Photo – Jack Higgins after his Men’s 800 metres win at Lee Valley
Indoor track and field competition was the focus for many representing Tonbridge Athletic Club, at the weekend, with the South of England Championships taking place at Lee Valley.
Six medals were won, with five of them coming from the under 20 age group. Jack Higgins was the exception, as he was an impressive winner of the men’s 800 metres final, setting a championship best performance of 1.49.17. The time was a personal best for Higgins, indoors or outdoors and moves him to fifth on the year’s UK Indoor rankings.
On Saturday, Lucy Tallon competed over 60 metres and, in her heat, set a Tonbridge club record of 7.60, before finishing third in the final in 7.61. She then returned on Sunday to win the 200 metres in 24.70, just 0.02 seconds outside her recent best.
Matilda Secker was an impressive winner of the under 20 women’s High Jump, matching her overall personal best of 1.74 metres and winning by four centimetres.
Lucinda White cleared 3.20 metres in the Pole Vault to capture the silver medal in the under 20 women’s competition. Dante McNichol was second in the under 20 men’s Shot Put with a throw of 12.60m, which was a personal best with the 6kg implement.
Amelie Rabbidge set a Tonbridge women’s indoor 60 metres hurdles record in her heat of the under 20 women’s competition, with 8.93. She then went on to finish 5th in the final in 9.15.
Asha Root had an excellent run in the final of the senior women’s 400 metres, where she finished 4th in 55.82, which was an indoor personal best and just 0.12 seconds away from the Tonbridge indoor record.
Amongst the other Tonbridge AC competitors, Steve Tester set club over 40 men’s age group records of 23.94 and 53.36, in the 200 metres and 400 metres.
Many Tonbridge AC members were competing over cross country, at the British Universities Championships, at Temple Newsam, Leeds. Phoebe Barker finished a superb second in the women’s A-race, for Cambridge University, whilst Charlotte Alexander won the B-race for Birmingham.
On Sunday morning, at the Chichester 10km road race, Maria Heslop set a Tonbridge over 55 women’s record of 37.15 and Alan Newman did likewise in the over 70 men’s category with 45.46.