Photo – Harry Kendall and Steve Simmons
Tonbridge Athletic Club members had success across a diverse range of events at the weekend, as the Summer track and field season continues to develop, whilst the London Marathon took place.
Two of the club’s international Decathletes, Harry Kendall and Steve Simmons, travelled to Italy for the Multistars competition held in Brescia. The men’s Decathlon included twenty of the top European athletes, including the winner Simon Ehammer of Switzerland, who was recently crowned World champion at the indoor Heptathlon. Ehammer won in Brescia with a score of 8361 points, with Kendall 7th with 7615 and Simmons 10th with 7341.
It was Kendall’s best Decathlon for three years, as he starts to reestablish himself amongst the best in the UK, following frustrating spells of injury. His ten events included a Long Jump personal best of 7.25 metres, whilst his Javelin throw of 59.23m was very close to his best-ever.
Three of the club’s younger multi-eventers had good days at the Somerset meeting, at Yeovil. Sam Newton won the under 20 men’s Decathlon with 6984 points, just 77 away from his club record set last year. Harry and Laura Wrigley both set personal bests, as they placed second in the under 16 boys’ Octathlon and under 14 girls’ Pentathlon competitions, respectively.
Whilst Harry Kendall was competing in Italy, Kieran Eland raced at Lee Valley over 300 metres, where he improved Kendall’s Tonbridge record by 0.06 seconds to 33.74. This bodes well for Eland’s main event, the 400 metres this year. Also at Lee Valley, Dylan Purton ran a 200 metres and 300 metres double, with times of 22.15 and 34.48. Henry Marshall ran 22.23 for 200 metres and Lewis Collins ran a personal best of 34.75 over 300 metres.
The first Kent Young Athletes League meeting of the season, for the under 14 and 16 age groups, was held at Gillingham, on Saturday, where Tonbridge finished 5th of the 8 clubs in Division One, although it is widely used as developmental competition. There were four A-string winners for Tonbridge. Oscarode Oviawe won the under 16 boys’ Hammer Throw with an impressive 48.81 metres and Purdey Hutchings won the girls’ 800 metres, in the same age group, with 2.20.16. At under 14 level, there were wins for Florence Munoz in the Shot Put with 8.68m and Tiffany Oyewale in the 80m hurdles in 12.31.
Tonbridge had twelve runners start and finish at the London Marathon. Verity Hopkins was the fastest of the women with 2.36.36, whilst Ben Shearer was the fastest male in 2.31.11. Shearer’s time was a Tonbridge over 45 men’s record. Three other women broke three hours, as Helen Winsor ran 2.43.44, Lizzie Owen 2.52.40 and Holly Hayward 2.56.45. Winsor and Owen are in the over 45 age group. Mason Willis with 2.31.45, was not far outside his personal best.