July - September 2008
Important Information about Winter Training
The club will be reverting to its Winter Training Times on Wednesdays
with effect from 1st October. Those athletes and groups who have been
training on the track on Wednesdays, your last session is on 24th
September. Recreation Group have already moved indoors.
All groups will be using the Sportshall (Tennis Centre) from then on
as follows:
Wednesdays
Recreation Group:
Time: 7 - 8pm
Collection of money: 6.50 - 7.00pm
Area: using 1 court
Format: introductory skills and drills / fitness / event specific
(including Sportshall events)
Age group: 8 - 11's
Intermediate Group
Time: 7.15 - 8.15pm
Collection of money: 7 - 7.15pm
Area: middle court
Format: skills and drills / fitness / event specific
Age Group: This summers U13's and some U11's
NB: this group will aim to strike a balance between maintaining event
specific coaching (e.g. hurdles / shot / high jump etc), as well as
fitness and agility work / jumping, bounding activities / Sportshall
event practice and so on, aiming to equip athletes with a range of
skills and competencies.
Advanced Group
Time: 7.15 - 7.30 warm up, 7.30 - 8.30pm main activity
Collection of money: 7.05 - 7.15pm
Area: 1 court
Format: strength and conditioning / agility / speed & power development
designed to complement work done on the track . Using medicine balls,
introductory lifting techniques, circuit training, plyometrics etc.
Age group: This summers U15's, U17 and U20's.
Saturdays
Training times remain the same (all groups 10am -12). The track will still be used, weather permitting, by certain event groups (not Recreation Group) with the option of indoor work at the discretion of club coaches. ALL athletes must pay and register at the Sportshall and wait for your coach / group there. Junior middle distance athletes should note that middle distance coaching will not be offered on the days when there is a cross country competition. Please see the Fixtures List on this site or the club noticeboard for dates when this applies.
Tuesdays & Thursdays
Training times and structure of these track training sessions remain unchanged. Training continues throughout the winter, including school holidays, for endurance, sprint and hurdles groups. Tuesdays and Thursdays are for adults and invited juniors only. If you are new to the club and / or athletics this is NOT the session for you unless specifically invited by a relevant coach. Saturdays and Wednesdays are General club sessions.
Thursday (Junior) Middle Distance Group
This group will finish training at Shipley Park 7 – 8pm on Thursday
18th September. As from Thursday 25th the group will meet at Belper
Leisure Centre (car park) 7pm. Training runs take place from here around
the streets on tried and trusted routes. All middle distance / cross
country athletes welcome (min age 10 years). First timers should check
with Jim Feeney first to make sure that the group is suitable for them
and that the standard is appropriate.
Heart of England League News
Following the third and final fixture at Rugby on 7th September, AVAC have finished in 3rd place. This means that we finish in 3rd place overall in the league (Rugby & Northampton 1st, Solihull 2nd) and we will remain in the top division of this league for 2009.
There is further good news for the U17 Mens team and the U11 girls
team who both topped their age group after the 3 matches. Four U11
athletes will receive medals for their top 3 finishes across the 3
matches. Jethro McGraw wins gold for the fastest recorded 600m and a
bronze for 3rd in the 75m, and Joe Reeve recorded the 3rd fastest 600m
time. Niamh Emerson shares equal 1st in the 600m and Megan Bruce will
receive a bronze for her 75m time.
Presentation Evening
This years Big Night Out is on Friday 28th November at the Riddings Community Centre (near Leabrooks, part way between Ripley and Alfreton). With this years James Bond theme of smart evening wear, it's sure to be a night to remember!
Put the date in your diaries now. Tickets will go on sale in October.
County Congratulations
Well done to AVAC athletes Dominic Hare, Robyn Allan, Tom Bridge, Jessica Turner, Ryan Newton, Emily Butlin and Michael Bosworth who were all selected to represent Derbyshire at the annual Young Athletes Inter-Counties match.
This years match was at Grimsby and the strong team of U13's and
U15's finished an excellent 2nd place out of 7 county teams, narrowly
conceding to an ever-strong Warwickshire team.
Club Championships
There is still chance to enter the last track and field event of the season, our own Club Championships, on Saturday 20th September at the Rutland Sports Park.
There is NO TRAINING on this day, do the Championships instead!
Field events start at 10.30am (warm up and number collection from 9.30am), break for lunch, and track events start at 1.30pm. Annual trophies and medals for winners in each age group U11 to U17.
Entries are still being taken at training, £3 covers all events. Closing date Thursday 18th Sept. Details here
Remember the Mile Handicap race for U20's and Seniors, male and female, starting at 2.30pm. Entries beforehand or on the day to John Davies. Annual trophy for the winner.
Extraordinary General Meeting
An EGM is being called for the purpose of:
- Election of new Treasurer
- Election of new Club Officer (Kit / Clothing)
- Election of new General Committee Member
Tuesday 23rd September, 8.15pm, trackside (after completion of
training). All welcome.
Challons-en-Champagne Return Exchange
In April 2007 Ilkeston hosted the bi-annual cultural and sporting town twinning event. AVAC hosted a number of French athletes for a weekend of sport and friendship. The Easter weekend of 2009 will see AVAC club members having the opportunity to go on a return visit to Challons.
At this stage the club is gauging interest, with those families who hosted French visitors in 2007 naturally having priority.
Further information will follow over the autumn but those who are
interested in taking part might like to speak to Dave Turner (Chairman)
at training to register their interest.
Cross Country
After a mainly wet and windy track and field season, thoughts are now turning to the cross country season. There are plenty of competitions, local and further afield, for all ages and abilities to take part in throughout to March 2009. Every club member can take part (subject to competition age restrictions / larger national races must be pre-entered either by the individual or by the club).
Watch out for the following to name a few:
- The North Midland League races on 11th October, 8th and 29th November, 17th January U11's to Veterans.
- Derbyshire Mini League - 3 races locally for U11, U13 and U15's, dates to be decided.
- National Road Running Relays, Sutton Park Birmingham, 19th October, 11 year olds on the day through to Veterans. Pre-entry via the club essential.
- National Cross Country Relays, 1st November. Unmissable
short-course action at Berry Hill Park, Mansfield. 11 year olds on
the day through to Veterans. Pre-entry via the club essential.
Look out for more details on the trackside noticeboard at Rutland Sports Park.
Sportshall Athletics Action
If cross country isn't your thing, then fast and fun 'Sportshall' should be. As part of the Derbyshire Mini League there are 6 competitions over the winter months all at Queens Park Leisure Centre, Chesterfield. The first one is on 28th September. Doors open at 1pm for warm up, for a 1.30pm start.
All athletes aged 9 years on the day through to 15 year olds who were U15 during the 2008 track and field season can take part. Events include sprints, relays, speed bounce, shot, standing long and triple jump to name a few. Ideal for all athletes to keep fit, active and competition focussed during the winter.
The best athletes will be selected for the Derbyshire Team for the fantastic and exciting Regional Sportshall Finals in February.
Coaching and Volunteering Opportunities
Amber Valley Borough Councils Sports Development Unit are organising a Level 2 Community Sports Leader Award during the school half term week in October.
The course is ideal for anyone (aged 16 +) who would like to be
involved with children's sport and coaching multi-activities. You do not
have to have done the Level 1.
See here for more details or see club coach Sarah Bingham at
training.
There is also a Basic First Aid
course running shortly which would be interest to coaches, parents
and athletes .
If you would like to become more involved in athletics there are
volunteering opportunities over the autumn. The Sports Development Unit
are organising 10 Sportshall athletics competitions at the Boroughs 4
leisure centres for Amber Valley primary schools, pupils in Years 5 and
6.
New volunteers are always welcome to help run and score the events. You'll get training and support to carry out simple roles and it's good fun too. Athletes - this is a great way to log those 'community service' hours that schools request and volunteering always impresses on job and university applications!
See club coach Julie Feeney for details, dates and venues.
AVAC is always keen to encourage new coaches. So whether you are a
parent, grandparent, athlete or ex-athlete you could help the next
generation. Level 1 (Assistant Coach) training days are 1-day in length,
and are fully funded by the club for those who
can commit to club coaching on a regular basis (once a week, once a
month etc).
The next courses coming up are on 1st Nov at Loughborough University,
15th November at Mount St Marys College (junc 30 M1) and 6th Dec at
Moorways Stadium, Derby. Please see Julie Feeney at training for details
or email here.
Running Day
Runners of all ages may be interested to learn of the Experian Festival of Running in Nottingham on September 14th.
As well as half and full marathons there are races and runs for all age groups. Of particular interest might be The Boots Maid Marian Mile including races for U11's through to adult.
Details and entry forms can be found on www.experianfestivalofrunning.co.uk
Recreation Group Enjoy the 3 Event Challenge
Saturday 30th August saw 24 members of the Recreation Group participate in a sprint race, long jump and turbo javelin events. The top three individuals were awarded a certificate. However, no one went home empty handed! Everyone had a dip in the goody bag, which contained stationary items, all ready for the approaching school term.
A few names are repeated over the three events, however everyone did extremely well and it is clear to see the improvements individuals have made over the season.
In the 75-metre sprint Taylor Bull finished in 3rd place, Ben Mitchell took 2nd place. Not to be out done by the boys, Niamh Emerson ran away with the top spot with a time of 11.08 seconds.
In the long jump competition Michael Bull took 3rd place, Niamh Emerson 2nd and Taylor Bull finished in 1st place with a jump of 3.38 metres.
In the turbo javelin Ben Mitchell finished in 3rd position, Oliver
Brooks took 2nd place and Michael Bull claimed 1st place with a throw of
13metres.
It was a fun way of drawing to a close the outdoor track and field
season.
Sessions will now start to take place in the tennis centre, where the recreation group will be working on improving their Sportshall Athletics skills.
New York Marathon
One of our coaches Deana Emerson is running the New York Marathon on 2nd November in aid of the Breast Cancer Campaign.
You can sponsor Deana by clicking here: www.justgiving.com/deanaemerson2 or ask at training to support her.
If you want to know more about the New York Marathon you can have a look online: www.nycmarathon.org.
Updated Events Calendar
Click here for the updated fixture list.
Club Track and Field Championships
Round off this season with the friendly and fun AVAC Championships at
the Ilkeston track on Saturday 20th September. Trophies and medals for
the best all-rounder athletes in each age group U11 to U17. Choose 1
run, 1 jump and 1 throw to earn points, decathlon-style. Every club
member can take part. There's also the Handicap Mile event for U20's and
above, men and women competing for a handsome annual trophy. Details and
entry forms from training or see here.
Congratulations to........
Michael Bosworth for winning a bronze medal at the North of England Combined Events Championships in the U15 boys pentathlon.
Tamara Armoush, Claudia Rogers and Zac Hooper for their selections to be part of the East Midlands team for the UK School Games in Bristol.
Emily Butlin, Molly Mee, Jessica Turner, Ryan Newton, Dominic Hare, Tom Bridge and Michael Bosworth who have all been selected from Mini League performances to represent Derbyshire at the Young Athletes Inter-Counties match on 13th September.
Gary Bostock, Jack Elliott, Geoff Lowry and Rob Love who finished 3rd
in the Senior Mens category at the Pride Park Relays.
AVAC Regain Mini League Title
AVAC's young athletes eased to victory in the fourth and final Derbyshire Mini League track and field match of the season. Emerging as match winners over Derby AC by 10 points, the league title was clearly AVAC's after winning three out of the four matches.
Even the cold and wet weather at Moorways, more familiar in cross country matches, couldn't dampen the team's spirit of regaining the trophy from rivals Derby AC.
In the U11 age group George Rains dominated the sprint events by winning both the 80m and the 150m sprints. Jethro McGraw and Niamh Emerson recorded yet further wins in this league at 600m and Kasey Pearson threw over 15m with the turbo javelin to win this event.
The U13 girls were badly affected by holiday absences with only 3
girls available, but Robyn Allen ran well in difficult conditions for
2nd in the 1500m. Jerome Richards also ran well to also come 2nd in the
boys 1500m, Dominic Hare took 2nd in the 75mH and Jack Newton came 2nd
in shot.
The U15 boys bagged several wins including two for Michael Bosworth in
the 80mH and 400m, Josh Rae won the 1500m and Tom Bridge won the shot.
The Mini League trophy was presented to Michael Bosworth and Emily
Butlin who have competed in their last track and field Mini League and
who have both given great service to the club in Mini League. Tom Bridge
was presented with his male Athlete of the Match award for his
performance in the shot at Match 1.
Full results are on www.dcaa.org.uk
Selections for the Derbyshire team for the U13 and U15 Inter-Counties match at Grimsby on 13th September will be made on August 11th and athletes will be notified after this date.
The Mini League format will kick off again in September, with 3 cross
country and 6 Sportshall athletics fixtures giving all young athletes
the opportunity to keep active and competitive over the winter months.
Dates for these will appear on this website over the coming weeks.
Change of Fortune for AVAC
Within a matter of days the league fortunes of our teams efforts have
dramatically changed with the announcement of scrutinised results from
recent matches.
Following the composite Team CDAV's trip to Swansea in a make-or-break
final match in the National Junior League, the scrutinised results have
changed in our favour. It now shows that Team CDAV finished 3rd on the
day, crucially beating Cardiff by 6 points (instead of losing out by 2
points as originally thought).
Overall this means that Team CDAV finish 6th overall, we will not have to contest the playoff match on 7th September and can look forward to another season in the Midlands Premier top-flight league. To cap it all CDAV's women topped the league, beating Birchfield's women - well done girls!
Full results as follows:
MATCH RESULT LEAGUE STANDINGS
Event Lge Pts Event Lge Pts
1 BIR 488 8 1 Birchfield Harriers 1931 31
2 WWA 477 7 2 West Wales 1774 22
3 CDA 449.5 6 3 Mansfield Harriers 1711.75 22
4 CDF 443.5 5 4 Cannock & Stafford AC 1567.25 19
5 MNS 427 4 5 Nott's AC 1658.25 16
6 NOT 420 3 6 Team CDAV 1556.25 15
7 C&S 283 2 7 Cardiff AC 1564.5 14
8 TWT 230 1 8 Tamworth AC 1134 5
Disappointingly though, recent checks on the Young Athletes League website reveal that after results have been scrutinised, AVAC have not won promotion to the Midlands Premier League next season after all.
In match 4 at Stourport, Tamworth won by 6.5 points. The fifth match at Coventry which AVAC appeared to have won by 1 point has been altered to losing to Coventry by 8 points. The impact of these two matches changing is that overall we have finished in 3rd place in the league. With the top 2 gaining promotion this means that AVAC has just missed promotion and we will be spending next season in Division 1 East again.
The fact that post event scrutiny of results has had such a dramatic
change on the overall League positions shows just how tight it has been
at the top of this division and we have come very close to securing
promotion so its still a big 'well done' to all of those athletes who
have worked hard to put the Club in promotion contention.
Never has the saying 'Some you win, some you loose' been more
appropriate to sum up AVAC's season this summer.
Treasurer Required
A volunteer vacancy has arisen on the AVAC Committee for a Club Treasurer. The Committee is looking for a keen, reliable and trustworthy individual with a head for figures and budgets (not necessarily with accountancy experience or qualifications).
Roles include receiving and banking regular sums of money from training fees and memberships, maintaining club accounts, preparing year end accounts for auditing, and preparing the budget for the forthcoming year. We also expect the Treasurer to take a proactive part in club activities as a member of the Management Committee and must be available for monthly Meetings (on Monday evenings in Ilkeston).
Interested? Please speak to Dave Turner (Chair) or Jim Feeney (Vice Chair) at training, or email queries or register your interest here: feeney@mailbox60.freeserve.co.uk
Team CDAV Denied by 2 points
Twenty one AVAC athletes and officials made the long trip to Swansea at the weekend to contest the final match in the National Junior League. As part of Team CDAV with our colleagues from Chesterfield DAC, a win over Cardiff AC was the target to make certainty of a place in the Midlands Premier League again next year.
However, despite some top-class performances and 100% effort we lost out to Cardiff by only 2 match points, with Cardiff finishing 3rd on the day and Team CDAV 4th out of the 8 clubs competing. Team CDAV now have to win the right to Premiership competition by contesting the playoff match on 7th September.
Overall, Tamworth are automatically relegated in 8th place, Team CDAV
finished 7th and Cardiff 6th. Birchfield Harriers easily won the
division overall.
The team travelled to Wales the day before and stopped overnight in Port
Talbot before making the short trip down the M4 into Swansea on Sunday
morning. With temperatures in the mid-20's, a gloriously scenic stadium
venue only a 5 minute walk from the beach, and some Welsh hospitality
this seemed to bring out the best in many athletes (despite severe lack
of sleep the night before from the 'team bonding' at the hotel!).
Getting the day off to a good start was Emma Komocki winning the A
string 400H, with Louise Feeney winning the B string in the first of 2
PB's for her. Alex Turner showed a pleasing return to form by winning
the A string 800m in her front-running style, with her best time of the
season so far.
Tamara Armoush bagged maximum points in the A string 1500m with a comfortable win. Backing both these performances was Lori Marshall who came 2nd in the B 800m in a new PB time, and 1st in the B 1500m. Clearly the distance runners were relishing the high temperatures.
The steeplechase proved to be very popular (probably due to the cooling waterjump), so much so that Team CDAV had 2 scorers and 3 guests keen to take part in the women's event. Tamara chalked up her second win of the afternoon tackling the barriers in the women's 1500 event with ease, to record a PB time which will take her to 5th in the UK rankings at U20 (there are no rankings at U17 in steeplechase). Alex Turner made it maximum points for the team with a B string win. Lori and Leila Armoush dipped their toes in the water, quite literally, by tackling the event for the first time! Jack Elliott, much improved in this event this season, finished 3rd in the men's 2K version in a hotly contested race.
Nick Rowton threw a PB with the U20 weight discus to record a B string win. Finishing the afternoon in style was the 4 x 400m women's relay team of Louise Feeney, Tamara Armoush, Alex Turner and Emma Komocki who combined superbly to finish 2nd in an exciting race.
Thank you to all athletes, officials, and girls team manager Nigel
Smith for a fantastic team effort. Team selections for the playoff match
will be made shortly.
School's Out...
Training continues as normal throughout the school summer holidays (apart from August 9th due to Mini League - see below).
There are plenty more competition opportunities still available in August and September. See the updated fixture list to find out what is available.
Details are also on the noticeboard at the track, or ask your coach. Watch out for details soon our fun end-of-the-season Club Championships on Saturday 20th September.
Derbyshire Mini League
The fourth and final match in this league is on Saturday 9th August
at Moorways Stadium, Derby. Info / entry forms are now available from
training and can also be
downloaded here,
and also here.
This is a fantastic league for beginner and experienced 9 to 14 year
olds alike. Never competed before? The League is an ideal starting point
with many athletes having taken their first steps in track and field
this way. This is the last match left in the league so don't miss your
chance to show your coaches what you can do, and gain possible selection
for the Inter-County match in September.
AVAC are currently leading the league so an exciting finale is in
prospect! It's easy to take part. Complete the entry slip with the
events you want to do and return to training. Turn up on the day, pay £1
to team managers, then run, jump and throw!
Please note that all members are expected to take part and training for
all but pre-arranged U17+ coach-lead groups is CANCELLED on this day.
Young Athletes are Champions!
AVAC's young athletes can look forward to Premier Division action in 2009 thanks to this seasons team winning Division 1 East of the National Young Athletes League.
Topping the table with 5 wins out of 5 matches the clubs U13's, U15's and U17's won a close match on Sunday 20th July at Leicester to seal promotion to the top flight next year. Requiring only a top 2 finish on Sunday against close rivals Coventry Godiva to be sure of promotion, the team gave everything as usual to win by 1 point on the day.
Now we can relax a little and thank those who made this possible. To all the athletes who turned out, many whom were available for every match and willingly do events in addition to their favoured ones; to our team managers Julie, Jim, Judy and Grant who work so hard behind the scenes to get strong teams and get everyone in the right place at the right time; to our officials, who are essential to the smooth running of matches, work in all weathers and earn team vital points as well, and not forgetting our hardworking coaches preparing our athletes week in week out.
A truly team effort. Well done to all.
Country Call-Ups
Following her silver medal at English Schools, Claudia Rogers was selected to compete for England at the Schools International match at Bedford on 21st July.
Against teams from Wales, Scotland and Ireland, Claudia ran in her favoured event, the 300m Hurdles where she finished in 3rd place. England eventually won the match by over 150 points from Ireland in 2nd, Wales 3rd and Scotland 4th.
Meanwhile David Feeney has received a Great Britain U23 selection for an international combined events match against France, Switzerland and the Netherlands. Sadly, he is not able to take up the offer due to a knee injury which looks to put him out of action for the rest of the season.
Well done Claudia and commiserations David!
Heart of England League Improvement
AVAC moved up one place in Division 1 of the Heart of England League
following a successful trip to Tamworth on 6th July.
The Club is now is 2nd place overall, with Solihull having moved into top spot, and Rugby & Northampton unusually falling two places to 3rd.
Overall finishing places per age group on the day were as follows:
U11B 2nd
U13B 7th
U15B 1st
U17M 1st
Men Total 2nd
U11G 2nd
U13G 6th
U15G 2nd
U17+Women 2nd
Women Total 3rd
You can download the results by age group here.
Overall after 2 matches 1st Solihull, 2nd AVAC, 3rd R&N, 4th
Worcester, 5th Tamworth, 6th Halesowen, 7th Nuneaton. Results here.
(Please note that U11 guest races have not had names recorded).
The last match in the League is on 7th September at Rugby.
AVAC Regain Mini League Lead
Around 55 young AVAC athletes competed at Moorways on 12th July in the third match in the Derbyshire Track and Field Mini League series.
The Club won on the day in convincing fashion by over 100 points from Derby AC in 2nd, giving us a narrow but significant lead going into the final match in August where the trophy winners will be decided. Athletes were also keen to do well, to impress the selectors when it comes to deciding the U13 / U15 Derbyshire team for the annual Inter-Counties match on September 13th at Hull. The County team will only be selected from Mini League and County Championships performances.
U11's Megan Bruce and Jethro McGraw again dominated the two individual events which their age group is allowed to contest, Megan winning both the 80m and 150m, and Jethro the 150m and 600m. Phillipa Wright ably backed up maximum points for AVAC in the sprint events by finishing 2nd in both events to Megan. George Rains took 2nd in the 150m and Joe Reeve was also 2nd in the long jump. Niamh Emerson kept her unbroken record in the 600m winning by a clear margin again.
At U13, there were 2nd places for Emily Heappey (100m) Maddy Cusack (200m) Dominic Hare (75mH), Molly Mee (800m), Imogen Cresswell (shot) and Jerome Richards (800m and shot).
In the U15 age group there were double wins for Emily Butlin (high jump and 75mH) and Ryan Newton (100m and 200m). Club newcomer Alex Harker made an impressive debut winning the boys 800m whilst Jessica Turner did likewise in the girls event. Picking up useful team points were Michael Bosworth who came 1st in the 80mH and 2nd in shot and long jump, and Kelly-Jay Payling who won the shot and came 3rd in discus.
Full results are on www.dcaa.org.uk
and the final match is on 9th August.
Top Marks for Claudia
AVAC athlete Claudia Rogers was one of several Derbyshire athletes who medalled at the English Schools Track and Field Championships at the weekend.
She took silver in the Intermediate Girls 300m Hurdles to become the club's third ever English Schools medallist. In the superbly organised Sainsbury's-sponsored event at Gateshead, she progressed from heats to semi's where she recorded a PB of 44.45 to go 5th on the UK rankings so far this year. The second-place finish earns her a place in the England team at the Schools International at Bedford on 19th July.
Clubmate Emma Komocki also progressed through the 300mH event to at last, have some luck at English Schools. She ran a strong race to take 5th place in the final.
Tom Bridge, in his first Finals, finished 8th in the Junior Boys
shot, as one of the youngest competitors.
Elsewhere, other AVAC athletes, Alexandra Turner, Tamara Armoush,
Michael Feeney, Sam Stone and Zac Hooper found the going tough and
failed to progress further than their heats.
Forthcoming Open Meetings
Halfway through the track and field season now.... if you still feel that you have plenty of competition left in you, why not give these local Opens a try.
Details are on the club noticeboard at the entrance to the track, and entry forms are available to download from the relevant club's website. Most events available for all ages from U11's to seniors. These are not league competitions so no club selections are made.
Anyone can enter regardless of ability or experience.
Charnwood AC Open Meetings on Wednesdays 23rd July and 20th August at
the Loughborough University track. First events 6.45pm. Enter on the
night.
Watch out for their very popular 'Stars of the Future' Meeting on Sunday
31st August, 12.00 onwards. Events for U11's to U20's. Medals for first
3 in each event.
Tamworth Games, Monday 25th August. Events for U11's to Seniors.
Electronic Timing and EDM long throws, medals and T-shirts. Very popular
and well-supported annual event. Pre-entry necessary. Closing date for
entries 4th August.
www.tamworthac.co.uk
Mansfield Open Meeting Saturday 23rd August, Berry Hill Park Stadium,
Mansfield, 1pm onwards. Events for U11's through to Veterans.
Competitors are seeded based on anticipated performance in mixed races.
Great for trying a new event or going for a PB. Enter on the day.
www.mansfield-harriers.org
AVAC Athletes Part of Winning Teams
A stunning set of performances by Derbyshire athletes at the Midland
Schools Combined Events Championships at Milton Keynes ensures that 10
local athletes go through to the English Schools Combined
Events Championships in September.
Competing in the Junior Boys Pentathlon Michael Bosworth earnt himself a
bronze medal and automatic qualification for the Finals, setting a new
points PB of 2490 with a solid set of performances. His place was far
from certain however, before the fifth and final event, his 800m
speciality. An incredible piece of gutsy loan running against the clock
saw him jump from 8th place to 3rd. The Junior Boys team finished in 4th
place overall out of 5 County teams. Michael made it to the Finals last
year as a lower-end Junior where he finished 22nd.
Michael Feeney and Arran Smith competed in the 2-day Octathlon for Intermediate Boys. Along with teammates Dan Burdett from Chesterfield DAC and Jack Andrew from Macclesfield AC the four lads lead the team competition from the very first event and won the team title in convincing fashion by 1400 points, to go through as a team to the Finals.
Michael and Arran gave solid performances across the 8 disciplines,
settling into 6th and 7th places overall respectively for almost the
entire event, backing up Dan in 4th place and Jack, one of the countries
up and coming decathlon stars, in 1st place. Michael has qualified for
the English Schools Championships in July as an individual in the 100m
Hurdles but this will be both Michael and Arran's first chance to compete
in the Combined Events Finals.
The Derbyshire Junior Girls quartet also came out on top in the team
event but, by contrast, their win was a total surprise. The presentation
ceremony revealed that the team, featuring AVAC's Emily Butlin, had won
the team title by only 40 points from the Nott's team who had held the
lead for much of the 1-day Pentathlon.
The Derbyshire girls' gutsy runs in the 800m made all the difference.
Emily finished in 11th place overall with PB's in 4 out of the 5 events.
Her teammates Suzzi Palmer, Agnes Milner and Rachel Griffiths (all from
Derby AC) finished in 1st, 14th and 19th respectively. AVAC new-comer
Catherine Ross, representing the Nott's team, finished in 10th place
overall with some consistently high performances.
Successful Eight Top of the Class!
The Derbyshire team for the English Schools Finals has been announced and 8 AVAC athletes have been selected. All have achieved the tough entry standard to reach the prestigious Finals in Gateshead on 11th and 12th July, which for many is the highlight of their track and field season.
The super 8 are Michael Feeney, Zach Hooper, Tamara Armoush, Claudia Rogers, Alexandra Turner, Emma Komocki, all of whom are in the Intermediate age group and have competed at English Schools in previous years, plus first-time selected Tom Bridge in the Junior age group. Sam Stone competing in the Senior age group for Nottinghamshire completes the line-up.
Commiserations must go to Ryan Newton and Jack Elliott who were
unfortunate to miss out on selection despite having achieved the entry
standard for their event. Team selectors from the Derbyshire Schools
Sports Association had the impossible task of trying to select from over
40 athletes with allocation to take only 35. The full Derbyshire team
plus event details can be found on
www.esaa.net.
Still with schools athletics, many AVAC athletes represented their
districts at the County Schools Championships on 14th June at Moorways.
Successful athletes from here progressed a week later onto County
representation at the annual Midlands Schools Inter-Counties
competition, this year at Leamington Spa. The photos show some of our
athletes in action wearing the red and blue Derbyshire Schools kit.
Derbyshire Mini League
The third match in this league is on Saturday 12th July at Moorways
Stadium, Derby. Info / entry forms are now available from training and
can also be downloaded
here, and
also here.
This is a fantastic league for beginner and experienced 9 to 14 year
olds alike. The first two matches were probably the best attended
matches in the leagues history and resulted in some excellent
competition for the Counties young athletes. Never competed before? The
League is an ideal starting point with many athletes having taken their
first steps in track and field this way. There is only one more match
left in the league so don't miss your chance to show your coaches what
you can do, and gain possible selection for the Inter-County match in
September.
AVAC are currently joint leaders with Derby AC so an exciting match is
in prospect! It's easy to take part. Complete the entry slip with the
events you want to do and return to training. Turn up on the day, pay £1
to team managers, then run, jump and throw!
Please note that all members are expected to take part and training for
all but pre-arranged U17+ coach-lead groups is CANCELLED on this day.
Heart of England League
Match 1 of Division 1 in this friendly domestic league was hosted at
Worcester on 8th June on a warm and sunny day, ideal conditions for many
disciplines. Indeed many athletes continued to improve mid-way through
the season with PB's and club records appearing throughout the
afternoon. Seven clubs took part and overall AVAC finished a pleasing
3rd behind last years winners Rugby & Northampton, and Solihull.
A small number of our higher-performing U11's got chance to compete in
this league in their own separate U11's match. Elliott Dipper, Phillipa
Wright, Jethro McGraw, Chloe Gee, Aiden Newton, Niamh Emerson and Oliver
Brookes all made their league debut, and along with Sharnie Richards,
finished in 3rd place for the boys and 2nd for the girls. Niamh gave
supporters the most thrilling of races in the 600m which saw her
overhaul the leading girl with a gutsy sprint finish to win by a
fraction of a second. Jethro McGraw's 600m was equally impressive in the
way that he dominated the race to win with a comfortable margin.
The U13 and U15 boys found the going tough and each managed to finish
in 5th place each in their age group. The highlight however was Tom
Bridges PB in the U15 shot of 12m 51 which increases his own club
record.
By contrast the U17 men had an impressive day finishing is 1st place.
Jack Elliott did the double when winning both the 800m and 1500m.
Michael Feeney and Ryan Bloore took A and B string wins in the 100m
Hurdles. There were B string wins for Dean Bower (200m), and Arran Smith
(LJ).
Overall, the combined results of the boys puts them in 4th place. The
girls go one better by finishing in 3rd place overall. In fact the girls
were particularly impressive with the U13's finishing 2nd, the U15 girls
finishing 4th, and the joint U17's / Women also finishing 2nd.
At U13 a most impressive piece of front running came from Robyn Allan
who won the first race of the day, the 1500m. Maddy Cusack had a
successful day when winning the A string 200m, the A Javelin and the B
shot putt.
Emily Butlin, at U15, continues to push the high jump club record by
recording a PB of 1.50 (the highest any female athlete has achieved so
far in the clubs short history). Jessica Turner (800m), Keira Gee (200m)
and Kelly-Jay Payling (shot) all performed well to take A string 2nd
place finishes.
The Women's age group saw an A string win for Tamara Armoush (800m), A
string 2nd places for Lori Marshall (1500m),Alex Turner (80mH and 400m),
and Chloe Smith (shot). To finish off a successful day the 4 x 100 relay
team of Abbie Langley, Jodie Will, Louise Feeney and Alex Turner won by
the thickness of a vest from the Rugby quartet.
Young Athletes League at Tipton
AVAC athletes turned in a truly magnificent performance on Sunday at the Third Round Midlands Div 1 East Young Athletes League match at Tipton. Regular points updates throughout the match indicated a very close match and so it turned out in the end with AVAC winning by only 6.5 points from host club Tipton.
Leicester Corintanian were close behind in 3rd only 11 points adrift of Tipton, with Corby trailing behind for 4th. The significance of the match can be seen when you note that AVAC are the only club in the division to still hold an unbeaten record from the 3 matches so far and appear to still be in first place and gunning for promotion (to be confirmed, all match results not in at the time of writing).
Of the many good performances, several stand out for particular mention. At U17 Jack Elliott won both the 3000m and the 1500m steeplechase, Arran Smith won the 400m hurdles and high jump, whilst Alexandra Turner won the 1500m and 300m.
At U15 Ryan Newton did the 100m and 200m double, Michael Bosworth won both the 1500m and 80m hurdles and Tom Bridge won shot and discus.
Thank you to all team managers, officials and volunteers and
especially to every athlete who helped to make this such a successful
match.