On the first ‘Super Saturday’ of the indoor season, Jessica Ennis (Trafford AC) went close to equalling the UK high jump record of 1.96m at the Saucony Open at Loughborough University, Harry Aikines-Aryeetey (Sutton and District AC) ended his 11-month injury battle with the 60m bronze medal at the South of England AA Indoor Championships and Richard Buck (City of York AC) lowered his North of England AA Indoors 400m Championships Best to celebrate his call into the Great Britain and Northern Ireland team for next Saturday’s Norwich Union International on BBC TV from Glasgow’s Kelvin Hall.

Here’s a quick run through the day’s highlights…

60m: With all eyes on Harry AA’s return to action after his recovery from a back injury suffered during warm weather training last spring, he was quickest down the Lee Valley straight in the first round (6.81 seconds), the second round (6.74) and semi-final (6.72, the fastest time in the UK this indoor season). But his “absolutely atrocious” – his description – start to the final left him too much to do and, despite a powerful finish, he was placed third in 6.72 seconds behind 20-year-old social worker Elijah Winn (Enfield and Haringey AC), who clocked 6.71, and Sierre Leone international Gibril Bangura. While Harry AA took considerable consolation from coming through four rounds in no pain, youth worker Elijah – ranked 25^th in the UK over 60m last winter – delighted at the prospect of showing the troubled teenagers of the North London suburb of Crouch End his gold medal and telling them: “If I can do it, you can!”

As if his club need any more sprinters! His club mate Jordan Huggins won the Under 20s’ title in 6.79 while Harry AA’s Under 17 CBP of 6.95 seconds was equalled by Kieran Showler-Davis (Winchester and District AC).

At the North of England Indoors at the EIS Sheffield – venue of next month’s Norwich Union World Trials and UK Championships – Anyika Onuora (Liverpool Harriers) took three-hundredths off the seven-year-old CBP by her club mate Diane Allahgreen in winning her first round heat in 7.42 and was then pushed to 7.40 in the final by European Junior 200m Champion Hayley Jones (Wigan Harriers), who clocked 7.52.

400m:

Richard Buck (City of York AC) celebrated his call-up into the Great Britain and Northern Ireland team for the Norwich Union International by winning his North Indoor Championships first round heat in 48.26 seconds and the final in 47.05, lowering his CBP of 47.12 and hopefully ending an indoor jinx in which he has been disqualified from the NU European Trial after crossing the line first, been injured in winning a race that helped Sheffield retain the Indoor City Challenge trophy and had a 300m time trial ruined by it being over-distance.

Mile:

A week after winning the 4.4km race at the BUPA Great Edinburgh International Cross Country, Andy Baddeley (Harrow AC) turned out on the boards in New York and scored a storming win in 3:59.29. He led at 1500m in 3:45.86 so covered that last segment in a swift 13.43!

60m hurdles:

David Hughes (Trafford AC) put a whole new meaning on ‘doubling-up’ by winning the North title in 7.85 seconds at Sheffield then dashing down the M1 to clock 7.83 seconds in the second series of races at the Saucony Loughborough Open.

Sarah Claxton (Woodford Green with Essex Ladies) won the first ‘leg’ of her South of England double in style, clocking 8.18 to knock 0.12sec off the record set by Olympian Jacqui Agyepong in 1991. Claxton later won the 60m sprint final in 7.52 – and promised to return on Sunday in search of long jump success.

High jump:

Jessica Ennis equalled her indoor lifetime best of 1.91m and went extremely close to the UK record height of 1.96m in her first outing of the year at the Saucony Loughborough Open. She was pleased with that, especially as she is still in heavy training, but confessed to feeling “sluggish” in her 60m hurdles, in which she clocked 8.32. Susan Moncrieff (Trafford AC) made a welcome return to action from a serious injury suffered in July and won the North of England Indoor title with a 1.85m clearance.

Pole vault:

Commonwealth Games bronze medallist Steve Lewis (Newham and Essex Beagles) cleared an indoor best of 5.53m, within 8cm of his lifetime best, at Vault Manchester on Saturday. His training partner in Steve Rippon’s training group at Loughborough, Kate Dennison (Sale Harriers Manchester) won the women’s competition with 4.23m.

Shot:

Eden Francis (Leicester Coritanian AC) began life as a Senior by winning with a put of 15.22m at the Saucony Indoor Open organised by Loughborough Students AC’s Nick Dakin at the UK Athletics East Midlands High Performance Centre at Loughborough University. Her put of 15.22m put her more than a metre clear at the top of the Power of 10 rankings for this infant season.

For the first day results from the North of England Indoor Championships, please click on North

If you are aware of any more highlights that should be added to this report, please email the details to UK Athletics Communications Officer Trevor Frecknall at tfrecknall@hotmail.com