February 2006
| National X Country Champs, Parliament Hill, London |
Monday, February 27 2006 |
National Cross Country Championships, Parliament Hill, London, February 25th 2006 In sunny but icily cold conditions 29 Tamworth AC athletes battled against a relentless wind to represent their club against the best in the country. Athletic all-rounder Steve Parkes was the highest placed Tamworth AC athlete at the Saucony National Cross Country Championships at Parliament Hill Fields, London at the week-end. Parkes’ 27th position in the Under 13’s 3k race was the best junior placing for the club for some years and was all the more remarkable as he did this in one shoe having lost the other in the mud despite it being taped to his foot! Close on the heels of Parkes and a mere 14 seconds behind in 40th position was Luke Roughley who had an excellent race in his first national championship. The action unfolded with the Under 15’s Boys 4.5km championships with Steve Deeley first home for Tamworth in 58th place compared to 216th in 2005 and Matt Wood coming in as second counter at 215th. Steve Harris, Sam Micklewright, Simon Watson and Jacob Hughes all ran with determination in their first attempt at a National competition and came in 229th, 239th , 261st and 297th respectively. The team finished in 26th place, 10 places higher than 2005. The Under 17 Ladies and Under 20 Junior Women ran as a 5k combined race over the endless hills and against the biting wind with Megan Jacobs placing 114th, Marianne Pritchard 128th, Katie Barker 151st in the under 17 section and Kat Snowden in 98th in the under 20’s. Three total newcomers to national competition, Nicole King, Lauren Mann and Sariah Maughan ran well in the Under 13 girl’s 3k race to finish 257th, 275th and 347th respectively. Tamworth had two representatives in the Under 17 Men’s race run over 6k where Simon King took 158th place and Tom Adams who is gradually returning to form after a long lay-off with injury took 233rd. The Under 15 girl’s team finished their 4k race in 32nd position, six places up on 2005, with Elyse Jinks in 198th, Amy Williams in 278th, Laura Lewis in 286th and Rebecca Pate in 287th. The Junior Men provided the highest positioned Tamworth AC team of the day. Led by Martin Naunton in 68th place and followed by Adam Bache in 124th, John Jenkins in 145th and Michael Pierpoint in 167th the team took an excellent 9th position over the 10k course. Tom Orton, Dave Williams and Nigel Fisher ran in the Senior Men’s race over a very testing 12K course against a strong field. Orton took 415th, Williams 559th and Fisher, 1050th Adam McGee in the Under 13 boy’s event was the only runner unable to complete the course due to an injury sustained during the race. The next race for junior athletes is the West Midlands Young Athletes League at Wolverhampton on March 5th where the club is in contention for its highest finish for 25 years. Deeley, Naunton, Roughley, Bache and Parkes have all been selected to represent Staffordshire at the UK Inter-Counties in Nottingham on 11th March. |
| Posted by:chris |
| Star:Track 2006 |
Friday, February 24 2006 |
| The provisional date for the 2006 Star:track is Monday 14th August to Friday 18th August. More details soon. Photos from the last 2 years are in the gallery section of the website.
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| Posted by:chris |
| TAC Annual Presentation Evening |
Friday, February 24 2006 |
| The annual Presentation Evening will take place in the clubhouse on Friday 24th March starting at 7.30pm when awards for performance, achievement and service will be made. This will also include the certificates for the Shine Awards for the younger athletes and maybe a surprise or two. Come along and enjoy the presenting of the awards and trophies by the guest presenters, the hot potato supper, dance to the disco music, try your luck on the raffle, enjoy the drinks at the bar, chat with friends and have a good night out. Tickets at £3.50 will be on sale from Tuesday 28th February from the tuck shop and bar.
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| Posted by:chris |
| AGM |
Friday, February 24 2006 |
| TAMWORTH ATHLETIC CLUB 2006 ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING Notice is given that this years AGM will be held in the Clubhouse on Monday 27th March commencing at 7.30pm. Further details are posted on the club notice board. C Graves Club Secretary Tamworth Athletic Club On behalf of Tamworth Athletic Club Committee
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| Posted by:chris |
| Sportshall's Famous Five |
Friday, February 24 2006 |
| Five Tamworth AC athletes were selected to represent Birmingham in the Midlands Regional under-13s and under-15s Sportshall Final at Worcester.
Sophie Taylor, Danielle Norton, Milly Kellyman, Ted White and Tom Challis made an excellent contribution to the winning team with a haul of seven medals between them.
They are now eligible to compete for Birmingham at the UK Sportshall Final to be held at the NIA on Sunday, April 9.
At the same regional finals, the newly formed Staffordshire Sportshall team also included seven Tamworth AC stars.
Jordan Roach won a silver medal and the team was ably supported by Ben Horsley, Steve Harris, David Hudson, Adam McGee, James Thacker and James Scandrett.
Photos in the Sportshall section of the Gallery.
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| Posted by:chris |
| Sportshall News |
Friday, February 24 2006 |
In the Birmingham Sports Hall League, Tamworth AC retained second place overall after a superb victory.
Milly Kellyman won all her events in the under-13 girls' age group with first places in the long jump, triple jump and two-lap race.
Danielle Norton won the vertical jump and was second in the four-lap race with Lauren Saunders winning the six-lap race.
Sophie Taylor took second place in the long jump and the two-lap race, and fourth in the shot.
Josie Cassar finished second in the speed bounce and third in the triple jump, with Olivia French third in the speed bounce and the shot. Beth Scattergood also picked up a third place in the vertical jump event.
In the under-13 boys' age group, Ted White picked up a double when he won the vertical jump and triple jump events, and also finished second in the shot.
Stephen Parkes won the six-lap race, was third in the vertical jump and fourth in the shot.
Nathan Christian won the four-lap race, while Jordan Roach was third in the long jump and James Thacker was fourth in the two-lap race.Adam McGee took third place in the two-lap race and fourth in the triple jump.
James Scandrett was fourth in the long jump and speed bounce events, while Robert Farrell was fifth in the speed bounce.
In the under-15 girls' age group, Jenny Evans was second in the long jump, third in the shot and fourth in the two-lap race, while Hannah Sargeant was second in the speed bounce, third in the two-lap race and fourth in the vertical jump.
In the under-15 boys, Tom Challis picked up second places in the long jump, shot and two-lap race.
David Hudson was third in the speed bounce and fifth in the triple jump and the two-lap race, while Craig Farrell was third in the speed bounce and the four lap race, and fifth in the long jump.
In the under-11 girls' events, Aliyah Reid won the chest push and one-lap race, and Lauren Whitehouse won the triple jump.
Louisa Faccino-Stack won the vertical jump event and finished third in the chest push.Megan Dougal was second in the triple jump with Eloise Redfern third in the one-lap race and Chloe Williams fourth in the speed bounce.
Charlotte Weston finished second in the speed bounce and third in the long jump, while Danielle Cassar was also third in the long jump and fourth in the vertical jump.
In the under-11 boys' events, Anthony Parkes won the speed bounce and was third in the one lap race.
Robert Stroud finished third in the long jump and fourth in the one-lap race, while Christian Edwards was fourth in the triple jump with Sam Scattergood finished in the same position in the chest push.
Aaron Cooper picked up a couple of third places in the vertical jump and triple jump events, while Ricky Hawkes finished in third place in the chest push and fourth in the long jump.
Sean Pates was third in the speed bounce and fourth in the vertical jump.
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| Posted by:chris |
| Impressive Show From Town Stars |
Friday, February 24 2006 |
Tamworth athletes produced some impressive performances at the second Midland Open meeting held at the NIA.
Claiming victories were Hollie Owen (200m and 300m), Meghan Beesley (200m and long jump), Laura Langowski (200m), Mark Williams (3km walk -see right)), Ben Jones (60m) and Mike Pierpoint (pole vault).
And there were new personal bests for Beesley, Nick Crawford (60m and triple jump), Langowski, Jones and Pierpoint.
Beesley, who was warming up for her first Great Britain international appearance in France this weekend, won the under-17 ladies' 200m in the fast time of 25.10secs and then completed a double when she won the long jump with a personal best of 5.77m.
Owen won the under-17 ladies' 300m in 42.14secs and moved up an age group to win the under-20 ladies' 200m in 26.28secs.
Jones won his senior men's 60m event in a personal best time of 7.20secs and took fourth place in the 200m in an indoor personal best of 23.39secs, with Langowski also chalking up an indoor personal best of 26.11secs to win her senior ladies' 200m event.
Pierpoint put 70cm on his personal best in the pole vault when he cleared 3.10m to win the under-20 men's event, with Sarah Williams in second place in the under-20 women's pole vault with 2.70m.
Danielle Marczak finished in third place in the under-15 girls' 200m race in 29.12secs and Sam Day was fourth in the senior ladies' 800m in 2:42.98mins.
Nick Crawford was sixth in the under-17 men's 60m in a personal best of 7.84secs and he set another personal best of 11.04m when he moved up to the senior men's triple jump, which was good enough for fifth place.
In the 400m, Paul Tasker finished fourth in the senior men's race in 54.07secs and Amy Frith was fifth in the senior women's event in 59.94secs.
Making useful debuts in Tamworth colours were Jacob Powell and Charles Parker. Powell clocked 26.44secs for fifth place in the under-15 boys' 200m and Parker finished in the same position in the under 20 men's 60m in 7.98secs.
Photos in two new sections on the Gallery and in the Tamworth Herald.
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| Posted by:chris |
| Gallery Update |
Tuesday, February 21 2006 |
| Check out three new sections on the Photo Gallery - 2 for the 2nd Midlands Open Meeting at the NIA and one for Sportshall. Photos have also been added to the 'Showing the Way' and 'Our Club' sections.
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| Posted by:chris |
| Williams Retains Midlands Title |
Tuesday, February 21 2006 |
Tamworth Ac athlete Mark Williams started the new season in fine style at the weekend by claiming victory at the Midland Area 10km Race Walking Championships, held in Perry Park, Birmingham.
Williams, the current holder of the 10km, 20km and 30km titles, was in impressive form while retaining his 10km title against the Midlands top walkers. His performance was more than three minutes quicker than his winning time 12 months ago.
At the end of the first of four laps he was already 30 seconds ahead of his rivals.
He piled on the pressure to eventually win in a time of 47.32mins, almost four minutes clear of the field.
Williams was delighted with his own performance.
"It was very cold and I had trained hard in the week leading up to the race.
"My legs were quite tired already and I was using the race as part of my training schedule, so I was delighted to be so comfortable."
Williams had his most successful season to date last year.As well as gaining representative honours for Wales, Great Britain, the Midlands, and Staffordshire, he was high up in the rankings.
He was the highest placed Tamworth athlete in the UK Athletics top 50 rankings.
Williams has recently re-signed for French club Nice Cote d'Azur for the season and they are keen for him to compete in more events this year, in addition to his National League duties.
His performances in 2005 have pre-qualified him for the French National Elite Championships and Nice Cote d'Azur would like to see him in open competitions.
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| Posted by:chris |
| Town Duo are Midlands Champions |
Tuesday, February 21 2006 |
Six Tamworth athletes competed at the NIA last weekend in the opening meeting of the Midlands Combined Events Championship indoor season.
Tamworth emerged with two Midland titles and finished third overall.
Tom Challis won his first major title. He took the under-15 boys championship with five personal best scores, including his impressive final total of 2,239 points.He recorded 9.91secs in 60m hurdles and then cleared 1.41m in the high jump. He threw the shot 9.76m and cleared 5.16m in the long jump. He then shaved seven seconds of his personal best in the 800m, finishing in 2:18.46mins.
Nathan Woodward added a Midlands title to the under-17s national title he won three weeks ago.He started with a 8.69secs time in the 60m hurdles before clearing 1.93m on the high jump. He then leaped 6.13m in the long jump and threw the shot 10.16m.
He was second going into the final event, the 800m, and he produced a magnificent personal best of 1:58.58mins to finish 20secs ahead of the field to win the title.
In the under-17 ladies event, Meghan Beesley, who has been selected to represent Great Britain, finished in third place with 3,136 points.She ran the 60m hurdles in 9.01secs and then cleared 1.54m in the high jump.
A 6.56m shot put was followed by 5.51m in the long jump and she secured third place with 2:41.86mins in the 800m.
Three Tamworth debutantes also made encouraging progress in the under-15 ladies pentathlon.
Sophie Taylor produced personal best performances in shot and 800m to finish sixth with 1,967 points.
Hannah Sergeant gained personal bests in the long jump and shot to finish eighth with 1,701 points.
Milly Kellyman recorded a personal best of 5.98m in the shot to finish tenth.
Three Tamworth women also made good starts to the season in the Midlands Open events at the NIA.
Hollie Owen won the 300m event in a personal best time of 41.63secs and beat another personal record of 26.05secs to claim second place in the 200m.
Amy Frith took third place in the senior women's 400m with an indoor personal best of 59.83secs, while Laura Langowski was third in the senior women's 200m in a time of 26.29secs.
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| Posted by:chris |
| GB Call Up For Beesley |
Wednesday, February 15 2006 |
| Congratulations to Tamworth AC’s Meghan Beesley who has been selected for the Great Britain squad to compete in the U20’s Combined Events team in France at the end of February. The 16 year old from Polesworth High School trains with Midlands Multi-Events and TAC coach Trevor Marsay. Meghan began her athletic career when she won a years’ free membership to the club. She has since competed in a variety of competitions including track and field, Sportshall athletics, Indoor athletics and cross country .
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| Posted by:chris |
| Army Selection for TAC Athlete |
Wednesday, February 15 2006 |
| Tamworth AC member Gemma Moores, who is serving in the Army, has been selected to run in a 5K race for the Army U21’s junior team in Aldershot in February. Gemma , who has committed herself to a tough training schedule, was picked after placing 4th overall and 2nd female against a field of 400 Army and RAF competitors in a successful 10K road race earlier in the season.
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| Posted by:chris |
| Quiz Night Success |
Wednesday, February 15 2006 |
| Eleven teams in all took part in the successful TAC Quiz night in January which was organised by Sharon and Mick Moores with assistance from the experienced and reliable markers and quiz addicts Linda and Dave. A total of £138.30 was raised for club funds. Club members and friends put their heads together to come up with answers to questions on subjects as varied as ‘comedy’, river deep mountain high’, ‘sitcoms’, ‘sport’ , ‘general knowledge’ and ‘music’ and for the first time two children’s teams took part. Team names included the ‘No Hopers’, ‘No No Yes’ and the ‘Wondering Tigers’ and from the youngsters ‘Only Smarties Have the Answers’ and the ‘Panda Pops’ . Now is the time to work on improving your knowledge but don't forget to leave plenty of time to prepare your team names ready for the next quiz!
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| Posted by:chris |
| Midland Open Update |
Monday, February 13 2006 |
| Congratulations to Hollie Owen who won the U17W 300m in 41.63 and was 2nd in the 200m in a time of 26.05, Amy Frith who was 3rd in the SW 400m in 59.83 and toLaura Langowski who took bronze in the SW 200m with 26.29. Email tamworthac@aol.com with any changes or additions
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| Posted by:chris |
| 3 Medals For TAC in the Midland Combined Events |
Monday, February 13 2006 |
| Tom Challis won gold at the U15's Pentathlon Midlands Championships with a total of 2239 points . Nathan Woodward won the U17's event with 3460 pts which places him 6th on the UK All Time Lists in the U17's Pentathlon . Meghan Beesley , who is still suffering from the bug that's doing the rounds, took bronze and is also placed in the UK all time Top 10 rankings for this event. First timers Sophie Taylor, Hannah Sargeant and Millie Kellyman did well when they took 6th, 8th and 10th place respectively in the U15's Pentathlon Midlands Championships.
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| Posted by:chris |
| Promotion For Men's X Country Team |
Monday, February 13 2006 |
| Tamworth Athletic Club men’s cross country team were promoted to the 2nd division at the final league meeting of the season which was held at Chelmsley Wood. This will be the first time that the club has been at this level in the Birmingham League which is renowned as being one of the most competitive in the country. It was a superb team performance with the A team taking second place in their section and the B team finishing first in the B team race. The result was all the more remarkable considering Tamworth were fielding 4 junior athletes with Martin Naunton, Adam Bache, John Jenkins and Michael Pierpoint taking 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th respectively in the junior men’s category. Andy Wright showed his value to the team with a hard earned 4th place in the senior race. Jonny Mason 14th and Paul Tasker in 15th both worked hard to pull through the field in the later stages. Howard Bush had his usual consistent performance in 29th but Martin Naunton 32nd and Tom Orton 37th were feeling the effects of the ‘bug’ that has been sweeping Tamworth. Adam Bache 42nd and John Jenkins 43rd had a personal tussle throughout the race with Adam pulling clear over the last 800m. Mark Wapplington, Steve Deegan and Adie Hall always have a close race and this time it was Mark in 53rd that got the better of Steve in 62nd and Adie in 66th. Michael Pierpoint has improved as the season has progressed and his 75th shows promise for the future with Nigel Fisher also improving once again to 116th. Matt Hargreaves who was in a good position had to pull out of the race due to a calf injury sustained on the course. The club would like to thank Tom Orton for the work that he has put in during his first season as team manager. The next cross country race for all athletes is the National Championships which are being held at Hampstead Heath, London on February 25th. For information on training and competition at Tamworth AC please call 01827 287177 or email tamworthac@aol.com
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| Posted by:chris |
| Promotion for Cross Country Team |
Saturday, February 11 2006 |
| The Men's Cross Country have gained promotion to Division 2 of the Midlands League for the FIRST TIME ever! Martin Naunton won the silver Junior individual medal and Adam Bache the bronze. full report coming soon.
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| Posted by:chris |
| Midland Combined Events & Midland Open |
Saturday, February 11 2006 |
| Saturday - Tom Challis won gold at the Midland Combined Events Champs . Meghan Beesley , who is still suffering from the bug that's doing the rounds, took bronze. At the Midland Open Hollie Owen took 2nd place in the 200m and Laura Langowski was 3rd in her 200m race. More results as they come in and a full report soon.
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| Posted by:chris |
| King Medals in County Schools Cross Country Champs |
Wednesday, February 8 2006 |
| Tamworth’s Schools Cross Country team was decimated by the flu bug that is sweeping the town and only 10 athletes were fit enough to represent the area. After struggling to find his form all season Simon King chose the County Schools Cross Country Championships in Stoke to show how he could attack the race from the start and come away with the bronze medal for 3rd place in the intermediate boys’ section. Team-mate Steve Deeley, who had been suffering from a virus all week, was not far behind in 5th place. King was automatically selected to represent Staffordshire in the National Schools Championships in March . Twins, Robert and Emma Farrell were the town’s only representatives in the year 7 boys and girls races respectively. Both athletes ran better than expected, with Robert in 13th and Emma in 18th. Elyse Jinks in the junior girls’ race found the going difficult having been ill all week and she did well to finish in 21st place. There were 3 Tamworth entrants in the junior boys and although the weather was damp and misty, Matt Wood had an exceptional race in 12th place. Craig Farrell was another one who has been suffering with flu and he struggled in the conditions to record 32nd place with sprinter Adam McGee taking 46th position. Marianne Pritchard had her best run for some time in the senior girls and finished in 7th with Sarah Williams in 9th. Tamworth AC athlete Megan Jacobs was pulled from the race due to illness which developed over the following days into a throat infection. The damp, misty and airless conditions also affected another one of Tamworth AC’s best young athletes . Stephen Parkes was in third position when he had to drop out due to breathing difficulties during the Warwickshire Schools competition at Princethorpe. Deeley and Pritchard now wait for the results of a selection meeting for a place in the National Schools Championships in March. Consideration may also be given to Jacobs and Parkes.
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| Posted by:chris |
| National Rankings |
Tuesday, February 7 2006 |
| Here is the first list of Tamworth AC athletes who appear in the top 20 of the National Rankings. There may well be more juniors to be added so watch this space. A separate Vets list will be out soon. Meghan Beesley - ranked in 7 events Nathan Woodward - ranked in 6 events Mark Williams - Race Walking Brett Byrd - Javelin Juan de Leon Padmore - Long Jump Laura Langowski - 400m Alana Smetham - Hammer Alex Berrow - Hammer Ted White - Hurdles Phil Owen - Javelin Sheila Owen - Race Walking
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| Posted by:chris |
| Five More TAC Athletes Join The MidlandsTop 10 Rankings |
Tuesday, February 7 2006 |
| Congratulations to the five athletes from Tamworth AC who have been added to the Midlands Top 10 Rankings List. Here they are: Simon King - Steeplechase Gemma Wheelhouse - Discus Tom Hardman - Javelin Faye McCabe - Javelin Laura Taylor - Long Jump Vets Rankings coming soon.
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| Posted by:chris |
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