Magnificent Seven

A successful weekend at the Surrey Indoor Championships at the David Weir Leisure Centre, Carshalton, saw HW athletes bagging 13 medals, of which seven were gold.

Between them all-rounders Mark Andrews and Jenny Steinitz won a total of seven medals. Andrews, who joined the Club last autumn, took gold in the high jump (1.75m) and triple jump (12.23m) while Steinitz won the women’s 60m hurdles (11.92 seconds). She also took silver in the long jump (4.36m) and bronze in the 60m (8.42) while Andrews won the silver medal in the 60m hurdles (10.22) and bronze in the shot (8.96m). He also took fourth place in the long jump (5.34m).

Freddie Arkell posted a double gold medal-winning performance in taking the U15 Boys 60m and long jump titles. He won the 60m in a lifetime best of 7.38, the sixth fastest time by an U15 in the UK this year, after winning his heat (7.5) and semi-final (7.46). He also posted a pb of 5.68m in the long jump, a distance which ranks him eighth indoors in the UK this year.

Teenager Jaleel Roper bounced back from the disappointment of his disqualification in last month’s South of England Championships to win the U17 Men 60m in 7.19 after taking his heat in 7.35 and his semi-final in 7.23.

Also indoors, on Sunday Justin Reid took the silver medal in the V45 category in the 3000m at the South of England Masters Championships at Lee Valley in 9:28.33, while Paul Wignall was first in the V65 200m in 29.38.

Earlier in the week and within only days of helping the Senior Men's team to their historic Surrey Cross Country League title,  Finn Johnson was in Armagh for the International 5km Road Race, held over a famously fast course, as demonstrated by Finnish athlete Topi Raitanen, who set a new course record to win the 5km men's race in 13:43, and Steph Twell who won the 3km women's race in a record-equalling time of 8:59.

113 athletes finished the men's race in under 15 minutes (also a record) and Johnson was disappointed not to be one of them, despite clocking a pb of 15:07 to finish in 128th. In true fighting spirit, he vowed to be back for the challenge next year.

More of the Club's distance runners were in action in the Hampton Court Half Marathon on Sunday. Gina Galbraith finished second in the W35-44 category and 9th woman home in 01:26.21.  Alex Binley was 10th woman home in 0:1.26.25, while her younger sister Chloe Binley smashed her previous pb by a remarkable eight minutes to finish in 01:31.08. Dimos Evangelidis was placed fourth in the men's race, but finished on equal time with the third placed runner in 01:11.50 – he was also first M40-49..

On the same day George Longworth posted his first open road race victory when he headed home a 781-strong field in the Richmond half-marathon in 76:05, 86 seconds ahead of the runner-up. 

'It was an unexpected victory as I'd only entered for a scenic run along the Thames towpath as an alternative to my usual Sunday long run', said 31-year-old Longworth. 'Winning is unfamiliar territory for me and almost embarrassing given the strength of the current HW squad, many of whom run such times without breaking sweat!'

This weekend the action switches to the north of England, where Club athletes will be competing in the England U20, U17 and U15 Indoor Championships in Sheffield and the English National Cross Country Championships at Harewood Hall, Leeds.