Kettering Town Harrier duo Jemima Davey and Will Robertson competed in the National Prep School Athletics Finals at Alexandra Stadium, Birmingham having qualified at Bedford in June. The pair, from Kimbolton School were representing the East Region with Davey running in the U12 1500m and 200m and Robertson making the mark for the U13 Long Jump competition.
10 year old Davey, racing a year young was up first in the 1500m final in a race in which she was bumped early on forcing her to run wide into lane 4 on the opening bend to stay on her feet. Davey recovered well and formed part of a lead group of four runners who opened up a sizeable lead from the chasing pack.
The tempo increased at the bell and with 150m to go Davey executed her race plan with a kick to move into 2nd place on the shoulder of Foss from South East Region, however, she had to settle for 3rd place as another East Region runner, Valentine pipped her at the finish.
Jemima Davey fine Bronze medal in the 1500m
The event will have added vastly to Davey’s “race know-how” and with the opportunity to run at the same age group next year she can be delighted with another medal in a major championship, adding to her gold in the National Preparatory Schools cross country in March.
In only the second attempt at the distance 200m Davey went into the heats as a learning curve. She had a terrific race and finished 4th in her heat in 30.61, just 0.14 from a fastest loser position.
Will Robertson was unlucky to miss out on qualification for the sprints at these championships but his impressive recent improvements in long jump meant he represented East region.
Robertson competed strongly to make the final and have the opportunity of a 4th jump and managed 4.76m to finish in a very respectable 8th position.