Medal Success at the UK indoor Champs.

Another excellent performance from Kissiwaa Mensah came from the U K Indoor Championships staged in Birmingham with second place gained in the 200 metres. After wins in her heat with 23.81s and again in the semi final with 23.67s the final brought a time of 23.50s and the first English athlete being behind Alyson Bell from Scotland.

Other Chelmsford athletes at this major championship meeting were Jessica Hopkins placing seventh in the women's shot putt with 13.94 metres,  Thomas Hewes eighth in the high jump with 2.03 metres and Alastair Brown also eighth in the men's shot putt with 14.65 metres - the first under 20 year athlete.

Report written by Roy Meadowcroft.

Muddy Marvellous results for CAC at the National XC Champs.

A most satisfactory day for Chelmsford in the National Cross Country Championships on the Parliament Hill Fields in London with two of our teams gaining team medals.

For the under 15 girls their reward was the glint of silver with Jorjia March in sixth place having a great run and leading them home. Ava King 30th, Lily Sanford 36th and Amelie Shipton 49th completing our scoring team with only the strong Aldershot going better than our 121 points. Also close up in our colours here were Isabelle Eida 54th and Hetty Harrison 86th.

What a close thing it was to be in the junior men’s race with the team scores eagerly awaited. It was Sam Plummer to be first over the line for Chelmsford in tenth place with William Nuttall close behind time wise in 16th spot, with Joseph Grange 45th and Finn Rattray 48th completing our scoring team for 119 points. with Gregory Martin placing 79th in reserve. Tonbridge were to be clear winners with 91  but Aldershot just nipped into second place bettering our score by just four points.

In a national meeting it is no mean feat for teams to take sixth spot  such as our under 15 boys and under 17 women achieved here. The boys had Joseph Delaney leading them in 15th place with Jacob Parrott 81st, Fred Ferman 107th, Daniel Pollard 133rd and the ever present Khaya Fakazi 297th. There was also another 15th place as Daisy Stollery led the women home with Harriet Matthews 55th, Jessica Walker 94th, Emma Cox 96th and Kate Cox 103rd.

With only three needed to score in the junior women's category and Larne Morgan 51st, Lucy Nuttall 55th and Molly Drane 93rd gave us tenth place in the team placing.

Alas in the under 13 year girls and under 17 men full teams were not put out. In the girls Isla Kehoe put in a fine race finishing 16th with Beatrix Cooke 57th and Jessica Hobson 84th in the field of some 300 runners. In the under 17 men`s event Jacob Hurrell placed 50th, Thomas Carter 148th and Ben Smith 230th,

Only James Pollard 123rd and Daniel Smith 167th tackled the under 13 boys race whilst at senior level – there were no women whatsoever but a large men’s contingent of eight athletes tackled the muddy 12km course. In a field of over 2400 runners our men placed 45th team lead home by Tom Rehal 139th followed by Sam Waite 223rd, Seb Cirillo 404th, Scott Thomas 543rd, Paul Grange 853rd, Thomas Murphy 883rd, Lee Martin 936th and Mick Bridgeland 1499th.

Report written by Roy Meadowcroft

Two Huge Weekends for the CAC Youngsters.

National titles for the younger age groups are the ultimate aim - and in the English Indoor Championships staged in Sheffield we were to claim three gold winning performances whilst also picking up silver and bronze. The shot putt proved to be most productive with Alastair Brown from the under 20 age group ,following up from his South of England success, with a best effort of 16.05 metres. From the under 17 year women Monica Malagala triumphed with a personnel best of 13.93m whilst Matilda Hewitt  was to come up with a silver medal earning of 13.21m. The shot was also to provide a bronze medal performance with Olivia Mullineaux's effort of 10.83m just ahead of Shindara Ayo-Adeyemo`s 10.52m for fourth with Saya Saunders on 9.94m placing sixth. Also going to the top of the podium we saw Ruby Vinton taking the 1500 metre title for under 20 year olds with a time of 4m 39.24s. In the same age group Sophie Catchpole came close to the medals placing fourth in the 60 metre hurdles event with 8.83s after her heats win of 8.77s and the same time in the semi-final - second spot. Also over the hurdles Harry Lee (under 17) did make the podium for after a heat win of 8.14s, a semi of 8.22s (2nd) he was to run a personnel best of 8.06s for second place and a coveted national medal.

In the under 17 age group Amelie Scott came up with a personnel best in the heats of the hurdles with 8.70s and placing second could not replicate this in the semi-final or final. Amelie was to finish place fourth in the long jump whilst also contesting the triple jump.

At the prestigious `Keely Klassic` in Birmingham originally set up for a record attempt by Keely Hodgkinson CAC were to make two club records with their under 17 year men and women achieving this in 4 x 200m relay races. In the men`s race won by Milton Keynes Chelmsford less than a second down with 1m 33.93s took second place. One has to go back to 2019 to find times superior to this. Our team here consisted of Harry Lee, Daniel Brown, Nathan Moses & Clark Junior Viernes In the women's race won by Rugby  we were to finish third in 1m 45.90s our team Ajicja Yalaju, Stephanie Smith, Lilly Hartman & Bella Johnson.  Well done all at the big meeting. In an individual 800 Jorjia March ran 2m 09.03s for  third place.

Report written by Roy Meadowcroft.