22 May 2016

In a busy day at the Loughborough International the British Under 20 team were looking to secure qualifying standards for the IAAF World Junior Championships in July plus several senior athletes were starting their season with one eye on Olympic standards.

Mollie Courtney (Coached by: David Warner) , Ryan Gorman (Karen Buck),  Hannah Brier (Neal Merry) and Bobby Clay (Rob Denmark) all  secured qualifying standards for this summer’s IAAF World Junior Championships during  the event at the Paula Radcliffe Stadium plus there were a host of other PB performances from the Juniors.

Mollie Courtney won the 100M hurdles in 13.30, a big PB and within the World Junior Championships standard (13.50). “I am ecstatic to have got the qualifying standard”, she said.

Ryan Gorman also achieved a new PB attaining the men’s 200m World Junior standard with 20.95 in one of the days many guest races, while Hannah Brier ducked under the standard (11.60) winning the women’s match 100m with a legal 11.47 (+1.0).

Bobby Clay, competing  in the match in the colours of Loughborough, was second in 4:15.78 in the 1500m securing the World Juniors’ qualifying standard while in the same race, junior Sabrina Sinha (Peter Mullervy) came very close with a new PB 4:17.48 finishing fourth.

Elsewhere Alex Yee was pleased with his dominant performance and PB winning the match 3000m in  8.01.63. :  “I feel there is way more to come. I was really hoping for sub-8.  My winter experience in cross country gave me so much confidence. I hope to be at the world juniors and be at the top of my game during June and July.”

Spencer Thomas (Jon Bigg) came second in the 800M in 1.48.99 just outside both his PB and the World Junior qualifying standard (1:48.50).

Holly Mills (James Coney) produced an excellent PB of 6.24m to win the match and top the current European Youth rankings ahead of the European Youth Championships in Tbilisi, Georgia in July.  Whilst in the hammer, Jake Norris (Paul Dickenson) also competing for GB Juniors but still a youth threw a new PB of 78.54m (5kg) which also exceeds the standard for the 2016 European Youth Championships by over 10 metres and ranks him second on the current European Youth rankings.

The match also marked some impressive early season performances from the senior athletes. In only his second outdoor race in four years, Andrew Pozzi (Malcolm Arnold) secured the Olympic standard and a new PB with 13.32 in the 110m hurdles.  He said “I am over the moon with that.  I was a bit rusty so this shows there is more to come.  My aim was to run the qualifying time, I was hopeful but I didn’t expect to run that quick so I am absolutely thrilled.”

CJ Ujah (Jonas Tawiah-Dodoo) won a guest 100m in 10.07 ahead of James Dasaolu (Steve Fudge) who finished in 10.14 with both athletes securing the Olympic standard. 

In a windy 200m, Ojie Edoburun (Jonas Tawiah-Dodoo) ran an impressive 20.50 with junior Cameron Tindle (Henry Gray) fourth with 20.75, which would have been a new PB and inside the World Juniors’ standard had it not been for an illegal +4.0 wind.  In a competitive 100m junior athlete Rechmial Miller (Ryan Freckleton), the IAAF World Youth bronze medallist from 2015, was fourth with a new PB and World Junior standard of10.34 in a race won by Harry Aikines Aryeetey (Benke Blomkvist) in 10.29. For Miller this is the second time he has achieved the IAAF standard for the 2016 World Junior Championships.

Jess Ennis-Hill (Toni Minichiello) started her season with a 41.69 javelin throw.  Junior Emma Hamplett (David Parker) finished third in the same event with a throw of 49.36m. Morgan Lake (Eldon Lake) also still a Junior in 2016 took second place in the high jump with 1.89m with Abby Ward (Ian Hill) finishing third with an outdoor PB jump of 1.86m.

In a great finish to the day the British junior team took the women’s 4x100m in 45.04with Hannah Brier (Merry), Charlotte McLennaghan (Hourd), Finette Agyapong (Coral Nourrice) and Sophie Yorke (David Warner) taking the victory.

The British senior men won the men’s 4x100m in 38.64 with a team consisting of James Dasaolu (Fudge), Harry Aikines-Aryeetey (Blomkvist), Richard Kilty (Blomkvist) and CJ Ujah (Tawiah-Dodoo); a time that currently places them within the top 10 in the world.