40; U13B: 4. Austin Riley 11.17; U13G: 1. Seni Purnell 11.11, 2. Albha O’Brien 11.12, 5. Amy Betts 11.55, 6. Clodagh O’Brien 11.57, 12. Constance King 12.37; U15B: 6. Harry Butcher 13.37, 9. Oliver Thompson 14.16; U15G: 2. Isabel Cherrett 13.55, 10. Matilde Blagden 15.25, 14. Elizabeth Davie, 16. Laras McKenna 16.15; U17M: 2. Hugo Richardson 15.03, 4. Seb Crowe 15.20, 6. Sam Brewer 16.37, 8. Nathan Mearns 17.32; U17W: 7. Emily Coltman 18.59, 12. Mariah Marshall 21.17; S/VM: 1. Rob McTaggart, 2. Szymon Chojnacki 31.41, 3. Richard Brawn 32.26, 13. George Biggs 34.57, 15. Patrick McCalister 35.57, 19. Chris O’Brien 37.27, 32. Jud Kirk 40.07, 40. Geoffrey Newton 43.46, 47. Ian Graham 51.39; S/VW: 2. Debbie Lennon, 4. Kirsty Drewett 29.18, 14. Elissa Clark, 20. Helen Ambrosen 35.16, 23. Jayne Wade 39.42.

Chris O’Brien ensures that BAC’s VM team wins

Helen Ambrosen – one lap to go

Jud Kirk – is it a smile or a grimace?

Jayne Wade starts her last lap

Geoffrey Newton totally belies his years

The Hampshire Cross Country League fixture at Aldershot was unusual in that the weather was warm and sunny, and the going firm, as opposed to the pouring rain and mud everywhere which normally applies at this venue. A total of 22 BAC athletes competed in age groups ranging from U11 to senior/veteran, with a number of outstanding runs. In the U13 girls’ race Constance King was 17th in a field of 54, and Connor Grocott was 12th of 56 U13 boys. Hugo Richardson is in very good form at the moment, as was clear from his 10th position in the U17 mens’ race in which BAC fielded a full team, with Massimo Lawson, Harry Dolman and Nathan Mearns supporting Hugo. The team finished 7th of 8 complete teams, but it is worth remembering that the vast majority of competing clubs did not manage to produce a team at all. Another athlete in good form is Rob McTaggart, who finished an astonishing 27th (of 296), leading a senior mens’ team of Stuart Nicholas, Craig Palmer, Richard Brawn and Barry Dolman, the team placing 8th of 10 teams in Division 1 of the league. Richard and Barry also scored for the veteran mens’ team, which was completed by Patrick Kingston and was placed 10th of 19 complete veteran teams. So it was a reasonable start to the Hampshire Cross Country season, but hopefully there will be stronger BAC representation at subsequent fixtures, particularly the next one, a home fixture at Kings Park on 3 December.

Full BAC results at Aldershot are as follows: U11B: 28. Ted Fewings 7.06; U13B: 12. Connor Grocott 11.49; U13G: 17. Constance King 13.03; U15B: 44. Scott Grocott 18.35, 47. James Davie 19.25; U15G: 29. Matilde Blagden 19.23, 31. Elizabeth Davie 19.36; U17M: 10. Hugo Richardson 21.58, 31. Massimo Lawson 24.00, 34. Harry Dolman 24.47, 35. Nathan Mearns 24.56; S/VM: 27. Rob McTaggart 33.52, 59. Stuart Nicholas 35.29, 62. Craig Palmer 35.57, 101. (14th veteran) Richard Brawn 37.39, 140. (31st veteran) Barry Dolman 39.11, 189. George Biggs 41.15, 200. (62nd veteran) Patrick Kingston 41.46, 257. (105th veteran) Jud Kirk 46.12, 284. (128th veteran) Tim Hughes 51.11; S/VW: 115. (30th veteran) Kirsty Drewett 29.10, 180. (71st veteran) Jayne Wade 38.05.

Nathan Mearns, Hugo Richardson and Massimo Lawson

Kirsty Drewett enjoys the unusually balmy conditions at Aldershot

Jayne Wade – ever present supporting her club at cross country

Jud Kirk and Tim Hughes smiling after his first XC

Wessex Cross Country League under way

Ian Graham — Sat, 22 Oct 2022 15:28:59 +0000

After a break of two years the Wessex Cross Country League recommenced on Sunday 2 October 2022 at Canford Heath. Although heavy rain had fallen earlier, by the time the fixture started the day was warm and sunny and the going round the course was dry and firm. In all 36 BAC athletes competed in all age groups (apart from U20 men and women) in ten separate races with some excellent individual and team results. In the U11G competition Isla May was third, and a short time later Connor Grocott and Austin Riley were second and third U13B respectively, with a BAC team U13B result only one point off the lead. A win by Albha O’Brien in the U13G race ensured that the U13G team stands first in the league, helped by Amy Betts in fifth place. In almost every other age group and distance throughout the day BAC athletes scored in the top three places. Oliver Canavan was the third U15B, resulting in a team points equalling those of the winning team, and Isabel Cherrett was also third in her race, U15G. The trend continued for the U17M, with Seb Crowe second, Massimo Lawson third, closely followed by Oliver Hill in fourth. Simon Chojnacki ran superbly to finish second in the senior mens’ race, with Simon being the first veteran to cross the line. BAC‘s senior mens’ team lies in fourth (of ten) teams after the first league event, and the veteran mens’ team is second (of six). There was an equally impressive performance by BAC‘s ladies, as Kirsty Drewett and Debbie Lennon were first and second senior and veteran ladies respectively, with, unsurprisingly, both the senior and veterans ladies’ teams top of the league. Everyone who competed, encouraged, transported, provided equipment and all the other activities undertaken all played their part to ensure this was a successful start to the Wessex Cross Country season, so well done all!

Albha O’Brien on her way to winning the U13G race

Emily Coltman (23) and Ida Waring (42) in the U17W race

The full BAC results for the Canford Heath fixture are as follows: U11B: 9.Jake Ryan 10.01, 11. Edward King 10.13, 14. Aiden Blagden 10.21; U11G: 3. Isla May 10.17, 18. Erin Ryan 11.15, 25. Skye Grocott 12.09, 32. Phoebe Clark 12.59; U13B: 2. Connor Grocott 12.19, 3. Austin Riley 12.24, 19. Edward Ryan 14.02; U13G: 1. Albha O’Brien 12.48, 5. Amy Betts 13.43, 8. Constance King 14.19, 10. Clodagh O’Brien 14.29; U15B: 3. Oliver Canavan 14.00, 7. Harry Butcher 14.33, 11. Scott Grocott 16.05; U15G: 3. Isabel Cherrett 15.14, 8. Esmee Hurst Atkins 16.26, 13. Laras McKenna 17.21; U17M: 2. Seb Crowe, 3. Massimo Lawson 15.26, 4. Oliver Hill 15.33; U17W: 5. Emily Coltman 18.37, 11. Ida Waring 22.19, 12. Mariah Marshall 22.20; S/VM: 2. Simon Chojnacki 29.04 (1st VM), 6. Patrick McCalister 32.25, 16. Richard Wade 36.07, 18. Jud Kirk 36.47, 28. Geoffrey Newton 41.46, 31. Ian Graham 45.25; S/VW: 2. Kirsty Drewett 27.22, 3. Debbie Lennon 27.32, 19. Helen Ambrosen 33.25, 22. Jayne Wade 35.18.

Clodagh O’Brien finishes the U13G race

Clodagh and Albha O’Brien both happy with their day

Simon Chojnacki is happy with his 2nd place (1st vet) in the senior men’s race

Thumbs up from Simon!