15-year-old Alice Bennett won her first National Title, winning the England Athletics U17W 800m Indoor championships with a brilliant display 800m running at the English Institute of sport indoor athletics arena in Sheffield. Bennett went into the competition as the U17W UK number 1 athlete but had to navigate a tactical race to take a superb Gold Medal.
U17 Alice Bennett winning her first National Title over 800m
The England Athletics Indoor Championships for U15/ U17 & U20 athletes attracts the top UK athletes looking to compete indoors, and for Bennett this was the first time she had contested an indoor Championship.
The competition was originally set for Heats on the Saturday and the final the following day, but some late withdrawals led to the athletes agreeing to run a straight final on the Saturday during their warmup. Bennett had to adjust her mindset from qualification mode into race winning mode and tactics for the race were discussed with her coach.
The race featuring 7 athletes went off at a very slow pace, and Bennet with strict instructions to not take the race out sat in the pack while Pitreavie AAC’s Erin McFarlane led the tightly packed field. Splitting in a leisurely 74 seconds the race was poised to go, but Bennett confident in her explosive early season pace sat in on the shoulder of McFarlane with the plan to take the race on between 400 & 600m and she did exactly that with a powerful injection of pace at the bell. Bennett surged to the front and opened a 5m gap which she extended on the back straight and the result was never in doubt once she had decided to kick, with power and poise she surged through to the finishing line to take her first National title to win by almost 10m with a blistering 29 second final 200m ahead of McFarlane, and Fife AC’s Holly Ovens who took the minor medals.
Alice Bennett ran a superb race with a devistating final 200m to take the Gold Medal
Bennett was delighted with her win which was fully deserved after a terrific winter training block where Bennett had decided to do a limited indoor season with a hybrid mix of XC & Indoor track races, and this seems to have worked out well for the 15-year-old.
Coach Shane Smith was also delighted with his protegee “Alice has been outstanding in training and has shown real pace during the speed sessions so her form indoors comes as no surprise”. He added “This is a fantastic win for Alice and her first National title and although we not going to get carried away at this stage of the season her form early season is particularly pleasing in what is an important year for her with oppertunities to compete for GB at the European U18 age group Championships in the summer”.
Also in Action was Maggie Gancheva who was experiencing indoor racing for the first time, competing in the U15G final, Gancheva ran a cautious race to finish in 6th place just 2 seconds off her PB and will take away great experience when she competed at the Birmingham Games in a weeks time.
Also competing indoors earlier in the week at the BMC meeting at Lee Valley, Alice Bates smashed for 3000m PB with her first ever indoor race over the distance. Bates ran a brilliant race, settling into a great rhythm and clocking the first km right on target pace she pushed on in the middle section of the race looking for a fast time. Perhaps feeling the effects in her legs with 800m left Bates slowed slightly but rallied over the final lap to slice over 12 seconds off her PB and head to UK number 2 in the U20 rankings as a bottom year athlete with 9:47.59. This was an outstanding performance and clearly shows there will be much more to come from Bates as she looks to secure qualification times for the European U18 age group Championships in the summer. Bates is also the UK U17 Number 1 over 5k park run has also started her 2022 year in blistering form.
U20 Alice Bates running the second fastest 3000m time this year with 9:47.59
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Jemima Davey also competing at the Lee Vally open ran a superb 800m race to set a new PB over the distance with a UK No 1 leading U15G time of 2:18.49 slicing 3 seconds of her season best with a gutsy performance. Davey is a bottom year athlete and will look to finish her winter with her two remaining championship XC races.
U15 bottom year Jemima Davey setting a UK No1 leading time for 800m
Josh Geddes & Dyland Bowley also ran over 800m, both running well in a slow race setting times just off their SB’s.
It’s been a spectacular start to the season with three of the Harriers MD squad in UK No 1 leading positions and many more outstanding performances all round both on XC and indoors, 2022 is shaping up to be another brilliant year!
Well done to everybody who ran.