21 June 2015 

Georgina Hermitage (coach: Paul MacGregor) was the standout performance at the IPC Grand Prix in Berlin with the 26 year old claiming the T37 400m world record on day two in the German city.

Hermitage, who is embarking on her first full season as a track athlete, blew away the competition to record a time of 1:02.70 beating the 15 year old record by over two seconds.

“I’m in disbelief, but incredibly happy. I’m just going to move on now and just keep pushing. I wanted to PB coming into the race, but I’d run the 100m final earlier in the day so my  legs weren’t one hundred percent, so I just thought give it what you’ve got. I knew I’d given it everything when I crossed the line,” said Hermitage, who also recorded a times of 13.92 and 13.80 in the 100m – the first time she’s broken 14 seconds.

There was no world record this time around for Aled Davies (Ryan Spencer-Jones), who has been in sensational form in 2015.  Davies’ throws of 14.88m and 47.76m in the shot put and discus respectively left him feeling a little disappointed by his weekend’s work.

The Welshman explained: “I took an easy throw in the first round, I tried to build on that. I know I’m in great shape, I know I can throw a long way, so this result doesn’t really reflect that. This is the first competition this year I’ve gone under 50m, I a consistent 50m thrower at home, so I wanted to come here and do it, but unfortunately I didn’t. But it’s a win and I’ll look forward to the next.”

“I’m feeling really strong, really quick, but I’m trying to bully the discus, and that’s not where the big throws are going to come from. I need to relax, get my left leg down, and then deliver. It’s a learning curve, I’ve made so many changes, I’m four stone lighter, there’s a lot new, there’s a lot we’re still learning. All we can do is look forward.”

Double world record holder and European champion Maria Lyle (Tabo Huntley) produced a solid performance in the T35 100m clocking 14.73, but admits to have been affected by conditions at the Friedrich Ludwig Sports Park.

“I was kind of wanting my time to be a bit quicker, but there’s not much I can do when it’s cold and there’s a strong headwind, but there’s always next time. I’ve had a few problems with my knees and shins, but coming into the competition I felt really good, I’d PB’d last weekend, I was in good shape, but I can’t expect to run fast in these conditions. I know I’ll be ready for the worlds.”

Graeme Ballard (Huntley) rolled back the years a day after turning 36 as he disposed of long-time rival Evgenii Shvetcov in the T36 100m. The veteran was ‘chuffed’ with his performance after taking the victory from the seven-time global gold medallist.

Stephen Miller (Roz Miller) produced his second best throw of the season with a throw of 29.12m for a second place finish in the F32 club throw, while Kyron Duke (Anthony Hughes) also finished in second in the F41 javelin and shot put. Amy Wareing added over a metre to her personal best in the F38 discus with a throw of 24.33m remaining fourth in the world rankings for 2015.

Kyle Powell (Ryan Freckleton) and James Arnott (Freckleton) took first and second in the T45/46 100m with Gemma Prescott (Mike Wood) going over the 20m barrier in the F32 club throw for the first time this season and Abbie Hunnisett finishing in second behind her GB & NI teammate.

A round-up of today’s action in Berlin will follow in the weekend round-up tomorrow morning.

To view all the GB & NI and international results and to watch a live stream of today’s action, please visit: www.idm-leichtathletik.de