Adrian James was competing in the M45 400m at the British Masters Outdoor Championships in Derby

Ever since he joined Bournemouth AC it was clear to see that Adrian James had an acceleration that not too many of his fellow club members could match.

He’d race off at the beginning of parkrun and be right up there with the front runners. Then usually he’d gradually fade as the run went on and the effects of the fast start he’d made began to catch up with him.

On the Tuesday night track interval sessions he’d be noticeably fast, especially in 400m and 800m reps. It was clear that his fast twitch fibres were more suited to sprinting or very short distances than they were to endurance races.

Adrian didn’t even use blocks at the start of the race

The problem was that he loved training with the road runners group though. And he loved parkrun as well. He was addicted and would turn up at Bournemouth parkrun every single Saturday without fail.

Then he started to do Poole parkrun and managed to get his time down to 17:11 at one stage. He got pretty good at 10k as well, producing times of under 37 minutes back in 2022.

Adrian takes the lead coming round the bend

Although he enjoyed his 5ks and 10ks, there was always the sense that it wasn’t his calling. He’d often mix it up and train with the sprinters on the track on Wednesdays.

Being an M45, he was aware that there wouldn’t be too many athletes of his sort of age who would possess that kind of speed that he was blessed with and he started to develop a dream of perhaps one day competing in European Masters Championships. Or perhaps even a World Championships.

Adrian was clearly in magnificent form

He came to the conclusion that his best event would be the 400m. It was one where he didn’t really need to hold the speed for too long. He could use his natural gift for starting fast and would only need to maintain it for one lap. That seemed doable.

Last summer he ran a 400m race at the Midland Veterans League in Worcester, finishing 5th in a time of 61.8. He then went on to finish 2nd in the B race at a Southern Athletics League match in a time of 57.3.

Adrian leads the race coming onto the finishing straight

That was good but he wanted to sharpen up more before he took part in any of the really big masters races. It became evident that he would need to switch focus as well and start concentrating his efforts more on sprinting, than road running, where the sessions usually comprised of longer intervals.

Most athletes would have been competing in events and trying to improve that way but Adrian wanted to be ready. He wanted to be ready to set it alight when he finally stepped onto the big stage.

It was just a question of how much he had left in the tank

At the British Masters Outdoor Championships in Derby, that moment finally arrived. Adrian was ready to compete and he was ready to win.

A deafly silence overtook the Moorways Stadium as the athletes took to their blocks for the first of two M45 races. Well, all except for Adrian James that is. He wasn’t even using blocks.

Adrian begins to accelerate away from the rest of the field

Adrian is one of those types of characters who isn’t afraid to do things a little differently. He’s prepared to go against the grain and do what works for him. As far as he was concerned, a standing start worked just fine.

As soon as the gun went, Adrian was off and had very soon picked off the guy in the lane next to him. Now he was chasing the two athletes in the outside lanes. It wasn’t long before he caught them up and it was clear the he was moving much faster than anyone else in the race.

Adrian exerting his dominance

He’d taken the lead by the time they went round the top bend and it was now a case of whether he could hold that speed, with that lactate building on the finishing straight.

As he went down the finishing straight though, he began to move even further away from the rest of the field and ended up building up a huge gap. Even though he was way in front, he kept driving all the way to the line, clearly going for the quickest time he could get.

Adrian powered away from the rest of the field

Getting over the line in an incredible time of 54.59, he’d done it. He’d won the race by quite some distance and that was a great feeling. The second placed man Tunde Adeyemo of Midland Masters AC finished in 56.53 so it was a comprehensive victory for Adrian.

It was a sublime performance from Adrian

There was a second M45 race on that day and the athletes in that one were a touch faster. It would have been interesting to see what Adrian could have produced had he been in that race but it didn’t matter. He’d done what he came to do which was win the race and he’d done it in emphatic style so he couldn’t have asked for more than that.

Adrian was outclassing the opposition

What’s next for Adrian? Parkrun on Saturday probably. On the track though, time will tell what his next move will be. His performance in this race showed though that he’d ready to compete with some of the top athletes in the country in his age group and he’s well capable of coming out on top against any of them.

Adrian blasts toward the line

Adrian clocks a time of 54.59

On 4th February, Brooke broke the Lee Valley Athletic Centre all time 200m track record when she won the Southern Individual Championships with a championship best performance time of 23.58 sec. 

Brooke followed this up a fortnight later with Bronze in the 200m in the MIcroplus UK Athletics Indoor Championships at the NIA in Birmingham.  

Brooke, who is studying at Bournemouth University, continued her tour of the country, and the following weekend was in good form going into British Universities and Colleges Sports (BUCS) Championships, held in Sheffield on 25th February. She took Bronze in the 60m sprint in a time of 7.48 seconds and followed this up with Gold in the 200m in a championship best performance and new indoor best performance time of 23.37 seconds.  

Brooke, who is coached by Zac Kerin,  ends the winter indoor season ranked 6th best Under 23 on all-time list. She is currently ranked 3rd in the Europe 200m Indoor list.

After more than a year of injury Jaz Cooke is showing great form. In the Winchester SAL on 19th August Jaz made her first competition outing in more than 12 months, coming away with an excellent 1.68m (4cm off PB).  

Coach James Hind adds “if you know Jaz she has extremely high expectations of herself, and she felt disappointed. I think this was a great result with everything she’s been through over the last 12 months. I’m incredibly proud of her resilience, never say die attitude and love for the event. Rehab and rest is not an easy thing for Jaz to maintain but she’s now learned the importance of it first hand”.

Let’s fast forward to the Bournemouth Open on 10th September and the Cooke clan were out in force to support Jaz in her second competition of 2023. Facing some strong competition and adverse weather, Jaz didn’t disappoint. Her competitive nature was in full effect, clearing all heights cleanly, up to and including 1.70m (2cm short of her PB). In true Jaz spirit she wanted a PB and following the 1.70m clearance elected to go for 1.73m. On first attempt, it was so close, the supporters all thought Jaz had gone clear as did Jaz, only for the bar to drop with the slightest of glances. The second attempt was driven more by sheer desire than technique. Jaz regained her composure and replicated her first attempt with another great jump that had the spectators wondering how the bar did not stay up – it was that close.

Great performance and well done!

Jaz was pleased to be jumping again and explained her journey back as a tough one, evidently filled with determination and grit; “After over a year of rehab and trial and error I finally got to jump this season. Thank you to my coach and high jump buddies for pulling me through a tough season.  Now for winter training and plenty more to come!” Jaz.

Now with winter training on the doorstep, the 2023-2024 season is looking very positive for Jaz. We wish her all the very best this winter and look forward to seeing more of this great talent.

In early June 2023 Darcie won the Dorset County Schools Championships with an impressive 1.65m.  Following this, high jump coach James Hind set about contacting her school to offer support to Darcie and her parents.  He adds, “there is some great talent within Dorset schools and as a club we should look to bring that talent to Bournemouth AC when we have the opportunity to do so”.

Darcie in action clearing 1.64m at Lee Valley

Darcie has since backed up this performance clearing the same height to win the English Schools Championships at Alexander Stadium in late June to confirm her u15 UK No.1 position.

On the Podium at English schools champs.

Darcie wasn’t finished there as she headed off the SEAA championships at Lee Valley in August and returned with gold and a PB of 1.68m, narrowly missing out on 1.70m.

On the podium at SEAA championships Lee Valley

To round off a quartet of competitions, next came the England Athletics Championships back at Alexander stadium at the end of August.  Facing some strong competition from athletes from England, Ireland and Scotland, all able to jump 1.60m+, Darcie was again able to take the gold on a cold day with a jump of 1.61m.  She had further good attempts at 1.66m.  Now Darcie is looking forward to concluding a successful year at the Bournemouth open on 10 September.

We look forward to seeing more great performances from Darcie – well done! 

Thanks to James Hind for providing this report.

_{Photo by www.nationalathleticsleague.org.uk}

On Saturday 15th July, the early morning coach departed Kings Park; loaded with enthusiastic athletes, keen to get stuck in and compete at the NAL in Yeovil. Others made their own way to the stadium at Pickett Lane.  Some athletes were nervous, others excited and some mindful of a niggle or recovering from injury. All of them contributed to making it a successful event and creating a great match day atmosphere.

Participating clubs for Round 2 of the National Athletics League Championship (Fixture B) included Basingstoke & Mid Hants AC, Belgrave Harriers, Bournemouth AC, Bristol & West AC, City of Liverpool, Herne Hill Harriers, Southampton AC and Yeovil Olympiads.

BAC finished 5th of 8 which is a superb result with the limited number of athletes we had on the day.  A massive thanks from Tim and Suzi to everyone that was there and pushed hard, enthusiastically in order to seek out those valuable points.

BAC Women

The women’s Team Captain, Suzi Shepherd extends a huge thank you to the six ladies that turned out despite the very iffy weather forecast – rain and winds!

Janet Dickinson was readily mistaken for superwoman as she flew in the Pole Vault (she already holds the age group record) as well as scoring in the Long Jump, Hammer, Shot Putt and Discus with her usual style and vigour.

Chloe Burrows was a brilliant addition to the team and it was great to have her competing, despite injury. She is recovering from a leg injury but still scored for the team in the Discus, Shot Putt, Javelin and both relays. Chloe’s rehab. is going well and although she still can’t run, she can jog pain free. That’s exactly what she did in the relays helping to secure valuable extra points.  Chloe said the team spirit was amazing, everyone was there to enjoy it despite the rain! One of the highlights was definitely Cam stepping in for 110m hurdles with a couple of lunges to warm up. Impressive!

Nikki Sandall was down for her usual event, the Pole Vault but her desire to win for the team took over and she did 800m, steeplechase and relay. What a legend!

Poppea Bramwell Reeks was simply fantastic covering all middle distant events, the 800m, 1500m, 3000m and all relays. Her class performance shone through as she won the 1500m and the 3k with a brilliant 800m PB to top it off and secure a 3rd place spot. An excellent result!

Helena Darragh did fabulously well in the 200m and 400m plus both relays. Such a great asset to the team.

Suzi grabbed more points by officiating for the hammer throws and wait for it…
                                   …yes she stepped up to complete in the 100m relay team – well done Suzi. She thinks this is a one off but we’ll see.

“Thank you to everyone. Tim was brilliant and so were all the officials as they really helped gain the needed points” Suzi


BAC Men

A last minute change which was made at the beginning of the day saw Andy Brown quickly stepping in to cover the B string Pole Vault to replace an athlete who hadn’t arrived. That secured a valuable 2nd place in the B string. Stewart Cotterill had a solid performance in the A string.

There were great performances from Joe Haywood in the men’s 100m and 200m. Kev Hodgson also featured in both sprints having suffered cramp in his 400m race. A solid run form Ben Arnold in the B-string 400m following him standing in to fill the B string 800m earlier in the day.

Josh Smith scored a respectable 4th place in the A string 800m before standing in to make sure the 1500m was covered.

Rob McTaggart ran well for 4th place in the men’s 5000m with Ollie James 2nd in the B string having convincingly won the men’s 3000m Steeplechase. Ben Collins was second in the B string chase, in what ended up being BAC’s highest scoring men’s event.

Cameron Hale scored well in the Shot (3rd in the A string) and Discus events alongside his favoured Javelin event.  Andy Brown also earned valuable points in the Javelin as well as coming second in the B String Hammer.  Simon Armstrong continued to support the club with a great 4th place in the Men’s Hammer and 3rd in the B string Shot.

A debut for recent signing to BAC, Aime Blaise Atchoukeu Mbithe came 3rd in the B string Discus throw.  Aime has previously represented Cameroon in the World Paralympic Championships and is a great new asset to the team. We welcome you!

Bradley Pickup made a welcome return to the team, just a week or so after he had run a marathon!  Bradley competed in the Long and Triple Jumps, winning the B string of the latter.  Ben Butcher was 3rd in the A string Triple Jump (13.61) and Joe Haywood 3rd in the B string Long Jump.

Results

Following Rounds 1 and 2 we are currently in 11th place in the table of 16 teams, having finished 7th and 5th (of 8) in the first two matches. Things are however, now extremely tight with four teams being on equal league points with us in positions 11-14 and the one in 15th with only one league point less. We cannot be complacent, nor we can be relegated out of the league (bottom two teams). We must have a superb, strong team out there for our home match on 5th August and ensure that we finish the season well and secure.

For full results click here

ThankS

A huge thank you to all the athletes, coaches, officials and supporters as your contribution makes BAC the fantastic club it is and shows the potential to achieve so much more.

A massive thanks to the team captains, Suzi Shepherd and Tim Hughes for their hard work and dedication in getting the teams out and as many events covered as possible. Thanks both Tim and Suzi for your contribution to this report!

The next NAL is a home match at Kings Park on Saturday 5th August.
Contact Tim or Suzi to express an interest in any event. There’s an opportunity for everyone to compete in track and field, even if it’s non-scoring event. Come and compete, try something new or simply support your team!

The South West Combined Events Championship was held on Saturday and Sunday 24 – 25th June in Yeovil. Athletes are selected to compete for their county and BAC were proud to see an excellent result for their athletes representing Dorset Schools.

BAC’s Seni Purnell and Jasmine Munden (U15) travelled to Yeovil on 25th June to compete in the pentathlon for Dorset schools. In the pentathlon there are five events, including the 800m, 75mH, HJ, LJ and Shot putt. Seni’s performance was so outstanding that she took the victory and won the whole event with 2934 points. Alongside Jasmine and Beatrice Hamblin (Poole AC), the team qualified for the National finals – well done girls!

Seni with her certificate for Athletics Achievement

Seni’s individual performances were excellent.  With an outstanding 800m in 2:25.49 to win the race by a convincing margin of over 11 seconds in front of 2nd place. Again another conclusive win in the 75H with a great time of 11.64.  Seni also won the LJ with a brilliant 4.94m and a PB! She put in another great performance in the HJ, clearing 1.35m and totting up more points. She also threw 8.99m in the shot putt and did not disappoint.

Seni said she was extremely chuffed to be part of such a great Dorset team, who really gave their all on the day and came away with a great result.
She said she is really looking forward to the National finals in Bedford in September. Hopefully the team can work on some of the events before September and try to push the results even further.

Brian Camp with Jasmin Munden, Seni Purnell & Beatrice Hamblin

Jasmine’s performance was also excellent with a 1st place spot in the 75mH in 13.91.
She also jumped 1.35m HJ and 4.23 in LJ to secure 3rd place and more valuable points. Jasmine ran 800m in 3:04.01 and an 8.30m spot putt to complete with a total PenU15W of 2054 points.

Seni also wanted to mention a massive, huge thank you to Brian camp. Brian works tirelessly in preparing the team for these challenges, spending numerous hours in many training sessions. Also on the day Brian really helped the girls overcome any challenges especially as it’s really tough competing in so many events in one day.

Thank you, Brian from all of us!!

The first round of National Athletics League (NAL) fixtures took place last Sunday 11th July at various locations across the Premiership, Championship and National One divisions.

The NAL is for Senior and U20 Men and Women and comprises three levels involving 37 clubs competing at three rounds of fixtures. BAC are in the Championship Division which has 16 clubs spread across A and B fixtures.

On Sunday morning, BAC made the journey to Basingstoke for Championship Division Fixture 1B to compete against 7 other clubs.

The weather was set to be a scorcher with highs of 26 degrees and it certainly felt like it. The day started off quite muggy with overcast skies until the sun burst through after lunch. By the afternoon, the field eventers were taking shelter under brollies with many others fleeing to the shaded stands. The water tap in the club house certainly took a hammering.

Fortunately, our athletes, officials and team captains did not fade away in the heat and great performances were achieved by all – this includes the new ladies team captain in both organising the team as well as competing. We are delighted to welcome Suzi Shepherd on board to manage the women’s side of the team. This is following Amy Spencer standing down after successfully and enthusiastically running that side of the team for a few years. Thank you Amy for your great effort. Tim Hughes will continue to run the men’s side of the team and has expressed that he has been looking forward to working with Suzi for a successful 2023.

One of the most notable performances came from Ryan Webb (Coach: James Hind) in his debut NAL for BAC. He broke a 40yr+ old club record and a Championship record in the high jump, clearing 2.12m.

This also means that he qualifies for the British Championships which are set to take place in Manchester on the weekend of 8th and 9th July.

This is his first full season back after two ankle procedures which meant he has been out of action for circa 2yrs. His performance is certainly a testament of his hard work, dedication and commitment to rehabilitation and consistent training. Such a great start to the season!

Coach, James Hind commented “The next 4 weeks is about preparing for the British champs, he has surpassed his target for this year of 2.10m and qualifying for the British champs so anything else is a bonus.” In Ryan’s own words “I was surprised it happened so early in the season”.

Ryan Webb HJ clearing 2.08m

Women’s Team
The fabulous and enthusiastic Suzi Shepherd would like to extend a huge thanks to her flock (she is a Shepherd after all), namely Kia Slade, Sophie Pike, Poppea Bramwell-Reeks, Harriet Slade, Maddie Smith, Nikki Sandall, Janet Dickinson, Becky Knapton and Joy Wright.

Thank you …..
Sophie Pike for doing a multitude of events with a smile on her face. She did LJ, TJ and 100m. Always good to have smiles and a great team spirit.

Sophie Long Jump

Harriet Slade as she made a big come back to the track after battling with injury showing she still has what it takes in the 1500m. It took great restraint to not run the steeple, her main event as she wanted to remain fit for the next match. Thanks for your willingness to run the 4×4 relay too.

Harriet 1500m

Poppea for running 1500m just for fun, as you do and looking as fresh as a daisy afterwards. She ran an excellent race, staying in contention with the lead runner to secure 2nd place in a great time of 4:37.01. Not bad for a fun run.

       Poppea chasing down the leader in 1500m last bend

Maddie for coming by train and entering all the jumps. She won TJ by a convincing margin, 11.52m.

Maddie, TJ winner!

Nikki for getting over the Pole Vault height she said she couldn’t do. The opening height had been increased to 2.20m and Nikki was determined to clear it and grab those valuable points, well done.

Evidence Nikki was well over in PV

Janet for storming the throws and supporting Suzi when she really needed her.

Janet throwing the javelin

Becky for doing a monster long run (3,000m) as well as the 1500m run in the heat and agreeing to do relay even though it didn’t happen.

Becky 1500m

Joy for overcoming her disappointment in picking up an Achilles injury but embracing the role of official photographer – unfortunately using her phone camera.

Kia who had a great 100mH race. She was happy with her performance and believed it would have been a PB and a 1st place spot. Unfortunately the electronic timing and photo finish stopped working and she was placed 2nd. Kia has appealed so this is being looked into and may be amended. Although Kia was disappointed in track judge’s decision, she will be back to show them next time!

Kia 100m in 12.6

Suzi is already looking ahead to the next NAL in Yeovil on 15 July “we need to get more girls out there so please invite your friends . I will do cakes I promise!” We’ve seen it in print so we’ll hold you to that Suzi!

Suzi & Janet stormed the throws by force!

Men’s Team

Moving onto the action from the men’s team.  It was a superb result by Ryan Webb breaking the BAC HJ Club Record on his debut for the club. Fantastic to see 400/800m runner, Ben Arnold back in the team and earning valuable points including an impressive 400m time of 52.76.  Same goes for Cameron Hale who has also made a comeback this year and scored well alongside the ever present Andy Brown.  Great to get valuable support from Simon Armstrong to help fill those shows events with mature skill.

Ben 400m top bend

Andy Brown

Great debut performances for BAC Conor Kearns (PV) and Josh Smith (800). These guys are great new assets to the team.
It was Conor’s first competition back and in his words “it was good fun.” He has his sights on the club record and will no doubt take it with his continuous improvement and consistent training.

Cameron well clear in PV

There were great PBs from the sprinter; Amir Ismail clocked both 100m and 200m PBs and Rob Woolgar’s ran PBs in 100m and 110mH to secure an excellent 2nd place spot against a strong field.
Rob said he was “very happy to come away with 2 PB’s. The 11 second barrier has been long overdue, and it feels good to be able to call myself a 10. runner! It was a great match and there was a strong team spirit even with a small team! Although the heat meant surviving the day, and conserving as much energy as possible”. Rob ran 100m in 10.91, PB. Well done Rob!

Rob storming the 100m, PB

Amir starts well in 200m

We saw strong runs in a vast heat for the 3000m guys, Tag (Rob McTaggart) and Henry Bramwell-Reeks. Great! Both excellent middle distant runners and a great asset to the team.

It was brilliant to see such brave and quality runs from Ben Collins and Theo Weaver in the 400mH – not their events but they stepped in and pulled in valuable points for the team.

Strong performances by Jamie Grose and David Clark in the 1500m race. Again no easy feat in the heat.

Great 2nd places in A and B strings of LJ for Rob Woolgar and Ben Butcher. Theo Weaver 2nd B, with an 11.86m TJ PB,.

The men’s captain, Tim Hughes said “I thought the team members that were there performed very well and it was great to see the enthusiasm to get those points. I’m disappointed with the result but that was due to a number of team members not being available to compete. It’s gutting that we missed out on 6th by only 3 points. We have to get stronger teams out and I think we should be able to.

We look to be heading to Yeovil with an even stronger team on the men’s side, so not so much need for athletes to step into extra events. Looking forward to a big result and climbing the table.”

Round 2 Saturday 15th July – Yeovil
Round 3 Saturday 5th August – Kings Park, Bournemouth

For full results click Opentrack or Po10

Thanks……

Thank you to the team captains, Suzi Shepherd and Tim Hughes for their huge effort and dedication in getting the best possible teams out to represent BAC – this is no easy task and a lot of work goes on in the lead up to each match.

Thanks to our fabulous umpires that give up their time to ensure these events run smoothly: Juliet Dobson, Jemma and Hazel Bates, Robin James and Dave Clark.

Thank you to every athlete and supporter for your hard efforts in the heat – well done to all!

Photo by www.lboro.ac.uk

Loughborough University were the proud hosts to the 65th anniversary of the Loughborough International Athletics (LIA) event on Sunday 21st May 2023. Brooke Ironside (Zak Kerin) was selected to compete and commented that she was “grateful and excited to be representing team England in the Long Jump.”

LIA is widely recognised as the curtain raiser to the outdoor season with an action-packed day of first-class athletics hosted at the Paula Radcliffe Stadium on campus.

Loughborough athletes competed against teams representing England, Wales, Scotland, GB & NI Under-20s and the National Athletics League. This year also saw the sport welcome Ukraine international Danylo Danylenko who clocked 47.47 in the 400m.

The day was filled with sun, smiles and celebrations for the England Athletics team as their athletes lit up the Paula Radcliffe Stadium in front of a mega crowd.

Hundreds filled the grassy banks to watch some of the best track and field athletes the nation has to offer.

England won overall with a team score of 202 points with Loughborough in second (154) and the NAL third (153). Brooke played her part in bumping up the points. She nailed her best long jump at the first attempt with 5.82m.

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!