Connor Grocott was looking to add another accolade to his already impressive resume at the Hampshire Athletics Multi-Events Championship

Making quite a name for himself at county level, Bournemouth AC Under 13 sensation Connor Grocott has been on fire so far this year. With a Hampshire County Cross Country Championship winner’s medal to his name as well as being crowned Dorset Schools’ Cross Country Champion, it had been a very successful start to the year for Connor.

Hoping to continue in that vain, Connor was competing in the Hampshire Athletics Multi-Events Championships where the participants battle it out over five events to score points which will then be added together to form an overall cumulative total. Basically, it was a Pentathlon, featuring an 800m, a Long Jump, a High Jump, a 75m Hurdles and a Shot Put.

Being such a strong runner, the track events weren’t likely to pose too much of a problem for him. To he would have to prove he was very multi-talented to excel in the field events as well.

The competition was held at the Mountabatten Centre in Portsmouth and Connor was squaring off against six Under 13 Boys from Winchester & District and one from Aldershot, Farnham & District. With those clubs in the fray, you always know you’re going to need to be at the top of your game.

It would be fair to say that Connor doesn’t have a lot of bulk on him, so the Shot Put was always going to be a tricky event. His build is much more akin to running but despite that, he managed to seal second place in the event with a throw of 7.22 metres. The winner of that event was Jackson Purdie of Winchester & District with a throw of 7.38.

When it came to the 75m Hurdles though, being such a talented runner put the ball more into Connor’s court and he made count, reversing the result from the Shot Put and picking up the win ahead of Jackson Purdie. Connor’s time was 14.2 seconds which edged him ahead of Jackson by one second. That meant it was tight at the top, with Jackson on 702 points and Connor on 700.

In the High Jump, Connor didn’t quite hit the heights he’d managed a couple of times the previous year but still managed a leap of 1.27 metres which put him in third place. Crucially though, he’d finished ahead of Jackson Purdie who was fourth, so he’d gained points over his main rival.

Leo Davies-Pratt of Winchester & District was the winner with a jump of 1.33 and Tom Pate, also of Winchester & District took 2nd with a jump of 1.30 metres. That put Connor comfortably into the lead with 931 points to Jackson’s 896.

Only one of his opponents managed to top Connor’s leap of 4.20 in the Long Jump. That was Tom Pate who recorded his first event win in 4.21. That moved Connor even further clear of Jackson Purdie who could only manage fourth. Leo Davies-Pratt was third with 4.15.

No one could contend with Connor in the 800m as he blasted round in a terrific time of 2:28.8. That gave him a six second advantage over Leo Davies-Pratt who was second in 2:35.0. Tom Pate took third in 2:35.2 and Jackson Purdie was fourth in 2:49.4.

Connor showed his supremacy with a convincing win in the 800m

In terms of the overall points totals, Connor had managed a total of 1507 and that was enough to seal a magnificent victory for him. Tom Pate was second on 1327 points with Leo Davies-Pratt taking third in 1317. Jackson Purdie’s challenge faded as he had be content with fourth place in the end with a score of 1224.

Connor takes his place on the top step of the podium after winning the Under 13 Boys contest at the Hampshire Multi-Events Championship

Connor’s sister Skye was also competing in the Multi-Events Championships for the Under 13 Girls and she recorded a 1.03 for the High Jump before completing the 70m Hurdles in 16.8 seconds. In the Long Jump, she managed 2.62 metres and she registered a throw of 3.95 metres in the Shot Put.

Getting through the 800m race in 3:20.1, she wracked up a total of 774 points, putting her in eighth position. There was also a Family Trophy which two related athletes could qualify for, meaning their scores would be combined together. Connor and Skye came out on top in that with a total of 2281 and that was enough to put them ahead of Peter and Jack Sansome of Winchester & District who scored 2202.

Skye and Connor Grocott won the Family Trophy at the Hampshire Multi-Events Championship

It was a fabulous day for the Grocotts and a very successful one from Connor’s perspective. As well as picking up the Family Trophy, he could now call himself the Hampshire Multi-Event County Champion and that was another result to be extremely proud of for him. If he continues to perform like this, it won’t be long before the Grocott’s need a bigger trophy cabinet!

The event began with a Kids’ Kilometre which was for children aged 3 to 6. Then after that it was the Junior 1.5k which was for 6 to 8 year olds. Then it was the Junior 2k which was for 9 to 12 year olds. Youngsters aged 11 to 18 were allowed to compete in the Junior 5k.

Edward Davies won the Junior 1.5k by 16 seconds

It was in the Junior 1.5k and the 2k races that Bournemouth AC members really stole the show. First it was Edward Davies who won the 1.5k in a magnificent time of 5 minutes and 54 seconds. Out of all the kids in that race, he was the one who really stood out and looked like a proper runner, even at such an early stage in his development.

Edward tops the podium for the Junior 1.5k

Then, in the 2k race, a sensational new talent emerged in the shape of Seni Purnell. Completing the course in 7 minutes 13 seconds, she finished 2nd overall, beating every single boy in the race other than Daniel Street of Epsom who won it.

Seni Purnell was too quick for virtually everyone in the 2k race

It was a remarkable performance from Seni and showed that she has real potential to be a top runner in the future. The next girl to finish was Cerys-Ann Stewart who clocked a time of 8 minutes 1 second so she was quite a way behind Seni.

Seni comes in for a 2nd place finish and first female

It was a proud moment for Seni as she stood on top of the podium

Finley Hurst Atkins was in that race as well and he got round in 7 minutes 23 seconds which put him in 5th place overall. Solly Abu-Ghaba was the next BAC member over the line, finishing 12th in 7 minutes 49 seconds.

Finley Hurst Atkins scopes out the opposition

Bournemouth AC juniors occupied 24th, 25th 26th positions in the race, with Ted Fewings taking 24th in 8:15. Benjamin Trimby was 25th in 8:14, with Aiden Blagden taking 26th in 8:22.

Finley battles it out for a top five finish in the Junior 2k

Jessica Long was 4th girl and 31st in the overall standings, crossing the line in 8 minutes 35 seconds. Isabella Crawford was 17th female and 31st overall in 9:43 and Jessica Seymour was 23rd girl and 94th overall taking 10 minutes exactly.

Finley completed the 2k in 7 minutes 23 seconds

Jude Austin was the next BAC member in, finishing in 105th place in 10 minutes 11 seconds. Then it was Phoebe Clark in 124th position and 33rd female in 10:43. The fact Bournemouth AC had such a large number of entrants in the race suggests they are thriving, at least in that age bracket.

The Junior 5k race featured Esmee Hurst Atkins (right) and Isabel Cherrett (white vest)

In the Junior 5k race, Oliver Canovan finished in 4th place, clocking a very quick time of 18:19. Then, not too far behind, the next BAC member, Harry Butcher arrived to take 6th place in 18:49.

Harry Butcher finished 6th in the Junior 5k

Isabel Cherrett sealed a spot on the podium with her time of 19:18 putting her 2nd fastest female and 7th overall. It was an excellent run from Isabel and she was the quickest under 16 girl in the race.

Isabel Cherrett was raising money for the Dorset Cancer Care Foundation

Isabel races along the prom toward a 19:18 finish

On top of that, she also managed to raise over £200 for the Dorset Cancer Care Foundation, so for her, it was big success on two fronts.

Isabel stands on the 2nd step of the podium after an excellent run in the Junior 5k

Also delivering a solid performance was Esmee Hurst Atkins and she was 4th female in and 13th overall with a time of 20:49. Then about half a minute later Matilde Blagden arrived to secure 5th female spot and 16th overall in a time of 21:21.

Esmee Hurst Atkins was 4th female in the Junior 5k

Adam Abu-Ghaba got round in 23:31 which put him in 31st place in the overall standings. His brother Solly took advantage of the age overlap by running both the 2k and the 5k. In the 5k, he got round the course in 24:49 which put him in 39th place.

Adam Abu-Ghaba came 31st in the Junior 5k

There was also an opportunity for the adults to get involved on that first day as the Supernova 5k took place at 7pm. By that time it’s started to get dark and participants are encouraged to wear high viz or glow in the dark lights.

Impressing in training over recent weeks, Matthew Dicks has come down from Milton Keynes and is studying at the university here. He’s been attending the Tuesday night sessions and has looked very sharp and quick since arriving on the south coast.

He claimed victory in the Supernova 5k, whipping round the seafront course in a lightening quick time of 16:04. The closest contender to that was Samuel Brooks who represents Fareham and has featured in the last couple of Hampshire Road Race League fixtures. He got round in 17:04.

Another familiar face from the Bournemouth AC ranks was Oscar Even Matthews and he sealed 3rd place in a time of 17:22.

Matthew Dicks, who has been training with BAC, won the Supernova 5k, with Oscar Even Matthews coming 3rd

Jonah Shepherd was 13th, completing the course in 18:48 and Emily Coltman sealed 3rd female spot in 20:38.

That was a good run from Emily and put her 24th in the pecking order overall. Having just turned 16, Emily can now participate in adult races and she went straight in at the deep end the following weekend by taking on the Great South Run.

Emily Coltman was 3rd lady in the Supernova 5k

Jacob Green was also in the mix and he completed the night time 5k route in 22:25, putting him in 51st place overall.

With five podium place finishes and many other strong performances amongst them, the Bournemouth AC junior division is certainly thriving at the moment and the Run Bournemouth event provided a great outlet for them to show the town and the tourists what they’re made of.

Brother and sister Finley and Esmee Hurst Atkins both performed well

This is a great opportunity for U17 and U20 athletes to run, jump and throw with the support of a home crowd at Kings Park Stadium. Make the most of the change to perform on our fabulous, newly laid track and updated jump facilities.

We need to get the best team out there and show everyone what we can do in the Southern league!!

For entries and more information, contact Suzi Shepherd on 07754 936 731

Here’s some information for those interested …

In January 2013, through an initiative set up by UK Athletics, the existing National Junior Athletic League and the National Young Athletics League amalgamated to form the UK Youth Development League for athletes under 20 years of age.

TRAINING SESSION FOR JUNIOR DEVELOPMENT- WEDNESDAY 26th August 2020 

Please do follow the Government guidelines when doing the sessions which is currently you may now train in groups of 6 outside but you must maintain the 2 metre distance at all times (unless they’re from the same household).

This week’s session is devised by Dave Pain who holds the Coaching Licence with England athletics, and is Group eight leader for our Junior Development Group and a sprints coach for the wider club.

This week- Wednesday 26th August 2020- Half the repetitions for groups 1-4

Warm up and stretching:
Jog on grass for about 400m.
Mixture of static and dynamic stretching.

Drills:
High knees, kick backs, walking lunges, bounding, speed drills (rat-a-tats), run throughs at 80% over 30m.

Session 1 – speed endurance session –
Controlled running at 80%, focus on technique:
150m run, walk back recovery
Do the 3 runs above, have a 5 minute rest, then repeat (6 runs in total)

Session 2 – Speed session:
Fast sprints over 60m, with either standing or crouch start.
Do 8 runs in total.

Cool down:
Jog on grass for 400m, followed by gentle stretching.

Circuits (at home):
Press ups –  20 reps
Sit ups –  20 reps
Squats – 20 reps
Skipping or running on the spot for 30 seconds
Press ups – 10 reps
Sit ups – 10 reps
Squats – 10 reps

http://www.bournemouthac.co.uk/weekly-sessions/

Keep safe and well everyone

Best Wishes from Junior Development coaches    

TRAINING SESSION FOR JUNIOR DEVELOPMENT- WEDNESDAY 11th August 2020 

Please do follow the Government guidelines when doing the sessions which is currently you may now train in groups of 6 outside but you must maintain the 2 metre distance at all times (unless they’re from the same household).

This week’s session is devised by Joy Wright who holds the Assistant Coaching Licence with England athletics, and has coached athletics at BAC since 2015 in middle distance and Junior Development. She also has qualifications in Sports Science and Clinical Nutrition. Joy is a competing athlete for BAC and has competed at county and national levels including the AAA World Trials. Joy now competes at masters level and  has been ranked in GB top 10 in 400m, 200m, 100m hurdles, HJ and LJ. Joy also has experience in endurance and ultra marathons including coming 3rd in IrishTriathlon Championships.

The aim of this session is to incorporate some of the activities you need to progress your skills as a runner and jumper. 

These skills compliment each other for example, a runner will benefit from jump training known as plyometric training as well as upper body strength such as press ups to support good running technique. 

The warm up

Ensure your body is well prepared for the strain of exercise by increasing blood flow to the muscles & getting the right muscles fired up and ready to go. This includes dynamic stretching such as walking lunges. 

Warm up

8-10 mins easy jogging

Dynamic stretches

Walking lunges 

Squats, stepping sideways. Swap lead leg on repeat

Walking toe taps 

High-knee Skips

10 x each leg, walk back & repeat

Drills (improve speed, form & efficiency) 

High Knees

Butt-kicks

Straight-leg bounds

Single leg hops aiming for height 10 x each leg.

Walking Leg Swings

Side Leg Swings

*see below

Drills should be completed for 20-30m. 

Walk back to where you started before beginning the next drill. 

Perform 2 sets of each one before beginning the next exercise. 

2 x10 press ups, pushing up fast with the aim of lifting the hands off the ground. 

2 x 20 bent knee situps

Sprints

4 x 40m sprints. 

Walk back to the start. Aim to speed up slightly for each one (tip: start easy). Be very controlled & Aim for good, strong technique! 

Starts

4 x 20-30m fast starts. Choose between a full crouched start or half bend, keeping low. Note: look down, stay low and have a gradual phased acceleration.

Remember not to apply the brakes too quickly and overload the quads.

Run Repeats

Run 4 x 100m at 90% effort so almost flat out with enough left to complete all 4 well. 

Walk back slowly to recover, approx 3 minutes. Older athletes can complete 6 reps if not slowing and the technique is not tiring. 

Cool down

Jog at least 5 minutes 1-2 laps. 

Practice stretching after every session, in particular the hamstrings, quadriceps, hip flexor and calves. 

Reference*

Squat: Stand with your feet about shoulder width apart and your toes pointing straight ahead. It’s also ok if your toes are pointing slightly outward. Sit back with your butt like you’re sitting down in a chair until your thighs are parallel to the ground. Drive your heels down and return to the standing position, ensuring your lower back stays in a neutral position.

Walking Lunge: Step forward with your right leg, flexing the knees and dropping your hips. Descend until your left knee almost touches the ground. Drive your right heel into the ground and push yourself back to a standing position while taking a step forward. Repeat with the opposite leg. Maintain a tall, erect posture and ensure your knee does not go significantly beyond the toes while lunging.

Walking Leg Swings: With your hands straight out in front of you, swing your right leg up toward your right hand. Keep both knees straight and repeat on the opposite side.

High-knee Skips: Skip forward and drive your right knee up so it’s about parallel to the ground and drive your foot back down to the ground. Alternate each leg. Keep your back tall with an exaggerated arm swing and make sure you don’t slam your feet on the ground.

Side Leg Swings: Standing in front of a wall or pole for support, swing your leg parallel to the support so your foot comes up to about hip level. Make sure to keep your swing leg straight but don’t lock your knee.

http://www.bournemouthac.co.uk/weekly-sessions/

Keep safe and well everyone

Best Wishes from Junior Development coaches    

TRAINING SESSION FOR JUNIOR DEVELOPMENT- WEDNESDAY 5th August 2020 

Please do follow the Government guidelines when doing the sessions which is currently you may now train in groups of 6 outside but you must maintain the 2 metre distance at all times (unless they’re from the same household).

This weeks session is devised by Mandy Adams who holds the Level Two Coaching Licence with England Athletics and is the Coach Co ordinator for Junior Development. Mandy is also on the Committee for BAC and a competing athlete for the club, and she has competed in cross country, steeple chase, 800m, 1500, and pole vault. She has also won 3^rd place for British Masters 10 mile road race and won her age category for the Winter 5k series in the past.

Introduction and Warm Up

Main Session – Drills

Main Session – Plyometrics

Cool Down

Best wishes we hope you are all keeping well,

From all of the Coaches at Junior Development 

TRAINING SESSION FOR JUNIOR DEVELOPMENT- WEDNESDAY 29th July 2020

Please find the link below to access weekly planned sessions which have been designed by our very own coaches. Please do follow the Government guidelines when doing the sessions which is currently not training in groups of more than 6 and keeping 1 metre distance apart.

This weeks session is devised by Dave Pain who holds the Coaching Licence with England athletics, and is Group eight leader for our Junior Development Group and a sprints coach for the wider club.

This weeks session for Wednesday 29th July 2020 – half quantity of reps for groups 1-4

Drills

High knees, kick backs, walking lunges, bounding, speed drills (rat- a- tats), run throughs at 80% over 30 metres.

Session One – fitness challenge ( 100 reps in total);

• Press ups- 25 reps

• Sit ups- 25 reps

• Squats- 25 reps

• 2 minute active recovery, walk for about 200metres

Try to complete 4 sets to complete 100 reps for each exercise

Session Two- speed session:

Fast sprints over 60metres, do 4 runs, x 2 sets ( 8 in total).

Cool down; Jog on grass for 400m, followed by gentle stretching

Circuits (at home):

Press ups- 20 reps, sit ups- 20 reps, squats- 20 reps, skipping or running on the spot for 30 secs 

Press ups- 20 reps, sit ups- 20 reps, squats- 20 reps.

http://www.bournemouthac.co.uk/weekly-sessions/

Keep safe and well everyone

Best Wishes from Junior Development coaches              

TRAINING SESSION FOR JUNIOR DEVELOPMENT- WEDNESDAY 8th July 2020

This weeks session is a repeat of an earlier session by Coach Chris O’Brien.

You can download a PDF of the session here

Warm Up

Low feet skipping

• • Arms across body
  • Arms over and forward
  • Arms over and backward
  • Arms across body 

 Run on spot & go!

• Run on spot for 5 seconds
• Count down 3,2,1 go!
• Run for 5m to 10m (as space allows)
• Turn around and repeat
• Turn around and repeat

Backwards running

• Put down a marker as your stop line
• Check to see it’s clear behind you
• Run backwards, looking only straight ahead until you get to your stop line
• Walk back to start and repeat x 3 

Joint range of movement

Main Session

Fast feet agility

Note: If under 14 years old, perform 10 seconds of effort to 30 seconds rest. If over 14 years old, perform 20 seconds of effort to 40 to 60 seconds rest.

• Left foot forward
• Right foot forward
• Left foot backward
• Right foot backward

Two-legged jumping

Note: If under 14 years old, perform 10 seconds of effort to 30 seconds rest. If over 14 years old, perform 20 seconds of effort to 40 to 60 seconds rest.

• Forward
• Backward
• Left
• Right

Single-legged jumping

Note: If under 14 years old, perform 8 seconds of effort to 20 seconds rest. If over 14 years old, perform 10 seconds of effort to 20 seconds rest.

• Left foot forward
• Right foot forward
• Left foot backward
• Right foot backward

Cool Down

Best wishes we hope you are all keeping well,

From all of the Coaches at Junior Development 

TRAINING SESSION FOR JUNIOR DEVELOPMENT- WEDNESDAY 1st JULY 2020

Dear athletes,

Please find the latest  of the weekly planned sessions which have been designed by our very own coaches.

Please do follow the Government guidelines when doing the sessions which is currently not training in groups of more than 6 and keeping 2 metre distance apart.

This week’s session is devised by Gary Worsley who holds Assistant Coaching Licence with England athletics since 2010 and is Group five coach for our Junior Development Group. Gary also coaches for Littledown Harriers and is planning to complete the Leader in
Running Fitness course later this year.

Gary is a keen runner and trains for all distances. He has some very impressive PBs:

5k – 17:40 (2018);
10k 36:47( 2010);
10 miles 1:01:03 (2011);
Half marathon 1:21( 2017)
Marathon 2;54:08 (2017).

This week’s session is about rhythmic breathing – breathing with a rhythm and uniformed manner.

Your quads, hamstrings and calves work hard to propel you forward, but there’s another muscle that’s a power player in your running and that’s your diaphragm. This will assist you when you are gasping for breath. Most runners breathe using their chest instead of their diaphragm (belly), further limiting their oxygen intake.

How to breathe while running….

First of all you need to be able to belly breathe, as there is more capacity in the area of your lungs around your belly than there is in your chest….. you can practise this while you are still in bed!!

1. Lie down on your back;

2. Keep your upper chest and shoulders still;

3. Focus on raising your belly as you inhale (breathe in);

4. Lower your belly as you exhale (breathe out); and

5. Inhale and exhale through both your nose and mouth (you probably do this anyway).

Now that you are an expert in belly breathing we can look at when to breathe….

2:2 Breathing technique….

…Inhale over 2 steps and then exhale over 2 steps (remember: into your belly as above). Try it walking first, then on easy runs. As you grow more comfortable with focused breathing, you can use it for faster runs such as intervals and tempo runs. You could also try 2:3 where you inhale over 2 steps and then exhale over 3 steps.

Don’t be put off if it doesn’t work for you straight away: as with life in general, you have to get used to things and practise before you will default (do all the time) to this new method of breathing. It takes practise and concentration to do this whilst you are running, but it does clear your head of other things like school work etc. when you are focusing on your breathing.

Warm up

Normal type warm up over about 15 metres…

1.     Gentle heel flicks

2.     Gentle high knees

3.     Side steps with arms up and down

4.     Side steps an arms again but with the opposite leg leading

5.     Cross overs

6.     Walking lunges

7.     Open and close the gate

8.     Sumo squats

9.     Harder heel flicks

10.  Harder knee raises

Session

2km run (1.2 miles) gradually building up your pace. During your run try 4 x strides. This is an increase in speed so you are sprinting for about 10-12 seconds…recover on a jog for 10-12 seconds then go again. After your 4^th stride, jog recover for about 10-12 seconds then continue with your run. Towards the end of your run, reduce your pace to cool down.

Post session stretch

Make sure you do 60 seconds on each stretch and each leg.

1.  Calf (top of calf) stretch – Both feet facing forward and shoulder width apart. Front leg is for support. Rear leg should be straight-ish and heel pushing into the floor. You should feel the stretch at the top of the calf. The front leg is just for support.

2. Calf (bottom of calf) stretch – Bring rear leg in slightly from photo above and push rear knee to the floor. Both legs still facing forward and shoulder width apart. You should feel the stretch at the bottom of your calf. The front leg is just for support.

3. Hamstring stretch – Both facing forward and shoulder width apart. Pull your bottom back and slightly down to feel the stretch in the hamstring on the front leg. The rear leg is just for support.

4. Quad stretch – Standing with both feet facing forward and shoulder width apart, bring one foot to the rear and push your hips forward. If your heel touches your bottom then push your hips further forward. The heel should not be touching our bottom.

All sessions:

http://www.bournemouthac.co.uk/weekly-sessions/

Best Wishes from Junior Development coaches              

 Best wishes we hope you are all keeping well,

From all of the Coaches at Junior Development 

TRAINING SESSION FOR JUNIOR DEVELOPMENT- WEDNESDAY 24th JUNE 2020

Dear athletes,

Please find the latest  of the weekly planned sessions which have been designed by our very own coaches.

Please do follow the Government guidelines when doing the sessions which is currently not training in groups of more than 6 and keeping 2 metre distance apart.

This week’s session is devised by Dave Pain who holds the Coaching Licence with England athletics, and is Group eight leader for our Junior Development Group and a sprints coach for the wider club.

Drills

High knees, kick backs, walking lunges, bounding, speed drills (rat- a- tats), run throughs at 80% over 30 metres.

Session One – fitness challenge ( 100 reps in total);

Press ups – 25 reps

Sit ups – 25 reps

Squats – 25 reps

2 minute active recovery, walk for about 200metres

Try to complete 4 sets to complete 100 reps for each exercise

Session Two- speed session:

Fast sprints over 60metres, do 4 runs, x 2 sets ( 8 in total).

Cool down:

Jog on grass for 400m, followed by gentle stretching

Circuits (at home):

Press ups – 20 reps, sit ups – 20 reps, squats – 20 reps, skipping or running on the spot for 30 secs 

Press ups – 20 reps, sit ups – 20 reps, squats – 20 reps.

All sessions:

http://www.bournemouthac.co.uk/weekly-sessions/

Best Wishes from Junior Development coaches              

 Best wishes we hope you are all keeping well,

From all of the Coaches at Junior Development