Junior Press Report 16th July 2018  

Jul 162018
 

English Schools Championships
Birmingham
13th / 14th July

Aaron Samuel and Mario Dobrescu were chosen to represent Essex at the prestigious English schools championships last weekend.  Aaron was chosen for the Inter boys 1500m, which entailed heats on Friday. The first four in each heat, plus the 4 fastest losers progressed to the final. Aaron was in heat 2 and was in a good position for most of the race. Unfortunately he lost 2 places in the last 30 metres and missed out on a place in the final by 0.5 seconds.

Mario, of Mayfield school, was picked for the Junior boys 200m, which entailed three rounds, he breezed through his heat as the fastest qualifier, and much the same in the semi final. The final looked a straight shoot out between Mario and Remi Jokosenumi of Middlesex .  Mario made a great start in the final, but unfortunately the Middlesex proved to be just faster on the day and took the gold in a very fast 21.99.

Although disappointed with the silver in the 200m, Mario made up for it later by being of an Essex squad that won the 4×100 relay.

Southern League Champs
Luton
15th July

A small but determined team of Ilford Athletes travelled across to Luton for the fourth Southern League fixture of the season . Once again the fixtures were unkind to the Ilford team, with them being up against three teams who going into the fixture were in the top six of the table.

The ladies side of the team only had 6 athletes, but every one of them, did multiple events to help out the team. Krystle Balogun came  2nd in the B sting 100m in 13.4, followed by 1st in the A sting 200m in a time just outside her best and then 1st in the B string 400m in 59.7. Before rushing to do the shot put, where she took 4th place. Sporting a new hairstyle Efe Autinz  came second in the A sting 100m, before running a pb of 27.7 to win the B string 200m.

Gemima Eshimu Massamba has been knocking on the door of 60 seconds all season, and finally broke the magic mark with a time of 59.7, in winning the A string 400m. Ayshah Lawrence ran a pb of 29.1 in the non scoring 200m, before gaining valuable points with 4th place in the b string shot.

Ayshah, Gemima, Efe and Krystle combined for the 4×100 and took a very good second place.

The middle distance was taken up by Jordan Hinds and Zuzana Sinalova, Jordan ran in the 800m where she came a very good third place in 2.24.8. Then as there was no 4×400 relay she took on the 1500m with Zuzana. Running to a plan Jordan helped Zuzana round to a pb of 5.27.5 for 3rd with Jordan close in 5.29.4 for 2nd in the B string.

On the men’s side  Dan Wheeler tackled the High Jump, after hurting his ankle recently, he took off from his opposite and still cleared a very good 1m 73 for second. He then came 3rd in the 100 in 11.6, 3rd in the 200 in 23.5 and 5th in the Discus in a pb of 18.85. Jordan Akinpelu joined Dan in the high jump clearing a pb of 1m 43 for 1st in B string, followed by a very good long jump only 2 centimetres off his best with 6.16. Then winning the B string Triple jump with 11.32, before finally winning the B string 200m in 23.7.

Anthony George also had a busy day, despite a series of no jumps he still came, 2nd in the Triple Jump with 11.80. Second in the Long jump with 5.20 and ran a pb of 11.7 for 3rd in the 100m.

Alex Richards and Tom Gardner did the 3000m, winning both the A and B strings, with top just piping Alex on the line in a time of 9.15.3, to 9.16.4. However Alex had already won the 800m in a very good solo 1.59.4, before an hour late coming second in the B string 400m in 53.6

Pete Whiting and Sam Malekout, have been of many Southern League campaigns with Ilford and despite their Veteran status, they continue to rack up the points. Pete competed in Pole Vault, gaining 2nd in the B string, Shot 5th in the B, 5th in the A string hammer and finally 5th in the B string Javelin

Sam Malekout virtually does a decathlon every match and again this match was no exception, with first place in the 400m hurdles, second in the flat 400m. Before moving to the field events where he came 3rd in the A string Pole Vault, 5th in the A string shot, 5th in the A string Discus, 5th in the b string hammer and finally 3rd in the A string Javelin.

Host club narrowly won the match from Woodford, with Ilford in 4th place, which should maintain their mid table position in the League.

  Junior Press Report. May 29th 2018  

May 292018
 

BMC Regional races
Eltham
Wednesday 23rd May

Jordan Hinds and Aaron Samuels, travelled across London to Eltham, to compete in the British Milers Club regional races last Wednesday. The BMC put on these races across the country with the aim of getting fast times. However the windy conditions appeared to have put pay to that.

Jordan was in heat 5 of the 800m, and the pacemaker ensured  a fast pace, which immediately split the field. Jordan reached the bell in around 68 seconds and was still moving well at 600m, but tired up down the home straight to finish in a time  of 2.26.67, her second best time of the season.

Aaron was in the second heat of the 1500m, which again had a pacemaker, who went through very fast on the first lap in 61 secs, Aaron sensibly held back and was through in 63 and 2.10 at 800. By the time the bell was reached 3.02, Aaron was moving really well and ended the race in 2nd place in a time of 4.03.77. A personal best by 6 seconds and a new Ilford U17 1500m record.

 

Westminster Mile
Sunday 27th May

Ilford ACs young middle distance group competed in the Westminster mile on Sunday. These races attract some of the best Mile athletes in the country , so Ilford youngsters knew they had to all run well to compete against all the quality athletes racing

First up on Sunday ,in extremely hot conditions was the u11s race and Ilford had 2 youngsters competing in this race. Joseph Grange, the previous weekend ran an outstanding 19:29 for 5K, went off very fast and was close to the leaders . Joseph kept up the pace and still had lots of energy to sprint past a few athletes at the end to finish in an impressive 12th place. Josephs time of 5.54 was outstanding .Backing up Joseph was Aaron Hick, who has one year left in this category , also went off very fast and maintained this pace to come home in a big personal best of 6:22. Aaron ended up 34th

I think we will hear a lot more from these 2 talented youngsters in the future

In the u13s Boys race, Ilford also had 2 athletes competing. Matthew Hick and Ryan Holeyman pushed each other to come home  a very competitive 30th and 34th place. Matthews time was 5:44 and Ryans 5:52

In the u15s race, Ilford had 2 in form athletes competing in the mile race, Aaron Samuels and Jak Wright. Both had ran personal best 1500s in the previous week so expectations were high. Aaron got a good start and pushed himself to stay with the leaders but they slightly got away from him. All the top athletes in the race were very close to each other, with Aaron ending up in 7th position in an outstanding 4:42. Jak Wright gets better with every race and was still pushing through the field at the end of the race to run 4:49 and come 15th position, once again very close to the actual leaders.

The final Ilford athlete was Jordan Hinds in the u17s girls race. Jordan is running herself into form and gets better with every race at the moment. In a very tough field Jordan pushed herself to a credible 14th position, in a time of 5:52

  Junior Press Report. May 22nd 2018  

May 222018
 

Southern League
Perivale
20th May

 

Injuries and exams, hit Ilford’s team for their second Southern League match at Perivale last Sunday. However in what is probably their toughest match of the season, with three of the top four teams in the division present, the scheme responded brilliantly to take 4th place.

New members Miles Levy and Martins Sulanis, making their club debuts were the star performers. Despite carrying a slight injury problem Miles came a very good second in 100m, in a legal Pb of 11.16. His 200m was even better, he led all the way and just hele off the fast finishing Woodford in another Pb of 22.64

Martins contested just his specialist event the High Jump and was very impressive, he only came into the competition when most of the other jumpers were out and soared to a height of 1 metre 96, before narrowly falling at 2metres.

Dan Wheeler was another athlete carrying an injury which restricted him in the High jump to 1m 68, which was good enough to win the B string, he then came back an hour later to win the B string 100m in a season’s best time of 11.5 and then took 5th place in the B string discus.

Jordan Akinpelu took on both horizontal jumps and was rewarded with PB of 6.05 in the Long jump, this was first time he had leapt further than 6 metres, before taking 4th place in the a string Triple Jump with 10.76. He then stepped onto the track to take 3rd in the B string 200m in a time of 23.79.

Temi Adeoshun ran a non-scoring 100m in a time of 11.69 and gained useful points in the B string Long Jump with a jump of 4.85 for second place.

Sam Malekout is never happy with doing just one event and this time took on seven events, as well as his usual throws events of Shot, Discus, Javelin, Hammer, he took to the track for 2nd place in 110 hurdles and third in the 800m, before finally bowing out with the Pole vault.

Pete Whiting continues to fight the sands of time, and in between officiating on the Long jump, he once again gained valuable points in the Shot, Javelin, Hammer and Pole vault.

In the longer distances Alex Richards came 3rd in a very fast 800m in a time of 1.59.32 and despite hurting his leg in the 800m, he ran the 1500m for 2nd place in a time of 4.08.5. Jak wright also did the 1500m and came 2nd in the B string in a PB 4.24.1. Aaron Samuel and Tom Gardner took on the longest event of the day the 3000m and they worked together as pair, in his first race over the distance Aaron took 4th in the A string in a time of 9.12.71 and Tom 2nd in the B string in 9.18.42.

Ilford were unable to field a team in 4x 400m, but the 4x 100 team of Jordan, Temi, Dan and Miles produced a great performance to round with a very good win in a time of 44.04.

The women’s side were hit hardest by the athletes taking exams, but the six athletes who competed battled hard all day for valuable points.

For the second match running Esmeralda Mengeyele was the top scorer on the women’s side, she had a very good run for 2nd place in the 100m, in a time of 13.08, but unfortunately the wind was just over the allowable limit. She followed this up with 2nd in the Long jump, 3rd in the High jump and 4th in the Javelin.

Krystle Balogun, is also never happy with one event and ran in the 100, 200 and 400. She was 3rd in the B string 100m, second in the a string 200m, before winning the 400m in a seasons best of 60.78. Gemima Eshimu Massamba joined Krystle in the 200 and 400 and took second in the B String 200m in a time of 27.63, before winning the B 400m in 62.06.

Zuzana Sinalova came 3rd in her specialist event 1500m with a time just outside her PB, before being gently persuaded to do the Long jump where she took 4th place. After spending most of the day officiating Nicola Hopkinson made a quick change into her racing kit for the B string 1500m and took 3rd place.

Jordan Hinds is racing herself back into her 2016 from and continued in comeback with a solid 3rd place in the 800m in a time of 2.27.5.

A team of Gemima, Jordan, Zuzana, in her first ever relay and Krystle, took second place in a closely contested 4x 400 relay. Ilford time of 4. 19.65 was their fastest recorded since the club re-joined the southern league in 2015.

The next match on the 23rd June will be at Ilford’s home track at Cricklefield.

  Junior Press Report 14th May 2018  

May 142018
 

Essex Track Championships
Chelmsford
12th – 13th May

Super Mario

Ilford athletes won 11 medals at the Essex Championships at Chelmsford over the weekend.

Star performer was Mario Dobrescu, who competed in the U15 300m on Saturday and then the 200m on Sunday.

On Saturday the conditions were not great, and Mario eased through his heat. He went flat out in the final chasing a fast time, and was rewarded with first place in excellent time of 36.03. He was slightly disappointed with this having run 35.93 a few weeks earlier. Which was the 12th fastest ever time ran by an under 15 athlete in the UK.

On day two the weather was much better and again he eased through the heats in 22.92.
Come the final he destroyed the field to win in a time of 22.39. Which was a personal best and a championship best performance. It also beat the Ilford U15 club record which has stood since 1965 and is the 14th fastest ever by an U15 in the UK.

Esmeralda Mengeyele had a busy weekend, competing in three events. She made the final of the U20 women’s 100m, but a stumble out of the blocks cost her a medal chance and she came in 5th. In the 200m she ran a personal best of 28.15. The long jump was her best event with a jump of 4.62 for 3rd place. However she was slightly disappointed when a longer jump which would have got her second place was incorrectly measured.

Gemima  Eshimu Massamba took part in the women’s 400m, and after her usual slow start, was powering around the top bend. Unfortunately she just ran out of track and ended up in 2nd place in a personal best time of 60.92. It’s only a matter of time before she breaks 60 seconds.

Krystle Balogun was also busy with two events, on Saturday she ran the 400m and came in 5th place, although a little disappointed she bounced back next day to run a personal best of 26.60 in the 200m

Ilford also had young athletes out in the longer events, first up was Aaron Samuel in the U17 1500m. The early pace was quite slow, but Aaron was nicely positioned, as they approached the bell, Joseph Geller of Woodford shot into the lead, with Aaron close behind. The pair gradually pulled away from the rest of the field, with the Woodford man, continuing to apply the pressure and gradually pull away, with Aaron finally having to settle for second place in a pb of 4.09.94.

Jordan Hinds ran in the 800m, this race combined the U20 and senior ladies. The early pace was very fast, and Jordan was slightly detached, but she hung in there and went through 400m in a fast 69 secs. Along the back straight she continued to push and was closing on the athletes ahead of her, entering the home straight she kicked again to hold off a fast finishing athlete. She was rewarded with 2nd place in the U20 category and a time of around 2.26, which is her fastest for 2 years.

Day two started with the heats of the 800m and despite getting himself in a few bad positions Farris Patel came 3rd in his heat to qualify for the final. Three hours later he returned for the final, this time he was perfectly positioned and as the bell was reached in 60 secs. A group of 5 began to pull away along the back straight and at one point Farris had to go around the outside to maintain contact. He kicked down the home straight and came through to take an excellent 2nd place in a time of around 1.58.

Jak Wright decided to try the 3000m for the first time and settled comfortably in the pack for the first few laps, after about a mile a break appeared and Jak managed to position himself perfectly. With 2 laps, Jak was in fourth place, just behind two Woodford athletes and one from Chelmsford. These four were still together inside the last lap. With 300m to Geller of Woodford who had won the 1500m the previous day, went to the front and opened a decisive gap. Jak responded by moving into third and then second place. It was then a titanic battle down the home straight between Jak and Zac Bridgeland of Chelmsford, with the Chelmsford athlete just prevailing. However it was a great run from Jak and a reward for his recent hard training.

Ilford’s only senior men’s representative was Alex Richards and he competed in the 800m on Saturday and the 1500m on Sunday, achieving  two bronze medals and  setting two  pb’s 1.58 at 800m 4.07 at 1500m.

Three new racewalkers to Ilford, Rachel Lawless, Anne Scurfield, and Lesley Morris competed in their first county championships, all producing personal best times, and Rachel taking the bronze medal, for Ilford. Competing against Melanie Peddle, masters international medallist, who also trains at Ilford’s racewalk coaches, and ex international Sophie Haines, and having felt ill all week, Rachel was unsure as to whether or not to compete, but produced her best time, with potential for even better

Lesley, despite having worked for 6 hours, was driven over to Chelmsford, by Anne. The girls are aged 55 to 65!!!

 

  Juniors Press Report April 23rd 2018  

Apr 232018
 

Wright sparkles in the London Mini Marathon

Ilford AC youngsters continued their good  early season performances by all running best times in the Mini Marathon 3 Mile race on Sunday. The course  is the last 3 miles of the marathon course and a great experience for the young athletes . First up was the U15 Boys, where Ilford had 4 representatives, competing for their various London Boroughs

First home for Ilford was Aaron Samuels, who came 8th position, in a high quality field. Aaron was with the leaders for the first part of the race but struggles in last mile , but still ran a big personal best of 16:24. Best performance of the day from an Ilford athlete was Jak Wright. Jak gets better with every race and ran an outstanding performance to run 16:41 and finished in 12th , against some of the best runners in the UK

Farris Patel, running a distance that is a bit too far for his liking, ran an even paced race and came a very credible 30th, in a PB of 17:22.

Bradley Deacon gets better with every race and shows how much he has come on in last few months by running 17:59 and coming 52nd in a field of nearly 200

In the U13s race Ilford had 2 athletes. First home for Ilford AC was Matthew Hick. Matthew went off very well and worked through the field to come an outstanding 28th position in a best performance of 18:21. Competing in his first Mini Marathon, Ryan Holeyman, who had just joined the club ran a very credible race and came 131st in 20.50.

Last but not least and running her final Mini Marathon was Jordan Hinds. Jordan is coming back to form and ran a  great race to run 19:41 to come 28th position