5 February 2008

UK Athletics today announced the Norwich Union Great Britain & Northern Ireland team to contest a combined events international for Under 23s and Under 20s against France and Spain in Paris on 1 and 2 March.

It includes 20-year-old Oliver McNeillis, who was in the quartet that, for the first time ever, won the annual senior men’s match against Czech Republic, France and Spain at Sheffield last weekend. He scored 5334 points, a lifetime best by 242 points elevating him to 20^th on the UK all-time senior men’s list and 10^th among UK all-time Under 23s.

The squad for Paris also contains two of the women from the Sheffield team, Catherine Holdsworth and Gemma Weetman, who were the silver and bronze medallists at last month’s England Athletics Indoor Combined Events Open Championships.

The full squad for Paris is:

Under 23 Men: Francis Baker (Derby AC), Ricardo Beckford (London Heathside), Oliver McNeillis (Birchfield Harriers), Guy Stroud (Exeter Harriers).

Under 20 Men: Ashley Bryant (Windsor, Slough, Eton and Hounslow AC), Ben Gregory (Vale of Aylesbury AC), Michael Holden (Colchester Harriers), Ben Reynolds (North Down AC).

Under 23 Women: Caryl Granville (Carmarthen Harriers), Catherine Holdsworth (Colchester Harriers), Serita Shone (Bournemouth AC), Gemma Weetman (Oswestry Olympians).

Under 20 Women: Meghan Beesley (Tamworth AC), Amy Hill (City of Sheffield AC), Alice Lennox (City of Stoke AC), Katarina Thompson (Liverpool Harriers).

When this match was held at the UK Athletics North London Performance Centre at Lee Valley last February, Caryl Granville improved her lifetime best by 214 points to help Norwich Union GB&NI Junior Women to victory; and Gemma Weetman also scored a PB for the Under 23 team.