The first competitive race of the winter season saw us bring home two sets of medals in the Middlesex Young Athletes Road Relays at Minet Park in Hayes. Despite the forecast of gales and torrential rain, our young athletes turned out in force, fielding teams in most age groups.
The highlight of the day for us came in the Under 15 section, where the girls and boys teams both claimed bronze. The successful girls’ team comprised Courtney Marshall, Nicola Ravenhill and Erica Wallace, while Reece Farren, George Kerry and John Fielding took medals for the boys. Both these teams faced strong challenges from local rivals Thames Valley Harriers. The girls B team in this age group also performed well. Laura Stewart ran a fast first leg, handing over in 3rd to the experienced Roisin Lynch. Jennie Connelly stepped in at short notice to complete the B team, defying a cold to bring them home in 7th.
Under 11 William Nicholson was the club’s only representative in the youngest age group, and it was his first race but he put in a splendid debut performance, storming to an excellent 5th place.
In the Under 13s, the girls again fielded two teams. The A team finished leg one in 3rd position, thanks to a swift run by Feia Starkey, who has remained strong from the track season. Maryam Hussain and Lucy O’Brien both put in solid performances to bring the team home 5th overall. The B team was led off by middle distance runner Cameron Thomas, with newcomers Anisa Ibrahim and Rosie Cox both running well in their debut race to bring the team home in 10th. The Under 13 Boys made a flying start thanks to an excellent run by Patrick Owen. He handed over in first place to William Coutts, with Kirk Lebdiri finishing the final leg in 6th position.