On a quiet weekend for Ilford AC, there were fireworks at the Watford
Open
on Wednesday as 16 year old Kurtland Martyr destroyed a 26 year old club
record with 30.60m for the hammer in the under 17 age group. Kurtland's
improvement has been the result of dedicating himself to the new event
and
he broke P Morgan's 1981 record early in the competition with 28 metres
in
the 2nd round before throwing his leading distance in the 3rd round.
Martyr
continues to work on his technique with his coach Paul Cheal who said
"Kurtland has the basic strength and the hunger to learn, which will see
him
throw further in the future".
Meanwhile, in Basildon, super veteran Iain Campbell belied his age to
lead
home 300 runners in the Basildon 5k for a winning time of 16.20.
Campbell
was taken out of running earlier in the year through injury but has
recently
returned to full form. Behind him was Ilford's former 400m star, the 50
year old veteran, John Platt who demonstrated his new found ability on
the
road with a time of 20.50. With a stronger start, Platt will be getting
close to 20 minutes at this distance in the near future.
On a weekend for veteran athletes, Wesley Clarke justified his selection
in
the London Inter Club Championships with an excellent throw of 42 metres
to
finish 2nd in the 'B' string hammer competition.
While Ilford's athletes were performing well across the region, Ilford
Athletic Club was providing thrills and spills with a 'mini-Olympics' at
the
'Ilford Town Centre Sports Event'. Sponsored by Ilford Town Centre
Management and Redbridge Council, the event provides the opportunity for
young athletes to test their athletic skills and take a break from a
busy
day of shopping on a mini athletics arena. The young athletes competed
on
events like the 'speed bounce', 'standing long / triple jump' and the
'obstacle race' with athletes receiving certificates for successfully
completing the test.
The measure of success could be seen from the queue of excited
youngsters
queuing to enter the arena to try the events, which contradicted any
idea
that children don't like sport and bodes well for the future of British
athletics. Anyone who would like more information on how to join or get
involved with Ilford Athletic Club, should contact Matt Maple on
m_maple@hotmail.com or 07813 388 646.
