Apr-Jun 07

April 2007		May 2007		June 2007
	30/04/07		24/05/07		21/06/07
	23/04/07		21/05/07		18/06/07
	16/04/07		14/05/07		11/06/07
	7/04/07		4/05/07		4/06/07
	2/04/07

Teenager Jose Costa was the top Hercules Wimbledon youngster in the opening Ebbisham Boys League meeting at Kingsmeadow Stadium.

The 14-year-old all-rounder gained a hat-trick of wins in the under 15 section taking the under 15 100 and 200m races in 13.3 and 27.1 seconds then crowned a successful afternoon by hurling the javelin a personal best of 34.93m to complete his hat-trick. With brother Luis taking the javelin B with 34.48m, Hercules Wimbledon secured maximum points in the event.

Ed Saywell and Joe Toomey secured maximum points in the under 15 800m taking the A and B races in 2:26.1 and 2:11.9. Toomey's time was a personal best taking almost two seconds off his previous best time for the distance. He also helped Hercules Wimbledon to maximum points in the 1500m taking the A race in 4:33.9 with Liam White winning the B competition in 4:29.5. Newcomer Tommy Village was third in the B race in 4:40.0.

Kyan Mitchell-Nanton was joint winner of the high jump as well as taking third in the 200m B race in 25.7 Tom Meehan won the non-scoring 100m and was also second in the 400m in 63.1.

Bruno van der Stichele was the only Hercules Wimbledon winner in the under 13 events taking the high jump B. He was also third in the 400m. James Russell was second in the A contest as well as finishing third in both the 100 and 200m.

Hercules Wimbledon runners dominated the weekly Wimbledon Common five kilometres time trial filling the first three places. Jamie Helmer, warming up for an Ironman Triathlon in Zurich, made an impressive debut in the event running out an easy winner in 16:56. Richard Xerri and Deon Coetzee were second and third in 17:32 and 17:40. Maurice Sharp was first veteran over 60 finishing 18th in 20:26.

Four Hercules Wimbledon athletes were in action for Surrey in a schools inter-county match at Bedford. Best placed of the quartet was Joe Toomey who was second in the junior boys 1500-m in 4:35.3. Shola Alojo was fifth in the intermediate boys triple jump with 12.13m, Jennifer Fernando was fifth in the intermediate girls 800m in 2:23.3 while her twin sister Rosemary was fourth in the 1500m B race in 5:11.8.

Hercules Wimbledon athlete showed good form in the fourth of this season's Rosenheim League Eastern division matches at Tooting Bec. Schoolmaster James Trapmore, despite suffering from a cold, got the team off to a good start by leading from start to finish to win the 800m in 2:00.9.

Dwayne Dowding then raced away with the 100m, winning by almost five metres in a personal best of 11.2, taking one fifth of a second off his previous best. He was just edged out of making it a double in the 200m where he was second in 22.5, another personal best also by one-fifth of a second.

After tracking the leader for more than three laps, Alex Bruce-Littlewood came sprinting through to secure a hat-trick of wins on the track for Hercules Wimbledon in taking the 1500m in a personal best of 4:10.3. Richard Xerri made it a fourth victory as he front-ran the final individual track event, the 3000m, to win in 9:08.9 finishing just ahead of his fast finishing clubmate Adam Przedrzymirski (9:11.3).

In the field events, Stuart Milton, having his first competition of the summer, was runner-up in the shot with 9.69m and was also second in the javelin with 44.59m.

This weekend, Hercules Wimbledon athletes will be in action in a Lily B Girls League match at Guildford on Saturday and in a Ebbisham Boys League match at Walton on Sunday. Southern Men‘s League match at Kingsmeadow Stadium on Saturday, starting at 2.30pm while the club is sending a team to compete in a National Young Athletes League match at Perivale Park on Sunday.

Hercules Wimbledon Athletic Club's Surrey 400m hurdles champion Austin Ferns produced the form of his life to lift the South of England title in impressive style at Crystal Palace on Sunday.

Ferns, a former junior international over the distance, has made an impressive return to one lap hurdling after being hampered by years of injury. Following a tough winter training programme and some promising early season performances in which he also finished third in the UK Inter-Counties championships at Bedford, 26-year-old Ferns finally gained some reward for all his training.

After winning his heat easing up in 54.56 seconds on Saturday, he was reasonably confident of his chances in the final the following day. Then, he had some luck as he was drawn in the favoured fourth lane with the two runners who ran slightly faster heat times drawn outside him.

Ferns made a solid start and admitted he was surprised how easy it seemed as he kept pace with his two rivals. Round the final bend and entering the home straight he edged ahead at the eighth hurdle and then left his rivals in his wake as he crossed the finishing line in a superb 51.94, winning by almost 10 metres. His time eclipsed his previous best of 52.74 set in 1999 and hoisted his from 18th to ninth on this year's UK rankings.

It is also the second best ever achieved by a Hercules Wimbledon athlete. That distinction is held by European and Commonwealth representative Robin Woodland with a time of 51.3 when competing for Great Britain in an international against the USSR at London's White City in June 1966.

After his victory a delighted Ferns said: " I never nowadays expect to win. I go into races trying to do my best knowing that if I run the race right I will produce a fast time. After the heats when I saw how tired the other two guys were who ran faster than me in the other heat I knew I had a good chance."

He added: "I just felt really good. My race plan was to take it easy and then work the final bend really hard which is what I did." Ferns, who won the South of England junior 400m hurdles title in 1999, is now aiming to get into some good races where he can go even faster.

Another Hercules Wimbledon athlete with plenty to celebrate at Crystal Palace was 18-year-old Emily Martin who improved on the Hercules Wimbledon junior women's club record and her personal best for the second time this season in taking the South of England junior women's long jump bronze medal. She did so with a second round leap of 5.76m, adding just one centimetre to her previous best when winning the Surrey title at Kingsmeadow Stadium last month.

Meanwhile, another of Hercules Wimbledon's outstanding youngsters Amelia Richards hadc a busy time in an opening meeting at Tooting Bec where she won four events. She achieved personal bests in winning the 200m in 25.7 and shot with 8.40m and also took the 100m and 75m hurdles in 12.6 and 12.0

At the other end of the age scale, Hercules Wimbledon athletes were also in winning form in the Southern Counties Veterans AC Championships at the Julie Rose Stadium, Ashford, Kent. World relay medallist Geoff Walcott gained a hat-trick of titles winning the men's over 55 100, 200 and 400m in 12.22, 24.53 and 55.61. His times in winning the 200 and 400m events were championship records.

John Webster, who celebrates his 68th birthday at the end of this month, lifted four titles in the over 65 100m (13.82), 100m hurdles (22.78), triple Jump (7.91m) and javelin (31.68m).

This weekend, Hercules Wimbledon athletes will be in action in a Southern Men‘s League match at Kingsmeadow Stadium on Saturday, starting at 2.30pm while the club is sending a team to compete in a National Young Athletes League match at Perivale Park on Sunday.

Several Hercules Wimbledon Athletic Club youngsters booked their places to compete in the prestigious Sainsburys English schools track and field championships in Birmingham next month with winning performances in the various county schools championship meetings over the weekend.

Best of the bunch was 14-year-old Amelia Richards who achieved a hat-trick of winning performances in the London schools championships at Battersea Park's Millennium Arena.

At the start of a busy day she established herself as firm favourite to take the junior girls 100m title by winning her heat in 12.7 seconds, more than half-a-second faster than the second best runner. Then it was over to the long jump pit where she took the title by almost half-a-metre with a winning leap of 5.08m, retaining the title she won in 2006 with a leap which was three centimetres further.

Then, it was back to the track and the 100m final. She ran faster than in her heat and crossed the line in 12.5 to win by more than three metres. She completed a successful day by anchoring the Wandsworth team to a comfortable victory in the 4x100m relay. The selectors now have to decide which event Richards should compete in in Birmingham.

Another Hercules Wimbledon runner at Battersea Park was fast improving Liam White who took the junior boys 1500m in a personal best of 4:27.8. White, who won by more than 50m, took 5.6 seconds off his pervious best time and stands a good chance of making the London team to compete in Birmingham. It was White's second lifetime best performance in a few days as he posted a personal best of 2:12.4 for 800m in the Rosenheim League East Division match at Tooting Bec last Wednesday. It was almost nine seconds off his previous best achieved in a league meeting earlier this summer.

Emily Martin secured her place in the Surrey team to compete in the English schools championships by winning the senior girls long jump title at Kingsmeadow Stadium with a leap of 5.68m, her best effort of the summer. She retained the title she won last year by more than a metre and leapt two centimetres further than she managed in 2006.

Joe Toomey took almost five seconds off his previous best time as he took second place in the junior boys 1500m in 4:25.88 while Jennifer Fernando was runner-up in the intermediate girls 800m in a seaons's best of 2:20.80, taking 1.4 seconds off her previous best time for the distance this summer. Twin sister Rosemary chopped more than four seconds off her previous lifetime best time for 1500m in taking third place in the intermediate girls championship in 5:00.71.

Making a belated return to racing after missing the opening months of the summer track and field season due to injury, sprinter Praful Nargund was only just outside his lifetime best time as he took third place in the intermediate boys 200m in 22.89 - and, for the second year, may have just missed out on making Surrey's English schools championships team. Nargund was only two-hundredths of a second outside his lifetime best set in finishing runner-up in the Surrey schools championships in 2006.

Hercules Wimbledon Ka Cheum To, taking a break from schools exams, finished just outside the frame in the senior boys long jump with 5.53m.

Over at the Kent Schools championships at Ashford, Hercules Wimbledon's Alex Bruce-Littlewood was a runaway winner of the senior boys 2000m steeplechase in 6:19.2.

Hercules Wimbledon's Adam Przedrzymirski gained a double junior victory in the Army track and field championships at Tidworth in the 5000m and 3000m steeplechase.

This weekend, Hercules Wimbledon athletes will be in action in the South of England senior and junior track and field championships at Crystal Palace on Saturday and Sunday. Also on Sunday, Hercules Wimbledon are competing in the first of this season's Ebbisham Boys Young Athletes League matches at Kingsmeadow Stadium (1.30pm start). Next Wednesday, club athletes will be in action in the fourth of this season's Rosenheim League East Division matches at Tooting Bec (7pm start).

Hercules Wimbledon Athletic Club's Southern Men's League team produced their best effort of the season in their third match of the summer at Guildford's Spectrum Leisure Centre on Saturday.

The team dominated the match with a host of individual successes. Throwing exponent Bekele Tola made a belated but impressive season's debut winning a close javelin competition with 56.04m with the first three throwers exceeding 50m. Bekele, who was taking a break from swotting for exams, also won the shot with 11.96m.

UK Inter-Counties 400m hurdles bronze medallist Austin Ferns again showed fine form in the 400m hurdles winning by 35 metres in 53.4 seconds. Team captain Steve Davies helped get the Hercules Wimbledon team off to the best possible start on the track as he won the B race in 57.3. They later repeated their double success in taking thensprint hurdles in 15.2 and 16.7, respectively. Davies was also third in the high jump A.

They then linked up with Hamed Agboke and Esmond Ferns to secure a narrow victory in the 4x400m relay in 3:27.0. Earlier, Agboke won the 400m A race in 51.2 while Esmond snatched second place in the 800m B race powering through from fourth place in the final 50 metres in a race in which just half-a-second covered the first four finishers.

The winning ways continued in the sprints with Dwayne Dowding winning the 200m A race in 22.7 and Rob Mullard the 100m B with Jon Grayson and Ross Savill making up a relay quartet which crossed the finishing line well clear of the opposition. Mullard was also second in the 200m B race while Grayson was runner-up in the long and triple jumps with Lance Power and Dominic Getting taking second spots in the pole vault and triple jump B contests. Savill was also third in the 100m A and 400m B races.

Hercules Wimbledon's Amelia Richards secured the girls field events athlete of the match award at a National Young Athletes League match at Kingsmeadow Stadium on Sunday by taking the girls under 15 75m hurdles in a personal best of 11.5, taking seventh-tenths of a second off her previous best time for the event. She gained a hat-trick of wins taking the shot with another personal best of 7.72m and 100m in 12.8.

Returning to action after injury, Praf Nargund made an impressive start to the season taking the 100m B race in a personal best of 11.4.

Twins Jennifer and Rosemary Fernando won the women's under 17 800 and 1500m, respectively, while Caroline Hicks took the 800m B race. Hugo Dawson took the boys under 13 100m and was second in the 200m while Charlie Williams won the 800m B and finished second in the 100m B race.

Joe Toomey and Liam White ran away with the boys under 15 1500m taking the A and B races in 4:32.6 and 4:42.7 while Andrew Penney and Charlie Carrington gained maximum points in the under 17 1500m in taking the A and B races. James Green won the under 17 800m B race, Reece Morgan took the under 17 100m hurdles B race, Jonathan Dwonga the under 17 discus B event and Michael Tabirade the long jump B.

This weekend, Hercules Wimbledon youngsters will be in action in the annual London and Surrey schools track and field championships at Battersea Park and Kingsmeadow Stadium, respectively, on Saturday. On Monday, Hercules Wimbledon host the second of this season's Southern Veterans League Mid London division matches at Battersea Park.

The third of this season's Rosenheim League East Division matches which is being staged next Wednesday (June 6) and is hosted by Hercules Wimbledon Athletic Club has been switched from Wimbledon Park to Tooting Bec.

The decision to make the switch is primarily because the Wimbledon Park track is currently not certificated by UK Athletics and therefore is not covered by UKA's nationwide public liability insurance policy.

"It would be foolhardy to go ahead with the match at Wimbledon Park when we know it is not covered for insurance. Were there to be some sort of accident which resulted in a claim then the club would be liable. Another reason is that there are skilled ground staff at Tooting Bec who are able to assist during the meeting and there is also an adequate supply of the equipment we need for the match.

"In addition, Tooting is currently certificated and therefore covered for insurance purposes. Another incentive for staging the match there is that it is cheaper to hire Tooting Bec for a two hour evening meeting compared with the fee being demanded by Merton Council for Wimbledon Park. We apologise to the other clubs taking part in the league for the switch but we have informed all of them of new location."

Hercules Wimbledon's former junior international 400m hurdler Austin Ferns warmed-up for the UK Inter-Counties championships at Bedford over the Bank Holiday weekend by gaining an impressive victory in his club's Southern Men's League match at Sutcliffe Park, Eltham. Ferns swept home well clear of the opposition in 54.3 seconds, finishing 15m ahead of the second runner. Hercules Wimbledon team captain Steve Davies ensured maximum points by taking the B race in 57.0.

Ferns was also second in the sprint hurdles in 15.2 with Davies winning the B race. The pair completed a successful day by helping Hercules Wimbledon to second place in the 4x400m relay. Davies was also second ion the high jump with Jon Grayson runner-up in the B competition.

Another Hercules Wimbledon winner was Hamed Agboke who took the 400m B race in 52.1, one tenth of a second faster than his Hercules Wimbledon clubmate Matt Parsons, who was third in the A race. Camille Duval ran well to take second place in the 800m B race while Ross Saville was second in both the 100 and 200m B races. Dwayne Dowding finished third in the A race and the pair helped Hercules Wimbledon's quartet finish runners-up in the 4x100m relay.

Another good effort came from Phil Glyn who was third in the 5000m while Dominic Getting and Lance Power were third and second, respectively, in the pole vault A and B competitions.

Hercules Wimbledon athletes face a busy weekend with Southern Men's and Women's League matches at Guildford and Cambridge, respectively, on Saturday, and a National Young Athletes League match at Kingsmeadow on Sunday, starting at 11.45am.

Fresh from her treble medal-winning performances at the annual Surrey track and field championships, Hercules Wimbledon Athletic Club's top junior woman athlete Emily Martin gained an impressive hat-trick in the Southern Women's League match at Twickenham on Saturday.

Surrey junior women's long jump champion Emily took the 100m, long jump and triple jump events at Twickenham. With Rowena Dyson taking the B race, Hercules Wimbledon took maximum points in the 100m.

Twins Jennifer and Rosemary Fernando secured maximum points in the 400m taking the A and B races, respectively. Rosemary also won the 1500m while Jennifer was second in the 800m. Serena Brotherton was also runner-up in the senior 3000m while Flo King was second in both the 400m hurdles and 200m.

Best of the under 15 event performers was Alex Borthwick who was second in the high jump.

Brothers Jose and Luis Costa made up for missing the previous weekend's Surrey championships by taking four events in the National Young Athletes League match at Hastings on Sunday. Luis won the boys under 15 javelin A event while Jose made it a hat-trick of wins as he took the javelin B and 100 and 200m B races.

Surrey 3000m silver medallist Joe Toomey won the under 15 1500m A race while Liam White, the Surrey silver medallist over the distance, won the B race. Two other Hercules Wimbledon winners at Hastings were Derek Frempong and Tom Sandiford who took the under 17 100 and 800m B events.

Hercules Wimbledon's James Trapmore completed a hat-trick of wins when he won this year's Coombe Hill five miles road race. However, technical problems meant organisers were unable to provide any times.

Hercules Wimbledon's trio of Pete Giles, Martin Miller and Mike Kortenray finished sixth in the British Masters over 60 road relay championship at Sutton Park, Birmingham. Giles got the team off to a good start clocking 18:00, the fourth fastest over 60 time with Miller and Kortenray posting times of 19:43 and 20:25.

Hercules Wimbledon's three times English cross country champion Dave Clarke ran with his wife Franscesca in the Bushy Park Time Trial at Hampton Court on Saturday. Franesca crossed the line first finishing 79th out of 348 runners in 21:05, just one second ahead of her husband. They were both well outside their best times for the course of 20:34. First Hercules Wimbledon finisher was veteran Martin O'Halloran who was second in the over 50 category in 19:51.

This weekend, Hercules Wimbledon athletes will be competing for Surrey in the UK Inter-Counties championships at Bedford on Sunday and Whit Bank Holiday Monday. Ace walker Estle Viljoen goes in the 3000m walk while Surrey champion Austin Ferns competes in the 400m hurdles. Also this weekend, top teenager Amelia Richards competes in the South of England under 15 championships at Ashford on Saturday and Sunday.

Hercules Wimbledon Athletic Club's talented teenager Amelia Richards was the club's outstanding performer at the annual Surrey track and field championships staged in wet and windy conditions at Kingsmeadow Stadium over the weekend.

Young Richards gained a hat-trick of individual gold medals in the girls under 15 age group and would have gone for a fourth title had her coach not advised her to withdraw from the triple jump because of a back problem.

However, she made a nail-biting start to her title-winning treble on Saturday. Although she led the 14-strong field in the long jump with her opening leap of 5.14m, she was overtaken in the final round by another jumper who leapt 5.16m. It was all or nothing as she took her final attempt and it was too close to call before the officials measured her final effort also at 5.16m. The destiny of the gold medal was decided on the second best jump and Richards' opener of 5.14m proved decisive and she clinched the gold.

An hour later, she was in action in the 200m heats and comfortably won her race in 26.90 seconds, the fastest qualifier and the only runner to go under 27 seconds. She then looked even more convincing in the final where she strode home in 26.46 to win by almost half-a-second.

She returned to a rain-swept Kingsmeadow Stadium on Sunday where she tackled the 100m winning her heat in 12.6 to equal her lifetime best time. She then showed a clean pair of heels to her rivals in the final as she stormed home in 12.06 to complete an impressive hat-trick.

Her Hercules Wimbledon clubmate Emily Martin was also in gold medal-winning form taking the junior women's long jump with 5.59m. She also took silver in the 100m in 12.59 and bronze in the high jump with 1.50m. She also withdrew from the triple jump because of an ankle problem.

One of the best winning performances of the two-day championship meeting came from Hercules Wimbledon's former junior international Austin Ferns who stormed to victory in the senior men's 400m hurdles. His winning time of 53.23 lifted him to third on the Hercules Wimbledon all-time list and was his best one lap hurdles performance for eight seasons. Clubmate Steve Davies took the bronze in 56.88, some compensation for sprawling to the ground when he crashed into the final hurdle 12 months earlier as he seemed poised to win. Walking international Estle Viljoen beat the entire field of 10 men and women competitors by almost two minutes to win the senior women's 3000m walking title in 14:48.96 while Cale Edmunds leapt to a lifetime best of 6.36m to take the men's under 17 long jump title.

Another teenager, Liam White, came away with two medals from the championships taking silver in the boys under 15 1500m in 4:37.74 and bronze in the 3000m in a personal best of 9:55.17 behind clubmate Joe Toomey who clinched the silver medal in 9:41.27, also a personal best which lifted him to fourth on the Hercules Wimbledon all-time list.

This weekend, Hercules Wimbledon athletes travel to Sutcliffe Park, Eltham and Twickenham, respectively, for their second Southern Men's and Southern Women's League matches on Saturday while on Sunday the Young Athletes team travel to Hastings. Next Wednesday, Hercules Wimbledon contest their second Rosenheim League match of the summer at Croydon.

Hercules Wimbledon Athletic Club's senior men's track and field team made a promising start to their 2007 programme in the Kinnaird and Sward Trophy meeting at Kingsmeadow Stadium.

Best of the bunch were the club's sprinters whop showed that a hard winter's training paid early dividends. Newcomer David Cook was third in a blanket finish in the 100m A race in 11.2 seconds where just one-tenth of a second covered the top three finishers before all-rounder Royden John matched that time in finishing runner-up in a non-scoring race. It was his best time for several seasons .

Later, Dwayne Dowding snatched second place in the 200m in a lifetime best of 22.7, improving on his previous best by two-fifths of a second and he then linked up with John, to help the club's sprint relay team finish a good second.

Hercules Wimbledon runners took maximum points in the 400m hurdles with former junior international Austin Ferns taking the A race in 53.6, also his best time for several seasons, while team captain Steve Davies took the B race in a personal best of 56.9. Matt Parsons also performed well in the 400m clocking 51.7, a full seconds faster than his best time in 2006.

There was further success in the 2000m steeplechase where teenager Alex Bruce-Littlewood saw off his rivals with a comfortable win in 6:24.2 while Deon Coetzee was runner-up in the 3000m.

Hercules Wimbledon gained maximum points in the long jump through Cook (6.88m) and John (6.58m) while another newcomer Felice Miele won the discus with 44.64m.

Hercules Wimbledon's James Trapmore won the Bushy Park time trial five kilometres race at Hampton Court at his fourth attempt in 16:06. Former marathon international Steve Badgery was first veteran over 55 in 18:42 with his Hercules Wimbledon clubmate Pete Giles first over 60 not that far behind in 19:10.

Hercules Wimbledon teenagers Liam White and Alice Village set age course records in the Wimbledon Common five kilometres time trial. White, just 14, clipped 15 seconds off his previous best time in finishing eighth overall in 17:51 while Village set a girls 14-year-old age record.

This weekend, Hercules Wimbledon athletes will be in action in the annual Surrey County track and field championships at Kingsmeadow Stadium on Saturday and Sunday. Also on Saturday, Hercules Wimbledon are sending teams to compete in the British Masters road relay championships at Sutton Park, Birmingham.

Hercules Wimbledon Athletic Club made a flying start to their Southern Women's League programme when they snatched a thrilling win at Sutton Arena on Saturday - their first match victory in the league for two decades.

The Hercules Wimbledon team worked hard throughout the five hours of competition and, after a recount managed to squeeze home by just one.

Best individual effort came from teenager Amelia Richards who won the girls under 15 long jump with a personal best of 5.56m, to lift herself to second place on the club's all-time list for that age group which is headed by Emily Martin with 5.57m achieved in 1995. Amelia's leap represents a massive improvement on her previous long jump best of 5.35m set when winning a bronze medal at the English schools championships at Gateshead last July.

Amelia later linked up with Anna Berry, Jade Brooks and Natasha Skeet to anchor the Hercules Wimbledon team to victory in the sprint relay in 55.2 seconds.

One o the busiest Hercules Wimbledon athletes of the afternoon was Emily Martin who gained a individual hat-trick winning the senior 100m in 13.3, high jump with 1.50m and long jump with a good leap of 5.65m, just one centimetre below her lifetime best set when winning the Surrey schools title at Kingsmeadow Stadium last June.

Twins Jennifer and Rosemary Fernando won two events each. Jennifer took the senior 400m and 800m races in 65.7 and 2:29.4 while sister Rosemary took the 400m B and 3000m A races in 70.7 and 11:46.2. They were also second in the javelin A and B string events and linked up with Hannah Long and Caroline Hicks to win the 4x400m relay.

Another Hercules Wimbledon winner was Karen Tostee who took the 400m hurdles and long jump B events. She was also second in the 200m A race.

Anna Berry and Ali Borthwick gained maximum points in the under 15 200m winning the A and B races while Ali was also second in the 800m A race in that age group with Jade Brooks winning the B race. Brooks was also third in the javelin with Natasha Skeet second in the 100m and long jump B events.

Match result: 1 Hercules Wimbledon 90; 2 Dorking and Mole Valley and Redhill and Surrey Beagles 89; 3 Cambridge and Coleridge 61; 4 Phoenix 20.

One of Hercules Wimbledon's youngest athletes, Eleanor Smith-Hahn gained a hat-trick of wins in Walton Athletic Club's open meeting at Stompond Lane, taking the girls under 11 75m, 600m and long jump with 11.62, 2:02.3 and 3.52m.

Hercules Wimbledon's Estle Viljoen bounced back from her disappointment in being disqualified in the European Cup 20 kilometres trial race at Coventry by beating the entire field of 16 men and women to win the Veterans AC and Surrey women's 10000m track walking championship at Battersea Park. She finished more than two minutes ahead of the second walker in 51:48.6, not far off her best time for the distance.

She then showed her versatility by turning out in the Wimbledon Common time trial on Saturday where she ran the five kilometres in 19:23 finishing 16th out of a record 82 finishers. Hercules Wimbledon teenager Liam White was eighth in 17:51 with Hugh Saxby top over 50 finisher taking 11th place in 18:08, Tommy Village 21st in 19:52 and Mike Kortenray top over 60 finisher in 21:12.

This weekend, Hercules Wimbledon compete in their opening Southern Men's League match at Ilford on Saturday with the young athletes in action in their opening National Young Athletes League match at St Albans on Sunday. Hercules Wimbledon complete a busy weekend by staging the 26th annual Barry Jones 10 kilometres road race from their Wimbledon Park track headquarters on Bank Holiday Monday, starting at 11am. The race also incorporates a men's and women's championship for Merton residents.

A large contingent of Hercules Wimbledon runners was in action on the London marathon course on Sunday, both in the main Flora London marathon race and the adidas mini London marathon.

The best club performance of the day came from Zoe Pike who smashed the Hercules Wimbledon veteran women's club record in finishing eighth veteran overall in 2 hours 59 minutes 47 seconds, just breaking the three hour barrier and eclipsing the previous club best of 3:04:06 set by Mel Jones in the London race back in 1994.

First of the Hercules Wimbledon runners was Arnaud Claverie who finished 117th in the senior race and had the satisfaction of slicing just one second off his previous best time set in the London race last year. While Richard Xerri, who started strongly and was running well up to the half-way point, was hampered by muscle problems towards the end of the race and fell dramatically back to finish 251st in 2:46:11. In the circumstances he said he was happy to finish.

Steve Sinnott was 647th in 2:57:10, a time which puts him third on the club's all-time veterans over 45 list.

Teenager Alex Skelton, at 18 one of the youngest runners taking part, who was running in aid of the Royal Marsden Hospital, following the death of his father from cancer, finished 7967th in 4:01:47, just failing to break the four hour record while Alastair Brown was 12469th in 4:28:15. Over 60 veteran Dennis Williams, who has missed only one London race since the event was launched in 1981, was determined to run this year despite having his preparations hit by injury. He managed to complete the course reaching the finish in 5:24:22, well down on his best time of 2:39:34 set in 1987.

Annmarie Seymour put herself 10th on the Hercules Wimbledon women's all-time list in finishing 1752nd in the women's race in 4:05:01 with clubmate Lindsay Ferguson not far behind in 1861st position in 4:07:17 for 12th on the all time list.

Best of the Hercules Wimbledon contingent in the mini-marathon over the final 2.65 miles of the course from Southwark Brigde was Alex Bruce-Littlewood who was fourth in the senior boys race in 13:20 running for Bromley, Deyan Knespl was 51st in the same race for Merton in 14:53.

Despite competing in a schools athletics match the previous day, Joe Toomey led the Merton team home in the intermediate boys race in 14:54 with Liam White first for Wandsworth finishing 10th in 15:02 with another Hercules Wimbledon runner, Geordie Logan, 11th in 15:05. Dean Belhaj, running for Wandsworth, was 24th in the junior boys race in 16:40.

Best of the Hercules Wimbledon girls in the mini-marathon was Rosemary Fernando who was 15th in the senior girls race in 16:49 with twin sister Jennifer Fernando 21st 18 seconds later. Michaela Knespl, also running for Merton, was 36th in the intermediate girls race in 17:53 with Amelia Richards, better known as a track and field performer, who was called into the Wandsworth team at the last minute, 53rd in 18:18.

Hercules Wimbledon runners were top veterans in three categories in the Bushy Park five kilometres time trial at Hampton Court on Saturday. Dan Bodin was first over 40 veteran in 17:47, Steve Badgery top over 55 in 18:55 and Pete Giles top over 60 in 19:10. Meanwhile, Maurice Sharp was first over 50 finisher in the Wimbledon Common five kilometres time trial in 20:17 with Dennis Williams warming up for his London marathon appearance the following day clocking 22:56.,

This weekend, Hercules Wimbledon compete in their opening Southern Women's League match at Sutton Arena on Saturday.

Hercules Wimbledon Athletic Club's top youngster Amelia Richards gained a superb hat-trick at the club's 26th Young Athletes Open Meeting staged in warm, bright sunshine on an almost windless Sunday.

The Hercules Wimbledon teenager was one of the top performers among more than 500 young athletes who took part in Sunday's meeting. She gave a clear indication she is carrying on where she left off from the winter indoor season during which she won the South of England girls under 15 indoor pentathlon title, and took two silver medals in the Welsh indoor championships in Cardiff over 100m and in the long jump.

It also proved she had bounced back from her disappointing performance in the England Athletics indoor pentathlon championship at Manchester where she shuddered to a halt at the first flight of the opening discipline, the 60m hurdles, after going off too fast.

Young Amelia was able to put her speed to good effect in Sunday's meeting. She began her busy day by winning the girls under 15 100m by a clear margin in 12.7 seconds, the only runners among the 28 competitors in the event to clock under 13 seconds and just one-hundreds of a second outside her lifetime best.

She again was in a class of her won as she took the long jump with 5.10m, the only jumper to exceed five metres and completed a successful day by taking the 200m in a lifetime best of 26 seconds slicing 0.3 seconds off the time she achieved in a Southern Women's League match at Crawley last July.

Another Hercules Wimbledon athlete in form was another 14-year-old, Joe Toomey, who won a close battle in the boys under 15 1500m by just three-tenths of a second in 4:38.3 smashing his previous lifetime best of 4:44.89 achieved last June. Three hours after winning the gold medal in the metric mile, Toomey lined up in the 800m where he again featured in a close finish, this time just losing out. However, he had the consolation of a second lifetime best in his opening track meeting of the summer. He clocked 2:13.8, 2.9 seconds faster than he achieved last summer when he topped the Hercules Wimbledon rankings for the event.

Sunday's meeting also featured the inaugural England Athletics London Region sprint relay championships. The Hercules Wimbledon quartet of Kyran Mitchell-Nanton, Luis Costa, Jose Costa and James Russell managed to take the bronze medals in the boys under 15 championship in 51.6.

Jose Costa was also second in the javelin with 32.19m and second in his 100m race while Mitchell-Nanton was third in his 100m race in 12.6. In the boys under 13 100m another Hercules Wimbledon runner, Cale Edmunds also made a flying start to his 2007 summer season by finishing second in his race in a personal best of 11.8, taking one-fifth of a second off his previous best time set last June.

Ed Saywell also smashed his personal record for 800m as he won his race in 2:23.2, more than nine seconds faster than he clocked last season. Jennifer Fernando was third in the women's under 17 800m in 2:24.4.

Two of the youngest Hercules Wimbledon runners in action at Crystal Palace showed medal winning performances. Eleanor Smith-Hahn, who is too young to compete for Merton in this weekend's mini London marathon, won the girls under 11 600m in 1:55.4, while Max Cooper finished third in the boys under 11 1000m in 3:30.1.

This weekend, Hercules Wimbledon runners will be in action in the Flora London marathon and adidas mini London marathon on Sunday. Zoe Pike and Arnaud Claverie head the entry for the main event while Laim White for Wandsworth and Joe Toomey, Ed Saywell, Luke Jones, Deyan and Michaela Knespl, Alex Cousin and twin sisters Jennifer and Rosemary Fernando for Merton, compete in the mini-marathon over the final 2.65 miles of the marathon course from Southwark Bridge.

Hercules Wimbledon Athletic Club ace race walker Estle Viljoen is bidding to clinch her first GB international vest when she competes in the UK trials for next month's European Walking Cup which is being hosted by Britain at Leamington.

Viljoen, who previously represented South Africa, winning the All African walking title a few seasons back, now holds a British passport and is opting to represent Britain in future walking events.

The 36-year-old Haslemere Primary School, Mitcham, teacher, has established herself as one of and last season was ranked third for the 10 kilometres event.

Viljoen warmed up for this weekend's trial race with an impressive win over the same course in the UK Inter Counties 10 kilometres championship last month crossing the line in 50 minutes 53 seconds, her fastest time for the distance for several seasons. She won the women's title by more than four minutes and finished fifth in a mixed field beaten by some of Britain's leading male walkers.

That was my final race before the trials for the European Cup and it gave me confidence and proof to myself as well as the judges and selectors I am in good form," enthused Viljoen who is hopeful she will make the UK team for Leamington. "I must admit I was very nervous before the start and had some doubts about my ability but I dug deep, changed my thoughts and really gave it my best shot."

She added: " I was very pleased with my race and my time and gained so much confidence! I know for sure that I am able to make the qualifying time of sub 1:45:00 to make the British team this weekend."

Hercules Wimbledon's Gary Blesson was first veteran finisher in the Kingston Breakfast Run 8.2 miles road race in 48:12. Meanwhile, Hercules Wimbledon's Zoe Pike was second woman in the Worthing 20 miles road race on the Sussex coast in 2:17:36. Clubmate Kwame Okojie finished a good 17th out of more than 600 runners in the men's race in 2:10:09 with another Hercules Wimnledon runner 285th and 55th woman in 2:51:16.

Hercules Wimbledon face a hectic weekend with their 26th Young Athletes open meeting at Crystal Palace on Sunday. More than 500 entries have been received for the event which starts at 11am and runs through till 5pm. The meeting also incorporates the inaugural England Athletics London Region relay championships. On Saturday (April 14), Hercules Wimbledon open their 2007 summer track and field programme at the Kinnaird and Sward Trophies meeting at Kingsmeadow Stadium.

Hercules Wimbledon Athletic Club teenager Liam White maintained his impressive series of performances this winter when he took more than a minute off his previous best time for the course in taking third place in the Wimbledon Common five kilometres time trial on Saturday.

White, 14, who the previous weekend represented London in the English schools cross country championships at Leeds, was the youngest runner in the field as he finished third in 18 minutes 21 seconds, less than a minute behind the race winner. White, who finished runner-up in the junior boys race at the London Schools championships at Parliament Hill Fields in January, posted the best age-graded time for the series since the opening race in January.

Currently, Liam is busy training for the adidas London mini-marathon which takes place on London marathon day, Sunday, April 22. He will be heading the Wandsworth intermediate boys team after comfortably winning the trial race by 80 seconds in Battersea Park in February.

White will be aiming to lift the individual title as well as helping Hercules Wimbledon to the team honours when he competes in the final East Surrey League event of the season, the two miles road race at West Ewell next Tuesday (April 10). Going into the race, White has a clear lead will Hercules Wimbledon poised to lift the team honours.

Not far behind in the Wimbledon Common time trial was Hercules Wimbledon supervet Hugh Saxby who was the top over 50 finisher taking seventh place in 18:45 with another Hercules Wimbledon teenager William Spooner 26th in 20:59 and over 60 veteran Dennis Williams 47th in 25:28.

Another Hercules Wimbledon supervet, Simon Ingall, continued his return to form in finishing 27th out of 200 runners in the Last Friday of the Month five kilometres road race in Hyde Park in 18:22. Fellow veteran Ian Isherwood was 134th in 23:47.

Hercules Wimbledon's Martin O'Halloran was first over 50 veteran in the Bushy Park five kilometres time trial at Hampton Court on Saturday. He finished 24th out of almost 250 runners in 19:39. His Hercules Wimbledon clubmate Martin Miller, who was not far behind finishing 31st in 19:52 was first veteran over 60.

Hercules Wimbledon's former marathon international Steve Badgery produced the best age graded performance in the weekly Bushy Park five kilometres time trial on Saturday. Badgery, 59 finished 27th out of almost 300 runners in 19:23. First Hercules Wimbledon runner over the line was veteran Peter Lee, who was 12th and second over 40 runner in 18:10, a 24 second improvement on his previous best time for the course. Down the field, another Hercules Wimbledon veteran, Barry King, was 66th in 21:10.

Across the Atlantic, Hercules Wimbledon's Medena Knespl broke the club's women's 5000m record when she clocked 19:04.7 in a spring open meeting in Dendham, Massachusetts.

Another Hercules Wimbledon runner in form is British duathlon international Richard Xerri who finished 36th out of more than 8000 runners in the City of Bath half marathon in 1:12:00, the fastest time this year by a Hercules Wimbledon runner. His performance also places him 19th on the Hercules Wimbledon all-time list. Xerri went through 10 kilometres in 33:27 which was also the fastest time this season by a Hercules Wimbledon runner. His Hercules Wimbledon clubmate John Quertrset was 232nd in 1:24:52 with John Thomas seventh over 65 veteran in 1:37:47.

Hercules Wimbledon Athletic Club - NEWS