25 August 2010

The Aviva Great Britain and Northern Ireland team won an additional ten medals in wet conditions on the penultimate day of action at the IWAS World Junior Championships in Olomouc, Czech Republic (20-26 August), including two gold medals – their fourth and fifth respectively – for Dan Lucker (coach: Jenny Archer) and Jade Jones (coach: Ian Thompson/Tanni Grey-Thompson).

Jones, having already secured wins in the 100m, 200m, 800m and 1500m, made it an exceptional five from five with victory in the T54 400m with a time of 1:05.16.

Lucker, who lost out to Sweden’s Niklas Almers in the T54 800m after three consecutive victories over 100m 200m and 1500m, returned to winning form to take gold in the men’s under-18 T54 400m (55.62).

Will Smith (coach: Jenny Archer) in the men’s under-16 T54 400m and Nikki Emerson (coach: Ian Thompson/Tanni Grey-Thompson) in the women’s under-23 T53 400m, continued the team’s quarter-mile medal haul with second place finishes.

Smith – runner up in the 100m , 200m and 800m – concluded his competition programme on a high with a lifetime best performance of 57.74 – while Emerson, following the disqualification of the second placed athlete, secured her best finishing position of the Championship with a silver medal to add to her 200m, 800m and 1500m bronze medals with 1:09.19.

There were six medals from the Aviva GB & NI field event athletes including impressive victories for Anthony Hughes-coached trio Owain Taylor in the F57 shot putt (9.65m), Nathan Stephens in the F56 discus (38.81m), and Aled Davies in the F42 shot putt (12.86m) – also a PB – all three securing their second gold medals of the week.

Vicky Silk (coach: Anthony Hughes) also made it on to the podium with a second place finish in the women’s F40 javelin (18.39m), a silver medal to add to her discus gold and shot putt bronze, while Holly Neill finished third with 17.74m.

In the men’s F40 shot putt, Sean Clare (coach: Shelley Quarin/Jane Clare) – a bronze medallist in the discus – finished third with 9.76m with Kyron Dukes (coach: Anthony Hughes) seventh in 7.71m, while Joshua Morgan achieved a new lifetime best with a 9.37m effort in the F46 shot putt to finish seventh.

The IWAS World Junior Championships continues later today and a daily session report will follow.

For the timetable and additional information, check out the official event website at: http://www.iwas2010.org/index.html