YOUNG athletes from Helensburgh AAC have set another crop of personal bests in the first two Central and Scotland Southern League meetings of the summer.
The first match was held at East Kilbride in windy and showery conditions with a strong showing of 40 HAAC athletes helping the club to an excellent second place overall.
The event covers all age groups, from under-11 to Masters, and a few more adult competitors taking part for the club could make all the difference in achieving the top spot.
In the U11 group Lottie Horrocks took first place in the long jump, with Emily Ferguson second; Emily also finished second in the 600m race in a new personal best (PB) time.
READ MORE: Helensburgh taekwondo students bring home 18 medalsRian Haggerty-Lewis was second in the boys’ 80m sprint, with James Brimson close behind in third, while Angus Ritchie and Lewis Cameron were second and third respectively in the 600m.
In the U13 age group, Alex Brown finished first in both the high jump and long jump, with Matthew Gall matching the feat in the 800m.
Holly Kenhard also recorded a brace of first places, in the 100m sprint and the high jump, with Naeve Southgate-Mozely finishing third in both; Molly Ferguson ran well to take fifth place in the 800m, and Harris MacLean finished in the same position in the long jump.
The U15 age group was led by Lexy Kenhard, who took first place in the long jump, setting a new PB of 4.25 metres despite the breezy conditions at the venue.
Robert Court was second in the shot-put and Findlay Fleming was second in the discus, both new PBs, with Matthew Cameron taking third place in the 800m.
Oliver Greetham, the only Helensburgh male athlete in the under-17 age group, set a new PB on his way to winning the 100m, a feat matched by Amy Court in the girls’ race, also in a new PB time.
Katie Flett ran strongly to take second place in the 800m, with Jenny Scott second in the 300m and Sophie Michie third in the shot-put.
The event featured only boys’ relay races, but the Helensburgh teams all performed well, with the U11s (Jevan O’Connor, Kerr Tokeley, Lewis Cameron and Angus Ritchie), U13s (Alex Brown, Aiden O’Connor, Matthew Gall and Harris MacLean) and U15s (Finlay Fleming, Lewis Tokeley, Teo Dorizon, Oscar Deighan) each finishing second.
The school holidays restricted Helensburgh to a team of 17 juniors for the second match in Grangemouth, but there were still lots of strong performances.
READ MORE: Shoot-out win for Rhu in landmark Helensburgh gameAngus Ritchie and Emily Ferguson took first places in the U11 boys’ and girls’ long jump, with Emily also second in the 600m, again setting a new PB.
In the U13 age group Alex Brown continued to perform well with top spots and new PBs in all three of his events – the hurdles, 200m and long jump – with Matthew Gall taking first places in the shot put and 1500m, and second in the hurdles.
For the U15s, Andrew McNair and William Scott took a Helensburgh one-two in the javelin, with Andrew also second in the 200m.
Katie Flett was first in the girls’ U17 1500m with Amirah Hassan taking second place in the high jump.
With only girls’ relays at this event, the club was only able to field an U17 girls team, but Amirah Hassan, Jenny Scott, Katie Flett and Sophie Michie nevertheless took first place in the event.
Special mention to some new members competing for the first time – Cameron McDaid, Darcey Petchy and Lucy Burns – and also to Matt Scott and John Ritchie, who competed in the adult events and gained some valuable points for the club.
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