The Board of the Club would like to wish all our athletes, coaches, officials, parents and supporters very best wishes for a great 2024.
We had some amazing highlights in 2023 which included exceptional individual performances and team work across the Age Groups and all the disciplines. For a relatively young athletics club we have recorded excellent achievements this year and over the 40 years of our existence. In November we celebrated our 40th Anniversary with a local Dinner Dance headed by a great introduction from some of our talented musicians. No end to those talents either.
We had two of our Athletes, Alyson Bell and Neil Gourley, representing GB at the World Athletics Championships in Budapest. We saw Neil taking the Silver medal (just behind Jacob Ingebritsen ) at the European Championships in Istanbul – now selected to compete in the refurbished Emirates Arena in Glasgow at the World Indoors in March.
Alyson (2nd left) with the squad
Neil in action at the World Championships. Photo by Mark Shearman
We had Alessandro Schenini taking the Scottish Native Senior Long Jump record with a fantastic 8 metre leap. We have Nikki Manson taking the indoor native record for Long Jump as well as retaining her previous Scottish High Jump record and coming back from complex knee surgeries. David Smith, also after two foot surgeries, this year is back training. Adam Clayton, competing in the University College in the USA, is surpassing some Scottish Sprint records and was rewarded by GB selection for the European Team Championships. Hannah Ryding earned an U20 GB vest to compete in Australia in the World XC Championships in February while Duncan Robinson is making his mark at both XC and on the road.
Alessandro Schenini
Hannah winning the National XC
We await developments for our other USA based athletes, students Conan Harper & Reuben Macdonald and note that Craig Shennan following an impressive year is also headed stateside on a scholarship in the summer.
We are hoping for solid performances in 2024 from all our squads and particularly from many of our athletes returning to competition after injury or illness or an interrupted season including Erin Wallace, Reuben Nairne in Pole Vault, and Murray Fotheringham.
Our YDL team (Youth Development League for u13 & u15) won the Scottish Final in August and went on to represent Scotland in the UK final Manchester.
Many of our athletes were also selected to represent Scottish Schools over XC and Track & Field .
Our Youth Development League team in Manchester
Club athletes have excelled over Cross Country in the 2022-23 season, retaining the Lindsays Trophy, the Pat Spence and the AT May Trophies.
Or Junior XC squads have notched up so many podium places, both individually and as proud members of their teams.
In this XC season already, we are filled with optimism for the Inter District on the 13th January and the National XC in February. Our growing band of Veteran women have graced many podium places. So we can definitely look forward to the rest of the XC season and a great summer season on track & in the field.
We would be delighted if athletes, coaches & parents want to add their own highlights to this very abbreviated review before everyone gets ready to celebrate the New Year.
Report by Clare Stevenson
One outstanding International Masters Highlight we missed was Allie Chong with Bronze at the European Masters Half Marathon Championships in Italy.