April - June 2006
Young Athletes League Match 4 Burton, 25th June
AVAC continued it's push for a high finishing position in the Young Athletes League with a trip to Burton. AVAC lead from the start with the final positions of AVAC 1st 368.5 points, Stratford 2nd 264 pts, Nuneaton 3rd 190.5 pts, and Burton 4th 158 pts. At the time of writing this still leaves us in 3rd or 4th place overall in the league but some match results are still not in.
On to the match itself. The team was somewhat depleted due to those athletes competing in the schools combined events competition, plus the inevitable absences due to holidays and other activities. However, this also gave the chance for others to make the team and gain valuable match experience. The other clubs seemed to be suffering a similar fate too (not to mention a certain football match taking place!) and there were several events where there were no competitors at all.
Three athletes were awarded Athlete of the Match. Rob Love took male track athlete for his U17 mens 800m, Tamara Armoush for the female track athlete for her U15 800m, and Abby Wood took the female field award for her U17 hammer throw.
Full results can be found on www.natyal.co.uk and follow the links from 'results by division', 'midland venues' to division 1 east, and scroll over the venues on 25th June matches.
AVAC All-rounders in Combined Events Success
Ten AVAC athletes made the short journey to Moorways Stadium to compete for Derbyshire in the English Schools Midlands Combined Events Final. Competing against six other counties, high performing individuals were looking to qualify for the National Final in September. Competing in the traditional Derbyshire Schools colours of red and royal blue, five club athletes ran, jumped and threw their way to the National Final.
The Juniors (U15's) compete in 5 events in one day - a pentathlon. Emma Komocki, Charlotte Noonan and Claudia Rogers (together with Natasha Illingworth from Chesterfield AC) finished a worthy 2nd team place but were unable to close on a strong Warwickshire team. The girls had a consistent set of results and pb's, and were particularly strong in the 800m. Emma finished a magnificent 2nd place overall and goes through to the Finals as an individual. Claudia finished 9th and Charlotte 10th.
Michael Feeney, in the boys event, started the day off with another PB in his best event, the 80mH, and went on to finish 12th overall. The Derbyshire boys team, whilst leading for much of the way, was sadly overtaken on the final event by the Warwickshire team as a result of their strong 800m running.
Chloe Smith was the clubs sole representative in the Intermediate girls heptathlon. Finishing in 10th place overall, she had the satisfaction of setting 5 new pb's.
Andrew Szarkowski and Ricky Kiggins finished in 6th and 7th place respectively in the Intermediate boys Octathlon. Andrew goes through to Final after taking the 3rd available place for those not a member of the winning team.
Like Andrew, Louise Feeney gets a place in the Finals for her 5th place finish in the Senior girls heptathlon. Brother David was a comfortable winner in the Senior boys decathlon and earns his third consecutive trip to the National Final. Richard Szarkowski, after a particularly successful first day, finished in 3rd place overall. David and Richard (along with Derby AC's Sam Worrall) made up the winning Derbyshire team, with an overall points total which bodes well for a successful challenge of the Senior boys national team title in September.
Heart of England League match 1 Sunday 18th June
Around 50 athletes travelled to Rugby for the first match in the Heart of England League. Division 1 matches are usually well attended and well fought, and Sunday was no exception.
Competing against 7 other midlands clubs there was sizeable and appreciative support for the competitors, with full fields in most of the events. We had some extremely good results which has lead to us lying equal first (with Rugby & Northampton) overall!
Full results are as follows:
U13 Boys 1st
U15 Boys 1st
U17 Men 2nd
Male Overall 1st
U13 Girls 5th
U15 Girls 2nd
U17 Women 2nd
Female Overall 2nd
Total: 1st = AVAC and Rugby & Northampton 7.5 pts
3rd = Stratford and Tamworth 5.5 pts
5th Solihull 4 pts
6th Halesowen 3 pts
7th Tipton 2 pts
8th DASH 1 pt
From some excellent performances, the highlights of the match included:
* Michael Bosworth smashing the U13 boys 800m club record.
* Ellie Henshaw and Jessica Turner taking an unexpected A and B string 800m.
* U17 mens 4 x 100m relay team of Shaun Rathbone, Daniel Langley, Rob Love and Andrew Szarkowski breaking the existing club record.
* Daniel Langley winning the U17 LJ, and also jumping a respectable 1m 70 in his first ever HJ competition for the club.
The next match in this league is at Rugby again, against the same clubs, on Sunday 30th July.
Training Cancellation
Please note that normal training on Saturday 8th July, (10am to 12) has had to be cancelled. We try very hard not to cancel our sessions but on this occasion we are left with no option. Many of our coaches will be attending the Mini League match at Moorways, and, as it is also English Schools weekend, we will also have coaches at Gateshead too. As a result we will not have enough available coaches to run a safe and effective training session.
However, the Mini League competition is open to all members in the U11, U13 and U15 age groups, and U17's can guest as well, so there is no excuse for an athletics-free day. Details can be found here.
Seven Go to Gateshead
The Derbyshire team for the English Schools Finals has been announced and 7 AVAC athletes have been selected for this prestigious competition, on 7th and 8th July at Gateshead. Congratulations and good luck to:
Juniors Alexandra Turner - 800m
Tamara Armoush - 1500m
Emma Komocki - 75mH
Michael Feeney - 80mH
Inters Andrew Szarkowski - 400m
Abby Wood - Hammer
Seniors David Feeney - 110mH
Get Entered for the Next Mini League Competition
Entry forms (printed on yellow) are now available from training for the next Mini League competition on Saturday 8th July at Moorways, Derby. All club members (aged 9 to 14) are encouraged to take part (i.e. U11, U13 and U15). U17's can guest in some events. The great thing about Mini League is that all abilities and levels of experience can take part as there are no selections (other than for a small number for the team scores). It can't be stressed enough that Mini League is the competition to get to if you are new to athletics, so that you can get a time or distance, and also for coaches and team selectors to see what you can do. There is only this competition plus the final fixture in August so opportunities are running out!
Chose up to 3 events from the list below (2 for U11's). First races start at
10.30am (1.30pm finish approx). Meet at the stadium 9.45am at the latest to pick
up your race numbers. £1 payable on the day. Club vest or T-shirt essential.
Relay teams will be selected on the day.
Entries can be made via this link stating name, phone no and the events you want to do, or pick up an info sheet from training (ask at the desk, your coach, or Julie Feeney).
Please note that it makes life very difficult for team managers on the morning of the competition if an athlete turns up without pre-entering. All competitors must let us know that they intend taking part.
U11 Girls & Boys (school years 4 & 5, must be 9 years on the day)
80m, 150m, 600m, Long Jump (boys), High Jump (girls)
U13 Girls and Boys (school years 6 & 7)
100m, 200m, 800m, sprint hurdles, Shot, Long Jump (girls), High Jump (boys)
U15 Girls and Boys (school years 8 & 9)
100m, 200m, 800m,sprint hurdles, Shot, Discus, High Jump (girls), Long Jump (boys)
Northern Gold for David
David Feeney emerged as the North of England Junior Mens Decathlon Champion in a gruelling weekend of competition in Stoke-on-Trent. His total score of 6057 points was a personal best and went one better than his silver in the same event last year. In temperatures pushing 30 degrees, David achieved three personal bests out of the ten events including a long jump of 6.91m.
The event was combined with the AAA's National Championship where David finished 8th overall. All but one of the competitors finishing above him have previously earned GB selections and figure on all-time lists, indicating the quality of the current junior mens age group.
After seven events David was in contention for a top 5 finish overall until a below-par pole vault caused him to slip down the points table.
David's attention now focuses on his next Decathlon in a fortnights time where he will join with nine other AVAC athletes representing Derbyshire Schools in the Midlands Regional Combined Events competition at Moorways.
AVAC Athletes in Action at County Schools
The Derbyshire Schools Track and Field Championships at Moorways on Saturday (10th June) saw AVAC athletes competing to gain a place in the County Schools team for the annual Midlands Inter-Counties match at Corby on June 17th.
A 9am start was necessary to avoid a clash with the England football match in the afternoon and proved a fortuitous decision given the recent extremely hot weather. Conditions for certain events were perfect, with hot sunshine and some favourable winds along the home straight which might account for the crop of fast times in the sprint events.
The event is always of interest as it pits athletes in training against competitors drawn from their schools and who are not necessarily regulars at the sport, with sometimes surprising results. It also acts as the opportunity for athletes to prove themselves to County selectors for the prestigious English Schools Finals which take place in July.
The club already has 7 athletes who have achieved the stiff English Schools qualifying standards in their chosen events, and are unofficially on their way to Gateshead.
Andrew Szarkowski, Emma Komocki, Sam Stone, Alex Turner and Abby Wood all comfortably won their event whilst Tamara Armoush suffered a rare local defeat by only point one of a second.
Surprise performance of the day came from Michael Feeney in the junior boys 80m hurdles. He shattered his PB by point four of a second to record a very unexpected English Schools qualifying time, and breaking the existing club record held by Sam Stone.
Also in record breaking form was Richard Szarkowski in the Senior boys pole vault. Knowing that a Championship Best Performance was his for the taking, perhaps even Richard didn't dream of smashing this by over a metre! His best vault of 3.75m was a huge PB and new club record.
Josh Cartledge came within a tenth of a second of achieving the English Schools entry standard for the Inter boys 100m. His time of 11.3 beat David Feeneys club record but had to settle for second place, with first year Shaun Rathbone taking bronze.
Craig Bethall, Rob Love and Olivia Pell took gold's in 400m,800m and 1500m respectively. Daniel Langley also took gold and came within 2cm of the existing club record in the Inter boys long jump. Louise Feeney took gold in the Senior girls 100m hurdles and continued an unbroken run of 4 County Schools wins in the sprint hurdles.
Full results can be found on www.derbyshireschools.co.uk
The Colin Potter Memorial 10K
This takes place on a Multi Terrain course through Darley Abbey, Darley Park and Darley Fields on Friday July 7th 2006, starting at Haslams, Haslams Lane, Derby (home of Derby Rugby Club).
All Proceeds go to MacMillan Continuing Care Unit and more details can be found by downloading the entry form here.
Young Athletes League Match 3 Moorways, 4th June
Match 3 was always going to be critical to those clubs towards the top of the league. Lying in 3rd place before the match we were to compete against Derby in 4th and Corby in 5th. Not only this, the match was to be the first time that AVAC had competed directly with Derby other than in the Mini League - a mouthwatering prospect!
It quickly became a two-horse race between ourselves and Derby and it was AVAC that made the early running. Regular announcements of the points showed AVAC in the lead. However, with the halfway point passed, Derby's total began to edge ahead with the final scores Derby first 464 pts, AVAC second 426 pts, Corby third 349.5 pts and Oadby & Wigston fourth 49.5 pts. It was no surprise that we were particularly strong in the U13 boys and U15 girls and certain event groups, but areas of weakness showed particularly in the throwing events. It was thanks to our athletes willingness to do an event or two that were not their specialties, to enable us to keep the points coming in and keep us in the running. It's an indication of the clubs growing strength in depth that enabled us to field one of our largest squads of 50 athletes and still leave deserving athletes unselected.
The league table now shows us in 4th place (top 2 get promotion) with two matches still to go.
On to the athletics itself and for the first time this year in track and field the sun shone, shoulders turned pink and athletes, spectators and officials alike could enjoy the athletics free of waterproofs and winter coats. A strong head wind down the home straight pegged back the majority of times for the sprinters and horizontal jumpers though.
As previously mentioned, the U15 girls are always a force to be reckoned with, taking first place A and B string in all but one of the track events, which included Abbie Langley, Emma Komocki, Alexandra Turner, Charlotte Noonan, Leanne Cartledge and Tamara Armoush. At U13, two notable A and B string doubles came from Jessica Thorpe and Rosie Blount (1200m) and Emily Butlin and Jessica Turner (70m H). Olivia Pell continued an excellent season so far by winning both the U17 800m and a very competitive 1500m, whilst Abby Wood produced a 32m throw to win the hammer.
Andrew Szarkowski, the recently crowned North of England U17 400m champion, was never going to be troubled over the one lap race but surprise of the day came from a re-energised Toby Bryce-Jones who recorded a very respectable time for a lower-end athlete to win the B string. Shaun Rathbone won the 200m and took a close second in the 100m. Rob Love and Andrew Szarkowski did an A and B double in the 800m, with Rob timing his finishing burst to perfection. The U15 boys picked up consistent 2nd and 3rd places in their events, with only Michael Feeney winning an A event with a fine technical display of hurdling, and Joe Folan, Nick Rowton and newcomer Jack Brailsford taking B string wins in long jump, hurdles and high jump respectively. The U13 boys boosted the points total with a brace of wins including Midas-touch Michael Bosworth (200m, Shot and 1500m) and William Dennis (long jump and high jump). The 4 x 100 relay team of Ben Wilkinson, Charlie Waterhouse, Bosworth and Dennis shattered the existing club record by over 3 seconds.
Emma Komocki and Andrew Szarkowski were rewarded for their efforts by receiving the coveted Athlete of the Match T shirts for their track performances.
It wasn't all effort and concentration for the athletes though as they still had energy for post-match 'team bonding' waterjump dunkings.
The next match in this league is at Burton on June 25th.
Track Re-opens
After a 3 week closure for resurfacing work, the track is now open for business and training will be as normal.
The 'D' to the left of the pitches has now been rubber-crumbed and a permanently-sited high jump bed will be installed as soon as the bed is delivered from the supplier.
There will also be some extra lanes painted on this area for additional trackwork, and other areas of the track surround have also been rubber-crumbed too.
North of England U15 and U17 Championships 27th/ 28th May, Leeds
Three AVAC athletes won medals at this years
North of England Championships at the South Leeds Stadium.
On day one Abby Wood took silver in the U17 hammer with a throw of 29m 32.
On day two Emma Komocki also took silver in the U15 75m hurdles. Her time of 11.47 was a huge PB and keeps her ranked amongst the top 5 athletes in the country for this event.
Andrew Szarkowski won gold in the U17 400m. Despite being closed down in the final stages by the athlete in second place, he managed to win by one hundredth of a second!
Unluckiest athlete of the weekend was Sam Stone who was tipped to take a medal in the U17 100m hurdles but had to withdraw partway through the race due to a muscle pull sustained during warm up.
Tamara Armoush had to be content with finishing 5th in the U15 1500m final.
Combined Eventers Earn County Success
A record 10 AVAC athletes won through to represent Derbyshire County Schools at the forthcoming Midlands area Combined Events Championships in around 4 weeks time. Over two days of evening competition at Moorways on 24th and 25th May they ran, jumped and threw to take County medal places. The event attracted a record number of competitors from schools across the County.
The first to claim his County medal was Michael Feeney competing in the Junior Boys Pentathlon event (U15's). A fine collection of 4 pb's out of a possible 5, which included his first 5m plus long jump, gave him the silver medal. Also competing were Andy Shepherd who finished 8th overall, and Nick Rowton 10th.
The Junior Girls Pentathlon event was dominated by three of our high-performing club athletes, taking a clean sweep of medals, in a record field of 49 competitors. Hurdle specialist Emma Komocki was an easy winner by over 200 points, followed by Charlotte Noonan in second and Claudia Rogers in third. This talented trio are surely to be tipped to do very well at the Midlands Final.
In the Intermediate Boys (U17) Octathlon Andrew Szarkowski took the gold medal with a consistently high standard across the 8 events proving that he's not just a 400m runner! He was around 300 points clear of 2nd placed Ricky Kiggins, whose high jump PB of 1m 75 was particularly pleasing.
Chloe Smith took a well deserved bronze in the Intermediate Girls Heptathlon event.
The Senior Boys (U20's) competed in a two-day Octathlon event, with Decathlon specialist David Feeney taking an easy gold, with Richard Szarkowski earning County team selection with his bronze medal-winning position of third. Perhaps the high-light of the 2-day event was the high jump where David, Richard and Chesterfields Ben Mourbey matched each other jump for jump as the bar was raised progressively higher watched by almost all the other competitors and officials. David and Richard both had to settle for best jumps of 1m 90, both setting new PB's in the process and clearing bar heights in excess of their own height, with Mourbey taking the honours with a very respectable 1m 93.
Louise Feeney was unable to compete in the Senior Girls Heptathlon event but has been pre-selected and will join her brothers, along with her 7 clubmates, in the Midlands Schools Final at Moorways at the end of June. The best individuals and top team of 4 in each age group will go through to the National English Schools Combined Events Championships (also held at Moorways this year), in September.
Derbyshire Mini League Match 2, 27th May, Moorways
AVAC keep their hopes alive of taking the Mini League title despite losing match 2 on Saturday to Derby AC by only 13 points. Things are tight at the top overall with AVAC on 570 points , Derby on 558 and Chesterfield 454. Full results are on www.dcaa.org.uk
Leanne Cartledge showed her class by winning the U15 girls 1500m, with Lori Marshal taking a good second place. Emma Komocki won the U15 girls 75m Hurdles as usual, with second places in shot and long jump. Ben Wilkinson ran a close and exciting U13 boys 1500m to win, with Jamie Gascoyne well supporting in 3rd. Michael Feeney won both the U15 boys 80m hurdles and the javelin, whilst clubmates Andy Shepherd and Eddie Richards took second place in the high jump and 100m respectively. At U11 Jerome Richards came second in the 600m and turbo javelin, and Chelsea Sutcliffe picked up maximum points in the girls turbo javelin.
The next Mini League match is on Saturday 8th July at Moorways. Parents and athletes should look out for the yellow info / entry sheets at training in the weeks running up to the competition, and information is always given on the AVAC and DCAA websites.
Young Athletes League Match 2 Moorways, 21st May 06
The phrase 'team effort' perfectly sums up the Young Athletes League match on Sunday, at Moorways. With an almost full turnout of athletes, AVAC won the match in convincing style, amassing the huge points total of 455.5 pts. Leicester Coritanian came in second with 378.5 pts, Leamington were third with 184 pts and Bridgnorth & Shrewsbury fourth with 138 pts. Early indications predict that this will have moved the club up the league table from fifth to possibly third, depending on how the other clubs fared. Results can be tracked on www.natyal.co.uk over the coming days.
Not only did the athletes do well, but also the parent / coach 'team' who successfully staged it's first ever track and field competition. Being such a young club we don't have the support of experienced older hands to call on, so all roles (except for the Starter) had to be filled from our homegrown willing officials and volunteers. Hosting a match involves a lot of work behind the scenes but the match ran like clockwork with only small issues to have to deal with. It's a pity the weather had other ideas though! With only a few breaks in the showers it proved difficult conditions for everyone to work and compete in. Despite this there were again many personal bests, new club records and excellent performances from many athletes. Of particular note were:
U13
Michael Bosworth had yet another stunning day. He won the 1500m, Shot (setting a new club record) and 200m. His time of 26.7 lowered his own club record and was good enough to give him the Male Track Athlete of the Match award. Jessica Turner won the 70m Hurdles and 150m in close races, whilst Kelly-Jay Payling won the Shot and Ben Wilkinson the 800m.
U15
Emma Komocki won both the Long Jump and 75m Hurdles. Charlotte Noonan won the High Jump, Alexandra Turner was untroubled taking the 800m, as was Tamara Aroush in the 1500m. Michael Feeney won the 80m Hurdles, Long Jump and Javelin, Chris Dawe won the 1500m, Jordan Martin the 400m and special mention to Andrew Shephard who won the 800m in his first ever race for the club.
U17
The boys won almost every track event which included 'doubles' for Shaun Rathbone in the 100 and 200, and Rob Love in the 800m and 1500 Steeplechase. It was good to welcome back Abby Wood who won the Shot and Hammer, whilst Olivia Pell won the 1500m and Leila Armoush the 3K.
Whilst the event winners tend to grab the headlines, the success at a league match such as this depends heavily on all the team, picking up B string wins and those all-important seconds and thirds. Well done to all athletes who turned out for the club.
There weren't many athletes or officials / helpers who remained dry on Sunday - they really were very difficult conditions to work in. Thanks must go (in order of wetness!)
-
The Starting team - Gordan Staines assisted by Judy Payling and Gill Turner
-
The 'Chiefs' - Trevor Jolly, Paul English and Ruth and Richard Szarkowski
-
The track and field teams - Andrew Waterhouse, Janette Glenn, Pauline Love, Linda Pell, Paul Smith, Berni Dickenson, Richard Szarkowski (Jnr), Grant Barker and John Davis
-
The Team Managers (who only got a bit wet) Paul Noonan, Nigel Smith, Darren Barker, Amer Armoush and Jim Feeney
-
The Scoring Team (who had the foresight to opt for the driest job) Jane Rogers, Dave Turner, Julie Feeney and Louise Komocki.
Derbyshire County Championships 2006 13th/14th May, Harvey Hadden Stadium, Nottingham
Around 50 AVAC athletes of all ages competed in the annual two day Championships. In unseasonably cold, cloudy and sometimes wet conditions there were many excellent performances, several new club records and 3 official Championship Best Performances from our athletes. Sadly, some age groups and events suffered from a lack of entries but equally there were many exciting and well-fought contests. The Championships still tends to bring out the best in athletes especially when there's a medal at stake.
Three AVAC athletes set new Championship Best Performances (CBP). Michael Bosworth had an exceptionally successful weekend by setting a new CBP in the U13 boys 800m. He also won the 1500m, long jump and shot, and took silvers in the 100m and 200m. Alexandra Turner smashed the record for the U15 girls 800m. Her time of 2m 15. 5 looks likely to be one of the fastest times recorded in the country so far this season. David Feeney lowered the record for the Junior Mens 110m hurdles. Sadly, the U13 boys 4 x 100m relay team will not be allowed to claim the record they set. Rory Chambers, Ben Wilkinson, Michael Bosworth and Charlie Waterhouse took over a second off the existing record (incidentally held by an AVAC team from 2002) but were denied on a technicality.
Several athletes missed taking CBPs by a whisker. Emma Komocki, despite running a PB, missed the record by point 1 of a second in the U15 girls 75mH, whilst Sam Stone was outside the CBP in the 100mH for U17 men by only point 2 of a second. Tamara Armoush ran inside the CBP times in the U15 girls 800m and 1500m yet could 'only' manage bronze in the former and silver in the latter, which shows what an exceptionally quality field it was. The U15 girls 4 x 100m relay team of Emma Komocki, Claudia Rogers, Abbie Langley and Alexandra Turner just missed the CBP by half a second.
Perhaps the closest and most dramatic race of the weekend came in the U15 girls 200m. Claudia Rogers, leading for most of the race was holding off the fast closing challenge of Alex Turner. Claudia's last ditch dip for the line caused her to fall heavily to the track. Both girls were given the same time (which they will now share as a new club record) but Alex was given the nod for the gold by the judges. Abbie Langley made it an AVAC 1, 2, 3 for bronze. Another clean sweep for the athletes in yellow came in the U17 mens 100m with Josh Cartledge just pipping team mates Andrew Szarkowski and Shaun Rathbone.
Sadly, many of the events had few entries but two races saw AVAC athletes taking gold with sizeable fields. Olivia Pell ran an excellent U17 women's 1500m and dipped under 5 mins for the first time ever, whilst the in-form Leila Armoush took gold in the 3000m despite the sudden downpour.
The junior athletes didn't have it all their own way. Steve Bonnington (running as unattached until his AVAC eligibility comes through) ran a superb race in the Sen Mens 1500m judging his finishing kick on the last lap to perfection to take the gold.
Full results are on www.dcaa.org.uk. A brief unscientific analysis of the Derbyshire results reveals that AVAC probably took more medals in the U13 to U17 age groups than all the other Derbyshire clubs put together - a successful weekend indeed!
Mini League Match 2 Saturday 27th May
A reminder that the next Mini League match is taking place soon at Moorways. Yellow info slips are being given out at training so please ask at the payment desk if you have not yet received one.
The event is open to all AVAC members who are in school years 4 to 9 (min age 9 years, max 14 years on the day) regardless of experience or ability - an ideal opportunity to have a go for those new to the sport.
A programme is on the Derbyshire Athletics website www.dcaa.org.uk so you can see which events are included for your age group.
First events start at 10.30am and go on till about 1.30pm. U17s can guest in most events.
Entries must be made in advance using the return slip on the yellow sheet, or alternatively email your selections to us at info@avac.org.uk.
Track Closure Update
The club has been informed that the surfacing work that was planned to start on 8th May has now been postponed. It is thought that the contractors may start week beginning 15th May instead but this is weather dependant.
So, the track will be in use this week and all athletes should note, that due to the uncertainty it would be worth coming prepared for either track / grass or indoor work over the coming weeks.
Stop Press!
Training on Saturday 13th May will be cancelled for all groups. Unfortunately we will not be able to provide the coaching cover we previously thought we could due to the County Championships taking place and coaches personal arrangements. Could all members please try to spread the word about this cancellation as the decision has had to be made at short notice.
All other sessions are unaffected (although please remember that the track will be out of use for around a 2 week period from 8th May for essential surfacing work).
Young Athletes League Match 1 30th April, Coventry
A squad of over 40 AVAC athletes traveled to the home of Coventry Godiva AC for the first match in this years Young Athletes League. The aim of this season has to be promotion to the Midland Premier League, something we narrowly missed last year. The host club were always likely to be our main opposition having home advantage and, being demoted from the Premier last year, keen to make a swift return. It quickly became a two horse race. Kettering and Retford had their own battle for 3rd and 4th place, whilst the lead was generally held by Coventry albeit by a handful of points throughout. Apart from our U15 boys team who were decimated by injury and unavailability, we fielded almost full teams across the age groups and were undoubtedly strengthened by the athletes who have recently transferred from Kirk Hallam AC. The final results have still not been confirmed but Coventry pipped us to first place by only around 15 points.
Many athletes excelled across a range of events. Andrew Szarkowski was victorious in the U17 M 200m and 400m, Michael Bosworth took maximum points winning the U13B 200m, 1500m and shot, Alexandra Turner won the U15G 100m and 800m and Daniel Langley won the U17M long jump and 'B' string 100m and 200m.
The clubs hurdlers strengthened the points total by winning 'A' and 'B' string in every age group they contested. At the younger end, Jessica Turner and Rosie Blount made it maximum points in the U13G with Rory Chambers doing the same for the boys. At U15 Emma Komocki and Claudia Rogers were untroubled in their race, whilst Nick Rowton added the hurdles win to his one in the discus. Sadly, no AVAC female competitors at U17, but Sam Stone and Ricky Kiggins gave a fine hurdling display in their race for maximum team points.
Some of the distance races proved very entertaining and exciting from an AVAC point of view. Chris Dawe showed total determination in his U15B 1500m. He held off the repeated challenge from two Coventry athletes to win in fine style to the delight of the sizeable crowd of AVAC supporters. At U17 Leila Armoush won a well-deserved 3K and took the 'B' string 1500m whilst team-mate Olivia Pell had to settle for 2 close second places in the 800m and 1500m. Tamara Armoush fought a close contest with her Kettering adversary also taking second but was well supported by Leanne Cartledge who won the 'B' race. Rob Love ran a tactically strong U17M 1500m steeplechase taking the lead with just over a lap to go and never looked back. Credit to Fred Maier in his first ever steeplechase who made it round despite nursing an injured leg and suffering several dunkings in the chilly waterjump! The sprinters had success too with two notable 'A' and 'B' doubles from William Dennis and Charlie Waterhouse in the U13B 100m, and Alex Turner and Abbie Langley in the U15G 100m.
Three new club records were set by Nick Rowton in the U15B hammer, Charlotte Noonan in the U15G high jump and Chloe Smith in the U17W triple jump.
In a match so close every single point counted and credit is due to those athletes who gained valuable team points, often in events that are not their preferred choice. Thank you to everyone who turned out for the club, and to all our officials, team managers and supportive parents.
Full results will be on www.natyal.co.uk. Matches 2 and 3 in this league follow very soon on May 21st and June 4th both at Moorways, where we shall be competing against 7 different teams.
Important News About Ilkeston Track Closure
Rutland Sports Park are having to close the entire track for a 2 week period. The 'D' end (which will ultimately house a permanent outdoor high jump and additional track space) has to be surfaced with a top layer. Contractors have to have a period of warm dry weather to do this and health and safety considerations permit users in the vicinity whilst work is ongoing.
Work is scheduled to start on Monday 8th May for 2 weeks. Training on Saturdays and Wednesdays will still go ahead using the tennis centre and the large grass area. This inevitably means that groups will have to adapt their sessions. Athletes should report into the tennis centre as normal to find out the session options from their coach.
Athletes who train at the track on Tuesdays and Thursdays will need to see their coach for alternative arrangements.
Please be aware that the work may finish earlier or later than we have been given initial information about (the surfacing is very much weather-sensitive). Athletes are strongly encouraged to take up the alternative training arrangements on offer during this important period of competition preparation.
Young Athletes League Match 1 Coventry, 30th April
A reminder to all those athletes selected for this match that you must confirm your availability with team managers immediately. Those traveling on the coach should be at Belper Leisure Centre by 9.15am. If you are making your own way there you must be at the venue before the start of the first events so that team managers can complete declaration sheets.
Details of the venue can be found on www.runtrackdir.com. Maps will also be available from training on Saturday 29th. The track is on the University of Warwick campus, Kirby Corner Road, Coventry. Estimated journey time by car is 1hour 15 mins. Refreshments will be on sale from the club house. Large car park. No covered stand.
Derbyshire Mini League 22nd April 2006
AVAC made an excellent start to this years 4 match series. With a record number of young athletes taking part from the club (over 60) this was the first significant opportunity for athletes to compete for the newly enlarged club as a result of the merger with Kirk Hallam AC. We came out winners (287 pts), ahead of an obviously recharged Derby AC (262 pts), with Chesterfield in third (218 pts). Despite the very un-spring like weather there were many good performances and many athletes grabbed the opportunity to impress team selectors for forthcoming league matches.
There was a clean sweep for the club in the two Athlete of the Match Awards. Michael Bosworth was a well deserved recipient gaining a Grade 1 performance in the U13B 200m . His time of 26.9 was a new club record, a new Mini League record and he also showed his versatility by winning the U13B shot and the 800m. What a great start to his season.
Emma Komocki picked up the girls trophy for her Grade 1 U15G 75m hurdles performance and got her English Schools qualifier in the bag early in the season. She also won the High jump with a respectable 1m 40.
Ellie Rogers was impressive in the U11 category by winning the 80m and high jump, while sister Claudia had a fine run to win the U15G 200m improving her existing club record. Other girls to win their events included Kelly-Jay Payling (U13G shot), Alex Turner (U15G 800m) and Jennie Lockwood (U11G 600m).
In the boys events notable winning performances included Aidan Smith (U13B high jump), Eddie Richards (U15B 200m) and Michael Feeney (U15B 80m hurdles).
SPORTS:HALL ALL UK FINALS AT N.I.A. BIRMINGHAM APRIL 9TH 2006
This is the Pinnacle of the Sports:Hall Year & what a great day Derbyshire had! Derbyshire had the U13 & U15 Girls Representing the East Midlands at the All UK Finals.
From Amber Valley, The U13 Girls were Emily Butlin, Jodie Wills, Jessica Riley, Emma Coleman.
The Derbyshire U15 Girls were nearly all Amber Valley AC: Emma Komocki, Chloe Smith, Alexandra Turner, Claudia Rogers and Charlotte Noonan.
The U13 Girls as a team finished 13th (last), but this was no mean achievement getting to the Finals, well done to all involved.
The U15 Girls as a team finished 4th - quite an outstanding performance.
Emma Komocki hits Gold in Speed Bounce with 88 in 30 seconds, silver for Abby Glover (Derby AC) in the 4 Lap Race and Bronze for Abby Glover & Alexandra Turner in the Parlaaf, Claudia Rogers came 5th in both Standing Long Jump & the 2 Lap Race. Then in the Final Race the 4x2 Lap Relay Team brought home a Bronze Medal - the successful girls were Chloe Smith, Claudia Rogers, Emma Komocki & Emily Buckley (Derby AC)
Use the links below to browse the rest of the News Archives: