Sunday 30 June was Eastern Counties Track and Field Championship day in a very windy Cambridge.

It was a clean sweep of gold medals for the Colchester Harriers Hammer Girls in their respective age groups.

Megan Larkins delivered a very consistent series of throws and led throughout the competition to take the senior women’s title with a best throw of 55m. Josephine Larkins improved with each round in the U17 women’s event and in the final round launched her hammer to a massive 46m, close to her personal best. The youngest competitor, Olivia Simon, who was still nursing a hip injury, wasn’t at her best but her throw of 39m was enough to win the very busy U15 girl’s event with a clear margin of 12m.

Later in the day and still wearing her glamorous Prom nails, U17 Aliyah Soames competed six rounds of the women’s Javelin where her third-round throw of 30.92m ended up rewarding her with a Bronze medal.

Young Jessica Scotchmer enjoyed her first Eastern Champs where she competed three events: in the Long Jump she reached the final and managed to achieve five jumps over 4m with a final best leap of 4.20m, a great new PB which just missed out on a podium placing. In the U13 girls 100m she gained a place in her first ever track final with a first-round wind assisted time of 14.34s to bag a fastest loser slot.   She also progressed through to the 200m final, but the heat and a busy day left her struggling to reach her best and despite starting well she tired in the home straight taking up the rear to cross in 31.48s.  

Fresh from their outing at the County relay champs just two days earlier, Hollie Martin-Whymark and Olivia Gillon contested both the 100m and 200m.  U13 Martin-Whymark finished second in the first heat of the 100m, gaining  automatic progression. In a speedy final she finished in 6^th place matching her earlier qualifying time (13.83s).  She also qualified through to her 200m final and although hampered by a leg injury she finished in fifth place.

Gillon having qualified for the U15 girls 100m final had a cracking start but lost ground and crossed in 7th place.  In her 200m heat where she ran 28.72s (+3.8w) she was just edged out of a place in the final.

U17 Jimi Sijuwola was robbed of gold in the 100m being beaten in a photo-finish where just 1/100dth second separated the top two placings. Despite a groin niggle he later competed the 200m where he went head to head against Sam Shippey.  The boys gave good performances in this straight final, with Shippey grabbing a new PB and a deserved Bronze medal in 23.12s (2.0w) with Sijuwola having to settle for the unenviable 4^th place.

Harry Gillon completed the Harriers showing, competing the U13 boys 800m.