The annual Quayside 5k Road Race, held on Wednesday 15th August 2018, and organised by Gateshead Harriers attracted a total field of 694 competitors, with 205 finishing the elite race, and 489 taking part in the mass race.
Lewis Moses of Darlington Harriers won the elite race, which began fifteen minutes ahead of the mass start, by a comfortable margin of seventeen seconds from Morpeth Harrier Carl Avery. Moses posted a winning time of 14m34s, beating the old course record, whilst Avery, who has rarely been seen in competition this summer, finished in 14m51s, just managing to hold off the close attentions of Morpeth club colleague George Lowry, who finished third in 14m53s. Other Morpeth Harriers who finished prominently were Joe Armstrong (7th) 15m21s, Sam Hancox (8th) 15m30s, Thomas Straughan (10th) 15m38s, James Young (11th) 15m44s, and Jake Masterman (20th) (1st U20 Man) 16m08s. Morpeth Harriers had a total of 26 runners in the elite race, with further performances coming from Alistair Douglass (24th) 16m16s, Andrew Lawrence (26th) 16m19s, Matthew Briggs (34th) (3rd U20 Man) 16m37s, Richard Johnson (37th) 16m40s, Thomas Innes (49th) 17m01s, Richard Castledine (56th) 17m16s, Liam Marsh (81st) (5th U20 Man) 17m55s, Jane Hodgson (90th) (2nd O35 Woman) (6th Woman) 18m02s, Rob Hancox (100th) (3rd O50 Man) 18m14s, Shaun Land (105th) 18m21s, David Swinburne (118th) (9th O40 Man) 18m39s, Steve Haswell (121st) (5th O50 Man) 18m45s, David Nicholson (149th) (2nd O60 Man) 19m25s, Ben Dixon (150th) 19m27s, Gary Hall (157th) (13th O45) 19m38s, Helen King (168th) (1st O40 Woman) (15th Woman) 19m47s, Paul Bellingham (187th) (7th O55 Man) 20m28s, Claire Calverley (199th) (2nd O40 Woman) (23rd Woman) 21m25s, and Gracie Hufton (201st) (2nd U20 Woman) 21m50s. Five Morpeth Harriers competed in the mass start event. First home was Jim Alder, who finished in 50th place overall, posting a finishing time of 20m46s, and was fifth Over 55 Man. Other finishers from the club were Alison Brown (62nd) (7th Woman) 20m59s, Jill Bennett (128th) (2nd O45 Woman) 22m18s, Sue Smith (195th) (5th O50 Woman) 23m48s, and Pam Woodcock (253rd) (2nd O65 Woman) 25m15s. Morpeth Harrier Taylor Glover led a field of 283 finishers home in the annual Donaghadee 5k Road Race,
held in Northern Ireland on Wednesday 8th August 2018. Glover posted a finishing time of 16m23s, winning by a comfortable margin of seventy three seconds from Daniel McManus of Narrows Tri Club. Last week’s athletics report indicated that Morpeth Harriers Senior Men and Women had finished fourth in their final Northern League Division 2E match at Darlington on Sunday 4th August 2018.
Following further results scrutiny, they actually finished third, which although still meant that they finished third overall for the season, they very nearly finished second. Having level league points with Wallsend/Blyth, who were second overall, they only lost out by a mere twenty-seven match points on countback. Once again, well done to the squad for a superb performance. Morpeth’s Laura Weightman superbly maintained her love affair with major championships
on Sunday evening in Berlin’s Olympic Stadium, when she won a Bronze medal behind fellow Brit Laura Muir in the Women’s 1500m final at the European’s. Weightman very much immediately went to the front of affairs in the three and three-quarter lap event, and led the field until two laps to go, when Muir went to the front. At that point, Muir put in a 62 second lap to take the bell, having established a very strong lead. With 200m remaining as Muir drew further ahead, Weightman, who had chased her alone after she broke, began to weaken slightly, and with 100m to go, with Muir now well clear, Weightman was caught by her heat winner from the Friday Sofia Ennaoui of Poland. Weightman dug deep at this point, and while she couldn’t quite match the finishing pace of Ennaoui, she managed to hold off Ireland’s Ciara Mageean to win her second European Bronze, by nearly a whole second, posting a time of 4m03.75s. Whilst this was Weightman’s second European outdoor Bronze medal, it was Muir’s first outdoor Gold Medal, and in fact Britain’s first outdoor European Gold. Weightman had very nearly won her heat on the Friday, where she posted the second fastest overall heat time of 4m08.74s, and the end result of a Bronze medal was very rewarding. The second day’s competition at the Northern Athletics Under 13/Under15/Under 17 Track & Field Championships, held at Wavertree Stadium in Liverpool on Sunday 12th August 2018, saw three Morpeth Harriers in competitive action, and there was a superb return of three medals as each of them made the podium in their respective events.
North Eastern Champion Andrew Knight, in perhaps his last appearance in the Blue and White vest of Morpeth won a much-prized Gold Medal in the Under 17 Men’s 5k Shot Putt, throwing an on the day best of 16.93m, winning by a comfortable 2.63m from Kingston upon Hull’s Shaun Kerry. Amy Lott, the North Eastern Under 15 Girls 75m Hurdles Silver medallist, won a Bronze Medal, after winning her heat in 11.83s to reach the final. In the later run final, she improved to 11.78s, finishing third behind Sheffield and Dearne’s Elle Grace Hinchcliffe, who won Gold in 11.37s, with Blackburn’s Myah Booth just outsprinting Lott for the Silver. After the agony of just missing out on a medal in the Under 15 Girls Discus when she finished fourth with an on the day best of 28.65m, and only a mere 21cm adrift of third placed Nicky Saunders, Jessica Gardiner certainly made up for that loss by winning a Bronze in the Hammer, with an on the day best of 34.89m. |
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