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 2

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

U16 Girls 80mh, 100m and 200m

The U16 Girls 80m hurdles on Saturday had just one SETAFA AC competitor but that did not matter as Laila Rawlings took the bull by the horns and smashed her PB with an English Schools Qualifying Standard as well. It was all tears but this time tears of Joy as Laila also won a silver medal which was amazing to see. Her new PB time of 12.18 puts her under the Qualifying Standard set at 12.2 on Saturday morning by ESAA.

With Laila Rawlings tied up with the 80mh and Annemiek Van Den Braak still in her preparation to return near to action at the end of May it was up to Oneita Tugbiyele Endje-Oko Mbuna, Desiree Ola and Teni Tola-Lawal to battle it out in the 100m. In the 3rd Heat the fact that Teni had pulled a Hamstring only 3 weeks ago meant it was a miracle she was lining up at all putting aside that she still ran a Seasons Best of 14.33 seconds. Just in Front her was Desiree Ola who also had a Tight Hamstring yet still ran 14.17 which was her fastest electronically timed 100m. Oneita who had a 3 week break is still going through the gears and racing herself into fitness. Despite this she still made it through to the Semi-Finals with a Seasons Best of 13.49s racing into a minus 0.6 wind.

U16 Boys 100m and LJ

In the Under 16 Boys Category SETAFA AC had the very talented newcomer Apollo Arenas taking part in only his 2nd competition. Apollo or AJ to his friends is a fantastic Long Jumper who only started training for the event recently and is already regularly jumping 6 metres in training. In new surroundings of a busy Hampshire Championships AJ struggled with rythm coming in 6th with a jump of 5.02m. It wont be long before AJ starts to calm the nerves and fulfill his potential as a top age group Long Jumper. On Sunday AJ returned for the 100m with only his second ever 100m run and competed fantastically gaining a 4th place in the Heat with a new PB of 12.56s

Emerging Athletes to Watch

The Club is stacked with some amazing young sprinters in the U16 Girls and Boys Category with this years new U16B recruits David Fregene and Yoeal Tesfu joining current athletes Ben Wilson (Injured) Ethan Maude, Draken Beattie-Williams and the returning Noah Foxcroft-Boyd. SETAFA AC has never been so strongly represented in the category and all the boys will be keen to get out there and put their mark on the 2026 season. In the U16G we have a Plethora of talent with existing athletes being joined by developing and newly joined young athletes .

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