RESOUNDING WIN FOR HIGHGATE AT LEE VALLEY
17-Jun-2013 Alastair Aitken
Highgate Harriers Men's and Women's team had a resounding win in their third Southern Athletics League Division 3N meeting at Lee Valley on Saturday. The match points were 1 Highgate Harriers 253; 2 Vale of Aylesbury 216; 3 Braintree & District 206 and 4 Loughton 186.
Only four clubs go up to the 2nd Division at the end of the season, but one must not be thinking Highgate will sail into Division 2 of the Southern League, as Highgate were third out of the 17 clubs in the league going into the match but behind league leaders Dartford and Ealing. The fourth match is at Perivale on the 20th of July. If the club win that they should be home and dry, being one of the four teams who are promoted to the next Division. For the Final match on the 10th of August they will be at home at Parliament Hill Fields. They are unlikely to finish outside the first two clubs and in actual fact should win there!
The Mens A string Wins were:- Ben Pochee 5000m 15:50.42; 400 hurdles/long jump Ben Gritz 60.73/5.69 (Ben is 35, lives in Holloway and a Managing Director of a Digital Agency in Highgate Studios). The other 'A' winners included a very clear winner; Ryan McKinlay in the 2000m steeplechase in 6:24.98 (In torrential rain all the way through the race); long jump Liam Ormes 6.13 (Also 2nd javelin 'B'; Mehran Sanei was 2nd in the 'A' with 41.63 and in the frame for the 'A' pole vault and 'A' hammer throw); 110 hurdles Theodore Farrell 21.7 ( He is 18 and is at school, IC6 Islington Sixth Form Consortium)
It was interesting to see Alex Fugallo, now 40 coming so close to winning the 200m 'A' in 24.49 as he was Highgate's top 200/400 runner some 18 years ago, when he was last with the club and returning to club matches he looked good on Saturday. (Alex is an Osteopath who lives locally and has a practice in Fulham).
The Managers of the Women's team managed to get a reasonable amount out to compete.
'A' Winners
800/1500 steeplechase Hannah Viner 2:25.54/5:29.94; Canadian, Georgia Fear 1500 'A' 4:53.49 (very good for a 15 year old to beat all the seniors from other clubs she was also 2nd in the high jump 'A' with 1.25)
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RUSSELL AND MCKINLAY OUTSTANDING
16-Jun-2013 Alastair Aitken
On Friday, 14th of June, Danny Russell became 30-34 age group EUROPEAN TRI-ATHLON CHAMPION in Turkey. The Alanya ITU Triathlon was over the standard Olympic distance and he recorded a time of 1hr:54min 06 sec.
Danny, who had an outstanding run when coming 2nd on the first Leg of the National 12 stage Road relay this year and, ran his first marathon in the London in 2:34.5, remarked after his latest tri-athlon " I am so exited and could not have done that without the support of the London family, that includes the Highgate Harriers"
Highgate's Ryan McKinlay, (Running for his second claim team Woodford Green & Essex Ladies) ran an impressive personal best 800 on the 8th of June, in the British 'Premier' League at Sports City, coming second in a race in the 'B' race in 1:53.82, slashing his best time of 1:57.8 of 2010 right off the books. McKinlay, the same afternoon ran 9:23.5 coming third in a steeplechase.
HIGHGATE HARRIERS OPEN 10,000M NIGHT OF PBS
09-Jun-2013 Alastair Aitken
Results Photos Video (www.eightlane.org)
BEN POCHEE, the fastest M40 over 3 & 10k in 2012, organised three 10k races in the cool, slightly windy evening at Parliament Hill Fields track
As 10000m on the track is rarely run outside of Championships, in recent years and, in order to help improve standards and reverse the trend back to having more top class UK athletes, successful over the distance again Pochee, helped by Highgate Harriers & the City of London Corporation put on a successful event with large electrical timing, pace setting, a band playing in the intervals and very good PA..That event could well be a forerunner of such events over the distance in the future..
Dave Bedford, on crutches from a recent operation, was there all through the races and gave out the prizes. One must add that was emotive as the local Shaftesbury Harrier, had set a World record of 27:30.8 at Crystal Palace, forty years ago next month. He also topped the World rankings on time in 1970, 1971 and 1973.
At Parliament Hill there were three races with athletes targeting times. The races in order were race 'C' 32.20-36min; 'B' race 30.29-32 min; and an 'A' race 28:59-30.15 so, for the 'A' race the last person in did 31:35.53 which showed the reasonable all-round quality for the first time the event has been put on.
The winner of the 'A' race was Ed McGinley of Annandale striders/Liverpool, who ran 29:53.32 beating his personal best of 30:38 that he achieved in 2012.
McGinley, 30, said afterwards " I felt good early on and found myself at the front and decided to push it on a bit and suddenly got a bit of a gap. I ticked the laps off and got in a bit of a rhythm and brought it down in 2k segments'. He added "I had a real good run at the BMC Race at Sports City last week and ran 14:07 for 5k so that was a PB and so I knew I was in good shape."
'It was a long day because I got up at 5 o'clock start this morning to get the flight over. It has been a long day but worthwhile like."
He continued "I started running when I was about 8 and at 21 I stopped running and, as a smallish person I ballooned up to 10 stone but came back after 4 years in 2008. I had seen a picture of me with a friend and could not believe how fat I had become so, I started back just to enjoy it. Each year it has been a better improvement for me and I am enjoying it again. I was a Sports Journalist for seven years but now I am a Business Consultant. I started the new job in February. The hours have been quite severe so it has been a bit difficult but as I said I am enjoying it with the camaraderie like at this meeting with all the athletes and encouragement."
It was interesting to note that Ben Pochee's idea of 'Night of PB's was no false statement!'
Besides the Personal Best time of McGinley, the other two in the frame in the 'A' race did personal Best times Darren Deed improved on his best of 30:14.7 and Nick Torry took a massive amount off his previous best of 32:10.35.
First 3 in each race:-
'C' 1 Gordon Pearce (Highgate Harriers) 32:33.40; 2 James Chettle (Cambridge) 32:40.15; 3 Simon Coombes (Herne Hill Harriers) 33:21.26.
Race 'B' Harvey Speed (Coventry Godiva) 31:22.29; 2 Dave Roper (Cheltenham) 31:40. 13; 3 Jonathan Poole Serpentine RC) 31:49.94.
Race 'A' Ed McGinley (Annandale Striders) 29:53.32; 2 Darren Deed (Bedford & County AC) 30:02.38; 3 Nick Torry (Serpentine) 30:02.52.
Highgate Harriers had two good results. It was in the final stages that Gordon Pearce went away to win the 'C' race. Brahama Pochee did a personal best to come in 6th of the 22 finishrs in 34:32.18.
See video (www.eightlane.org)
ARNOLD MENSUOH A STAR FOR THE FUTURE
03-Jun-2013 Alastair Aitken
AT Parliament Hill Fields on Saturday, In the Youth Development League for the Under 15 and 13's combined, girls and boys, one of the 'Stars' of the young Highgate Harriers team has emerged as a 'Great' prospect in the last year or two. Arnold Mensouh, an Under 15 athlete won events in the Southern North 3 round 2 of the Development league. Mensouh, coached by Juliet Kavanagh, won the Under 15 javelin with 33.18; the 100m in 11.7 (his best time for that was 11.57 in the Middlesex Championships last month) and the 200 in 23.9. He also ran in the 4x100 relay team that came third in 51.7 (rest of team Max Mica, Dempster Fawden, and Daniel Ortiz). Mensuoh's younger brother Herbert Mensuoh came 2nd in the' Under 13' 100 in 13.2 and was in the Under 13 relay team over 4x100 that came third in 56.4 .The team were a close second (others on the Highgate relay team- Dominic Ogbechie, Augustin Querez,Jake Adams).
At the end of the day the results were 1 Wycombe Phoenix Harriers 502; 2 St Mary's Richmond AC 458; 3 Highgate Harriers 430; 4 Vale of Aylesbury 388; 5 London Heathside 276 and 6 Hounslow 168.
"It is always difficult to field athletes in every event but a lesson learnt by the club, in all their track and Field completions in the last couple of years is, you can only occasionally win without filling every event with someone" said Press Secretary Alastair Aitken.
The other winners on the day were
Under 15
75m Hurdles/ High jump Grace Mee 13.3/1.45 (and 2nd in 200'B'); Javelin Lilah Fear 15.43; Long Jump/100/200 Amber Vernon-Powell 4.36/13.3/27.8. 800 Boys- Bruce Allinson 2:17.8;
'B String victories:- High Jump Daniel Ortiz 1.45 (and 3rd 100' B' 12.4); Shot- Bethany Green 5.72; Javelin 'B' Alyssa Costa 14.03 (and 3rd in shot 'A' with 5.92).
Under 13
1200m Sasha Fear 4:22.2 for the 'A' ( 3rd in javelin 'B' 10.70)and for the 'B' Emma Williets 4.30.3 (and 3rd in the javelin 'A' with 13.93).
800 'B' Solly Butcher 2.4.0 and 200' B' Dominic Ogbechie 28.9 (and 2nd in the high jump 'A'' with 1.30).
100m 'B' Jake Adams 14.2 (and 2nd 75m hurdles 14.4).
Further results
