North of England Junior Championships - Sheffield 20th-21st January

Richmond and Zetland’s sprinters have been busy once again during the winter period, this time at the North of England Junior Championships, held at EIS, Sheffield on 20th and 21st January 2007. Leanne Shaw, Ruth Hill and Brogan Fraser all competed over various sprint distances, from 60m up to 300m on the indoor track. All three competed in the Under 17 ladies age group, although both Brogan and Ruth are only 14 years old, underlining the fact that their results were even more impressive. Added to this, it was Ruth’s first competition on an indoor track and one that will no doubt pay dividends in the summer season.

Ruth was first up in the 60m heats, making it through comfortably to the semi-final with a fantastic time of 8.23, which placed her second. Leanne Shaw also progressed with a time of 8.35, with Brogan narrowly missing out in the same heat, with a clocking of 8.63. In the semi-final, Ruth finished in 6th position in 8.35 and Leanne placed 8th in the second semi-final, crossing the line in 8.44, unfortunately not quite quick enough for either to make the final, but some excellent sprinting and valuable experience non the less in a high quality field.

The next event was the 300m and Leanne earned a place in the final with an excellent time of 42.34, coming second in her heat. She then went on to finish in a well-earned 5th place overall, crossing the line in 42.89. Ruth meanwhile finished 3rd in her heat in 43.39, which was the 6th fastest time and was unlucky not to go through to the final. With only the winner from each heat going forward, it meant that ultimately someone with a slower time than Ruth qualified.

In the 200m event, all 3 athletes were drawn in the first 2 heats, which produced some fantastic times. Leanne was first to compete in the heat number one, finishing in 2nd place in 26.69, which surprisingly did not merit a place in the finals, once again due to qualification procedures. Ruth then matched this performance, also finishing in 2nd position, stopping the clock in 27.02, unfortunately this wasn’t enough to reach the finals either, but nevertheless an excellent chance to compete against older and more seasoned opposition. Brogan also achieved a well-deserved 4th place in the same heat, with a fine time of 29.09, which once again, acts as a vital learning curve when it comes to indoor competition.

Brass Monkey Half Marathon York - 21st January 2007

On Sunday 21st January over the same weekend, Sarah Gregory and Neil Piper managed to get places on the start line for the ever-popular Brass Monkey Half Marathon, starting and finishing at York Racecourse. The event boasts a flat, fast course out through the adjoining villages, with the potential for fast times from runners, who make the journey from all over the country to take part. Although she managed a time of 1.37.26, putting her in 345th place overall, Sarah was disappointed not to produce a faster run and better last year’s time. Having already undertaken some long 18-20 mile runs in preparation for the London Marathon, perhaps a fast clocking was not on the cards this time. Neil Piper meanwhile enjoyed the event, returning after an absence of ten years and was pleasantly surprised. He crossed the line in 1.46.38, which earned him 13th in the MV60 category and 538th overall, from over 1000 competitors – a solid performance from a regular club runner, which shows that he is at home both on and off the road.