Herne Hill Harriers’ round-up: Ludewick and Anderson set new club senior records

Saturday’s BMC Grand Prix meet at Watford saw two Herne Hill Harriers’ club senior records, writes Geoff Jerwood.

Arlo Ludewick and Phoebe Anderson, both in their first year as senior athletes, ran big PBs in their respective events.

There was a certain symmetry in the timetabling of these records, as Ludewick set his in the second event of an evening of more than four hours of racing and Anderson’s came in the penultimate event.

Ludewick took down a club men’s 800m record which had belonged to Bob Setti for 60 years with a PB by three seconds of 1:48.45. He won a C race which, if based on pre-race times, he was expected to finish at the back.

Ludewick was seventh of eight in the field behind a closely-knit pack until he launched his finishing kick coming off the final bend. Swinging out into lane four down the home straight his run was timed to perfection to come through strongly for a huge breakthrough victory.

Ludewick will be racing in the men’s 1,500m at the British Athletics Championship in Manchester later this month.

Anderson was equally impressive later in the evening when she smashed her 5,000m PB by 20 seconds to clock 15:50.17. That time placed her sixth of 25 starters in a strong field of internationals.

Anderson’s time took the club women’s 5,000m record below 16 minutes. After running with the second group for the first half of the race Anderson was then detached and effectively running solo for the final few laps, although a strong final 400m saw her closing on those immediately ahead of her as the finish approached.

She is just outside the top 20 on the UK women’s 5,000m rankings and is fourth at U23 level.

Andrew Warburton ran a track PB 5,000m (15:15.87), while Annabel Hobday was disappointed with her 2:16.75 in an 800m race.

Harriers have two top level internationals with major championship aspirations this season.

Katie Snowden consolidated her position as one of the top ranked British female 1,500m runners with a fifth place in the Sollentuna World Athletics Continental Tour meet in Sweden on Sunday.

Her time of 4:06.08, although a little outside her season’s best so far was another qualifying time for the Commonwealth Games, which she hopes will reinforce her case for selection. Sprinter Kristal Awuah raced twice in Geneva on Saturday over 100m, clocking a wind-assisted 11.27 and a season’s best legal time of 11.36 as she too makes her case with selectors with relay as well as individual possibilities.

Allan Long (M75) claimed three national medals, two gold and one silver at the British Masters BMAF Championship in Derby.

Long was the winner of the 100m (15.45) and long jump (3.46m) as well as placing second in the 200m (33.09).

Giuseppe Minetti won the M50 sprint double with 12.11 in the 100m and 24.88 for 200m. Another double gold medallist was Nikki Sturzaker, who claimed the spoils in the W45 800m in 2:33.82 and 1,500m in 5:12.56.

Some very good 100m times were recorded at the Newham Summer Series at Stratford on Friday.

Michael Miller, another entrant for the upcoming British Championship, clocked 10.66 and 10.69, both only a few hundredths outside his season’s best.

Niyah Costley ran a PB of 11.86 in one of her races, with the other one being a wind-aided 12.17.

Sapphire Haley also ran a PB 12.50 and had a faster time of 12.42, but the latter was wind assisted.

Both of Myles Copeland’s races had following winds just over the permitted limit for times to count in rankings lists, but his 10.89 and 10.98 were nevertheless very impressive.

The London Schools Championship was in Battersea Park on Saturday, with at least a dozen Herne Hill athletes selected in the first wave of the London team for the English Schools Championship in July.

These include Ella Rennie (100m), Lily-Rose Brown (300m), Lucy Wright (800m), Sophia Sahai (800m), Victoria Alicante-King (shot put), Niyah Costley (100m), Je’nae James (shot put), Jon Goldston (300m), Keeran Sriskandarajah (800m), Dante Clarke (100m hurdles), Omari Jackson-Whyte and Alex Abebrese (both shot put).

Herne Hill’s team finished third at the Southern Athletics League fixture on Sunday at Battersea Park.

In the men’s events Victor Nzolele (11.2 and 22.8) and Andris Thorpe (11.4 and 23.8) were winners of the A and B 100m and 200m. Isaac Ogunlade was a very clear winner of the A 400m in 50.0 with Harvey Kande taking the B string in 53.6. Simon Coombes ran 4:20.2 in the B string 1,500m to take take the win, while Aaron Brown’s 6.03m did likewise in the B long jump. The men’s 4x100m relay team were winners in 45.8. A mixed 4x400m relay team with two men and two women won their race in 4:00.0.

Among the women, Khelya Ekwe and Joyce Kalombo won the 200m A and B in 27.0 and 26.8. Fiona de Mauny won the A 800m in 2:21.5 with Katy Matthews winning the B string in 2:31.0. Jenny Nandi was first in the B 5,000m in 19.41. Rosalie Laban won the 400m hurdles in 73.2. Lily Newton won the A 1,500m steeplechase in 5:23.9 with Izzy Perry taking the B race in 5:53.7. Jaydine Robinson and Kalombo had a win double in the long jump with PBs of 5.18m and 4.93m. James won the shot with 11.35m and the 4x100m relay team were first in 52.0.

MAIN PICTURE: MARK HOOKWAY
INSET PICTURE: JAMES RHODES