8 July 2013

European Mountain Running Championships, Borovets, Bulgaria, 6 July

GB & NI’s mountain runners return from Bulgaria this morning with three hard earned team medals.

The day got off to a great start with the junior women tackling a tough 3.5km course containing over 530m of climb and coming away with a fantastic team silver. Catriona Graves, earning her first GB & NI vest, was the team’s first counter in sixth, closely followed by 2012 European up and down champion Annabel Mason eighth, with Georgia Malir (coach: Andrew Henderson) 12th and Lydia Sharpe (Janice Lawton) 21st.  The junior men were next up and they finished seventh thanks to good performances by Max Wharton (Brian Burgin), Nathan Jones, Brad Traviss and Andrew Lawler, who were 14th, 19th, 29th and 34th respectively.

The GB & NI team are notoriously stronger at the biennial up and down championships, so it was always going to be an uphill battle for the senior women to retain the title they won in 2012, however they fought all the way to the line to beat Russia to the bronze medal by a single point. Trials winner Emma Clayton (Henderson) led the team home with a very strong sixth place finish, and she was backed up by Olivia Walwyn in 21st, Sarah Tunstall in 25th and Rebecca Robinson in 39th.

In the final race of the day, Steve Vernon (David Turnbull) produced his best ever performance at the European Championships to finish fifth and lead the GB & NI senior men’s team to a terrific team silver. Each and every member of the senior men’s team stepped up, with Chris Smith taking an impressive eighth place, Orlando Edwards in 18th and Robbie Simpson 29th.

Link to European Athletics report and full results: http://www.european-athletics.org/12th-european-mountain-running-championships/12049-dematteis-ends-the-mountain-reign-of-arslan-on-glory-day-for-italy-as-mayr-is-crowned-women-s-champion.html

IAU World Trail Championships, Llanrwst, Wales, 6 July

Ricky Lightfoot delighted the home crowd by winning his first world title in glorious sunshine on Saturday, leading the GB & NI team to victory in the process. Lightfoot took the title in 5 hours, 36 minutes and 3 seconds, some ten minutes clear of second place. Local athlete Iain Ridgway also ran a superb race to finish fourth, amid plenty of home support.

In the women’s race, Joanna Zakrzewski finished just outside the medals in fourth place, and with teammates Fionna Cameron and Tracy Dean in tenth and 14th respectively, the team took bronze, rounding out a great day for the GB & NI team. 

Full results: http://www.tdl.ltd.uk/race-results.php?event=1386&page=1

La Chaux-de-Fonds, Switzerland, July 7

Joel Fearon (Michael Khmel) ran a 10.11/2.0 100m heat PB and then improved to 10.10/0.1 in the final. That puts him second in the Power of Ten rankings and is inside the World Championships A standard of 10.15.

Richard Kilty (Linford Christie) won his 200m race in a PB 20.34/-0.1 to go second in the 200m rankings also bettering the World Championships A standard of 20.52.

Richard Strachan (Christie) set a 400m personal best of 45.46, which is inside the World Championship B standard of 45.60.

William Sharman (Jerzy Maciukiewicz) won the 110m hurdles in 13.34/2.7 which is the fastest time by a Briton this year albeit with an illegal wind reading.

Full results: http://www.sep-olympic.ch/resisprintdoc/resisprint13.pdf

Asics Gold Coast Half-Marathon, Southport, Australia, July 7

Ben Moreau (Nick Anderson) set a PB of 63:59 to finish third and go second in the McCain Power of Ten rankings behind Mo Farah.

Full results: http://tiktok.biz/list/goldcoastmarathon/2013/21km

BAL Premiership, Sheffield, July 6

In the pole vault, Luke Cutts (Trevor Fox) set an outdoor PB of 5.61m, which puts him top of the outdoor rankings and betters the World Championships B standard of 5.60. Chijindu Ujah (Jonas Tawiah-Dodoo) twice ran 10.40 which are the fastest legal times in the under-20 100m rankings this year, and well inside the European Junior Championship qualifying standard of 10.60.

Full results: http://www.rankinglists.com/resultsfiles/2013/80854_6002_06072013214305_bal_2013_P_m3.pdf

Paris Diamond League, July 6

Marilyn Okoro (Johnny Gray) finished fifth in the 800m in 1:59.76 to better the World Championships A standard of 2:00.00 and go top of the women’s 800m rankings. Steve Lewis (Dan Pfaff) again achieved the world championships B standard of 5.60m with his sixth place.

Stephanie Twell (Mick Woods) set a 5000m World Championships B standard (15:24) and only just missed the A standard of 15:18.0 with her 11th place of 15:18.60, which puts her top of the women’s 5000m rankings.

Perri Shakes-Drayton (Chris Zah) finished a strong second in 53.96 in the 400m hurdles and was just outside her personal best. Chris Tomlinson (Rana Reider) was second in the long jump with 8.08m/0.2 as Olympic champion Greg Rutherford (Dan Pfaff) injured himself in fourth round, ending with 7.99/-0.5.

Full results: http://www.diamondleague-paris.com/Live-StartlistsResults/Overview/

Oordegem, Belgium, July 6

Both Chris O’Hare (Steve Gulley) and Lee Emanuel (Ronnie Warhurst) set personal bests and World Championship B standards with respective times of 3:35.37 and 3:36.55 to go one and two in the Power of Ten 1500m rankings. Meanwhile, GB European Indoor Championship representative and national under-23 champion Laura Muir (Andy Young) took over two seconds off her PB to run a World Championship B standard of 2:00.86, which puts her third in the 800m rankings. Joe Thomas (Arwyn Davies) set an 800m season’s best of 1:47.24 to go fifth in the UK rankings.

Full results: http://liveresults.be/2013/memorialbuyle/schedule.html

UK Women’s League Premiership, Sportcity, Manchester, July 6

Louise Bloor (Toni Minichiello) just missed the World Championships B standard clocking 23.31/1.7 to take 200m victory.

Full results: http://www.rankinglists.com/results/results.aspx?meetingid=83628

Cork, Ireland, July 2

Isobel Pooley (Fayyaz Ahmed) went top of the high jump rankings with her 1.88m victory which is again superior to the European under-23 championships standard, a championship which she has already been selected for. Serita Solomon (Lloyd Cowan) went second in the 100m hurdles rankings with her personal best of 13.21.

Full results: http://www.corkcitysports.ie/live-results/ccs_res_2013.pdf

Nancy, France, July 2

Sprint specialist Anyika Onuora (Rana Reider) improved Britain’s 4x400m prospects with a 400m win in 51.38, which is not only a personal best, but a performance that betters the World Championships A standard of 51.55 and puts her third in the UK rankings. Marilyn Okoro (Gray) also set a season’s best of 2:00.48 over 800m to finish second, although she subsequently improved this in Paris just days later.

Full results: http://bases.athle.com/asp.net/liste.aspx?frmbase=resultats&frmmode=1&frmespace=0&frmcompetition=138038