Another club U20 record for Saskia and some grand masters at British Championship

Saskia Millard inthe womens 3000 metres race at the British Miler Club Watford Grand Prix at the Woodside Stadium, Watford.
Picture by Nigel Bramley
07827818829
29/06/2019

 

Herne Hill Harriers’ Saskia Millard continued her stellar season as she set another club under 20 women’s middle distance record at the British Milers’ Club Grand Prix meeting at the Stretford track in Manchester on Saturday in windy weather. Millard smashed her own best with a time of 4.21.87 to again revise a standard which before this season had stood for six years and was held by senior Great Britain international Katie Snowden.

Millard was using this race as preparation for her 3000m race this Wednesday where she will represent the Great Britain under 20 team at the prestigious Manchester International meet against home international senior teams. The 3000m is the distance at which Millard recently placed an excellent fifth at the European Under 20 Championship in Sweden.

Millard will be one of four Herne Hill athletes competing at the Manchester International, as she is accompanied in the GB Junior team by Ore Adamson in the long jump and Lakeisha Owusu-Junior in the 4 x 100m relay, while Jessica Craig represents the Northern Ireland senior team in the same 3000m race as Millard.

Harriers had national champions at the British Masters Championship in Birmingham over the weekend. Giuseppe Minettii scored a fine sprint double in claiming the M50 100m and 200m titles, clocking a season’s best 11.83 at 100m and 24.36 in the 200m.

Also winning two sprint gold medals was Michelle Watson, who was first across the line in both the 100m and 200m in the W35 age group, her winning times being 13.10 and 26.73. Simon Coombes won the M45 1500m gold medal by the proverbial country mile in 4.18.83, another National champion from the club ranks.

In the throwing events M40 Stuart Thurgood won the gold medal in the weight throw and bronze in the discus and Barbara Macanas brought home four W65 throws golds (hammer, shot put, weight throw, discus throw) plus a silver medal (javelin) in events which demonstrated the old adage that you have to be in it to win it.

Kwei Sankofa won a silver medal in the M60 400m in 59.29 and bronze in the 100m in 12.83, while a further Herne Hill athlete to bring home a national masters medal was Penelope Cummings, who claimed the silver in the W40 3000m walk with a time of 16.33.24.

Ten Herne Hill men raced at the Hercules Wimbledon Night of 5000m races last Wednesday and nine of them recorded very good personal best times. Their results were as follows: Matt Munro 17.08.42, Henry Brown 17.15.01, Josh Pewter 15.59.0, Raj Paranandi 16.12.36, Jack Brotchie 15.30.73, Andrew Grigg 15.34.28, Jeff Cunningham 16.36.27, Nick Bester 15.20.93, Lewis Laylee 15.26.51, Angus Butler 15.35.36. Some very good breakthrough runs here to substantially revise the 2019 club rankings for this distance.

Then on Sunday morning a contingent from the club raced at the Surrey road 5km championship, also at Wimbledon Park, with Matt Cartwright – 20th 17:33, Henry Brown – 36th 18:32, Chris de Mauny – 60th 19:22, Julia Wedmore – 69th [12th woman] 19:49, Robert Nagorski – 93rd [15th vet man 50-59] 21:56, Laura Donnelly – 103rd [25th woman] as the club was again very well represented.

Geoff Jerwood

,