Some of Bicester AC’s athletes reached a quite outstanding level of performance at last Wednesday’s open track and field meeting at Horspath. National Schools Cross Country Champion Leo Blyton has wasted no time in putting his outstanding winter form into action on the track. He was placed in the fastest 1500m heat and was the only under 15 athlete out of the 11 athletes taking part. Undaunted, Blyton was extremely competitive and only just lost out in a battle for 3rd as he finished a superb 5th. Blyton’s time of 4mins 18.52secs shaved a chunk off his recently set personal best which had only been set a matter of weeks before. At the time of writing Blyton is 3rd in the under 15 boy’s national rankings for 1500m. Blyton time also broke Alex Flynn’s long standing under 15 club record which had stood since 1996. Blyton’s tine was a also an EA PB level 9 performance, the highest national standard that can be attained. Blyton has really hit the new summer season running and has already lowered his 1500 metre personal best by 20 seconds since the start of the season.
One of Bicester’s outstanding athletes from last season, Erlgean Appiahkorang-Mensah has had a few injury issues of late. However he showed that he has lost none of last year’s dash with a superb effort in the 400m. He too smashed a long standing club record, which had stood for nearly 20 years, as he set a new club record for the under 17 boy’s 400m. Running in only his second ever 400m, Appiahkorang-Mensah was placed in the fastest of the 4 heats and was up against older rivals. Appiahkorang-Mensah ran superbly to finish 4th clocking an EA PB level 8 time of 52.50secs, which represented a superb effort given that he is only in his first year of a new age group. Bicester’s Max Finnegan also contested his first ever 400m and was rewarded with an EA PB ranked run of 62.57secs for 6th place in his 400m heat.
Django La Porte enjoyed a superb 2024 athletic season and picked up where he left off with a win in the fastest of the nine 100m heats clocking 11.16 secs, which was an EA PB level 7 time. Georgia Bower was not far away from her season’s best as she finished 3rd out of the 12 competing athletes with an EA PB level 4 mark of 4.65m.