SETAFA AC Highlights and Insights from the Latest Hampshire Track and Field Championships on the 9th/10th May at Down Grange Athletics Track in Basingstoke Part 1

Track and field competitions always bring a thrilling mix of speed, strength, and skill. The recent event showcased some remarkable performances, and moments that will be remembered for years to come. This year was the first year of the newly adopted age groups changing from U13,U15,U17 and U20 to the new U14,U16,U18 and U20. This will now mean the UK match up with World Athletics which also takes away the stresses of being a top year athlete whilst enduring important exams.

The Sprint Events That Set the Pace

U14 Girls 100m and 200m

The sprint races are always among the most exciting parts of the Hampshire County Championships. The U14 Girls 100m on Saturday saw 3 girls take part from SETAFA AC and all 3 did themselves justice. There were fantastic new personal bests for Portsmouth Schoolgirls Rire Ola, Penelope Griffiths-Horrod and emerging talent Cara Westwood. 13 year old emerging talent Cara Westwood competing for only the 3rd time ever achieved a great new PB of 14.93s. 12 year old Penelope Griffiths Horrod is in her 2nd year of training and managed to reach the semi-final with a great new PB of 13.68s. Finally 12 year old Motirire Ola now in her 4th year of training reached the final and placed 6th overall with a new PB of 13.54s. Motirire and Penelope still only 12 will be coming back next year in the U14 Category and will surely be hard to beat.

On Sunday In the first heat of the U14 Girls 200 meters Motirire Ola held her ground round the bend and with a strong finish finished 1st with a new fastest time of 27.83 with a plus wind of 2.5ms . Her smooth acceleration out of the curve and powerful stride down the home straight demonstrated why she remained a top contender in this her favourite event. Into the Semi Final a Motirire again stormed down the home straight to finish 2nd qualifying for the 200m final later on in the afternoon. The most impressive run was yet to come and in the Final Motirire found another level to stride down the home straight. With her fastest run ever in 27.39s she finished 3rd with a podium finish and a well deserved Bronze Medal (pictured above). Putting it into perspective if it was not for the slightly windy +2.2m/s wind reading she would now be ranked 5th in the UK for the old U13 Girls age group. The club looks forward to seeing the progress of all the U14 Girls over the coming years.

U14 Boys 100m and 200m

In the Under 14 Boys Category SETAFA AC had the very talented Ronnie Faunch as its sole competitor. Last years U13 Boys (old age groups) 100m and 200m champion faced stiff opposition in the new U14 Catagory. Ronnie knew he would be in for a tough time but he still achieved 2 medals over the weekend. One Gold in the 200m on Saturday and one Bronze in the 100m on Sunday (pictured above). In Heat one of the 200m Ronnie was just pipped by Portmouth athlete Rafferty Harbour but still ran a huge legal PB of 25.31s. After a long wait Ronnie then reversed the placings in the Final with a Gold Medal and another Legal PB of 25.15s. On Sunday in the first Heat of the the 100m Ronnie stormed down the straight achieving another new PB of 12.48s and fortunately due to gusting wind was the only legal time of the round. In the final Ronnie did not get the best of starts and was beaten into third place but due to the wind ended up walking away with the fastest legal time of the day

Emerging Athletes to Watch

The Club is stacked with some amazing young sprinters in the U14 Girls and Boys Category with this years new recruits Cara Westwood, Kylie Preville, Nardos Osagi and Thalia Mutikani working hard in training . All 4 girls are extremely talented and will soon be knocking on the door of some big competitions. The club looks forward to watching their progress throughout the season.

What This Means for Upcoming Competitions

The results from this competition offer a glimpse into how athletes are shaping up for the season ahead. The mix of personal bests, club records, and rankings all bode well for the next few athletics fixtures