Athletics: Falkirk Victoria Harriers' stars cruise to big win in opening league outing
Falkirk Victoria Harriers made an outstanding start to the track and field season at Linwood in the opening Central and South of Scotland Athletics League match, securing an emphatic team victory by nearly 375 points.
The day began with the senior and veteran women’s 3000m, where Eilidh McCallum marked her return to the track with a solid run, finishing in 11.50.8. In the U12 girls 600m, Emilia Don produced an excellent effort to finish second in the A string in 2.07.5, battling hard into the wind, while Anna-Leigh Meaney also impressed with second place in the B race in 2.15.9. The U12 boys race saw Costa Adeyemi go straight to the front and hold on for victory in 2.10.0 despite the tough conditions, with Max Alexander taking second in the B string in 2.30.1.
The 800m events brought more strong performances. In the U14 boys race, William Luke finished fourth in the A string with 2.38.1, while Ruaraidh Harvie won the B race in 3.07.6. In the U16 boys 800m, Thomas Mitchell ran well for second in the A race in 2.18.3, with Thomas Luke winning the B race in 2.18.9. Danny Harris claimed victory in the U18 men’s 800m in 2.41.3. Gary Smith dominated the veteran 800m with a win in 2.23.5, while Eric Donaldson made it a one-two for the club by winning the B race in 2.45.4.
In the sprints, Callan Campbell was a standout performer, winning the U18 400m in 56.90 seconds before adding victory in the U18 100m in 11.80 seconds. Danny Harris completed a double of his own by winning the B 400m in 68.60 seconds. In the U16 boys 100m, David Onatoye finished fourth in 14.50 seconds, while Patrick McAtarsney won the B race in 15.70 seconds. Nathan Bodys placed second in the U18 B 100m in 13.10 seconds.
Costa Adeyemi continued his excellent day by winning the U12 80m in 12.80 seconds, while Kyle Lawless was second in the B race in 14.4 seconds. In the U14 boys 100m, Ruaraidh Harvie finished third in 15.60 seconds, with Patrick McAtarsney again winning the B race in 15.70 seconds. In the masters 100m, Gary Smith took second in 13.50 seconds, with newcomer Joshua Onatoye also finishing second in 13.60 seconds. Luca Capanni was second in the senior 100m in 11.70 seconds.
Field events also saw a host of strong results. Austin Gardinier was second in the U16 javelin with 24.49m, while Lucas Etheridge threw 7.08m in the B competition. Hugo Koch won the U14 discus with 14.72m, and William Luke won the B event with 9.81m. Adeyemi added a third victory of the day by winning the U12 long jump with 3.51m, while Kyle Lawless was third in the B competition with 2.67m. David Onatoye recorded 4.27m in the U16 long jump.
In the shot put, Falkirk secured a double win in the U16 event, with Callan Campbell winning the A competition with 9.05m and Nathan Bodys taking the B with 8.08m. Gary Smith also won the senior men’s shot with 7.43m, while Noah Anderson claimed the B competition with 7.36m. In the high jump, Smith won the senior event with 1.35m, and Bodys matched that height to win the U18 event. Hugo Koch cleared 1.25m in the U14 high jump, while Patrick McAtarsney won the B competition with 1.20m. In the U14 long jump, Ruaraidh Harvie jumped 3.69m, with McAtarsney winning the B with 3.35m.
The women’s events also delivered a number of impressive performances. Ariana Bennett finished fourth in the U14 girls 800m in 2.46.8, with Erin Donaldson third in the B race in 3.11.0. In the U16 800m, Megan Blair and Erin White both finished third in their respective races, each recording 2.55.8. Zoe Spowart ran well in the U18 800m, finishing in 2.52.1 after earlier winning the long jump.
In the 400m, Josie Anderson took third place in 71.70 seconds. In the U12 girls 80m, Holly Hogarth finished fourth in 14.40 seconds, while Rowan Coulter ran well to take third in the B race in 13.90 seconds. In the U16 girls 100m, Iris Foley was third in 15.10 seconds, Alexa Sibbald won the B race in 14.40 seconds, Rebecca Lynch finished third in 15.20 seconds, and Emma Crawford placed second in the B race in 14.50 seconds. Hannah McMeechan finished fourth in the U18 100m in 15.10 seconds.
The field events brought further success. Tess Rennie was third in the U12 long jump with 3.15m, with Yasmin Giwa third in the B competition with 2.96m. Zoe Spowart and Hannah McMeechan secured a double win in the U18 long jump with jumps of 4.45m and 4.20m respectively. Alexa Sibbald won the U14 shot with 6.17m, while Erin Donaldson took the B competition with 5.59m.
One of the standout performances of the entire meeting came from Freya McMartin in the U16 javelin, where she threw an outstanding 35.18m to win, improving her personal best by over eight metres. Remi Carnegie also impressed, winning the B competition with a throw of 20.28m. The pair combined again in the U16 shot, both winning their events with throws of 8.64m and 7.61m.
Further success came in the javelin with Lorna Brown winning the senior event with 25.14m, and Josie Anderson taking victory in the U18 competition with 13.95m. In the U14 long jump, Clancy Millar jumped 4.03m to finish second in the A competition, while Ariana Bennett won the B with 4.00m.
The day concluded with the relay events, where Falkirk Vics teams delivered excellent performances. The U12 team of Yasmin Giwa, Kyle Lawless, Rowan Coulter and Costa Adeyemi won in 64.90 seconds. The U14 team of Ariana Bennett, Patrick McAtarsney, Iris Foley and Ruaraidh Harvie also took victory in 58.70 seconds. The U16 team of Rebecca Lynch, Thomas Luke, David Onatoye and Emma Crawford finished second in 55.50 seconds, while the U18 team of Josie Anderson, Nathan Bodys, Emma Crombie and Callan Campbell rounded off the day with another win in 52.80 seconds.
Despite the difficult weather conditions, it was a hugely successful and encouraging start to the season for Falkirk Victoria Harriers, with strong performances across all age groups and disciplines. The next match takes place in Grangemouth on 10 May.