SWANSEA HARRIERS ATHLETICS CLUB

SECRETARYS REPORT 2011-2012“The poorest athletics town in Great Britain with very little structure, organisation or

facilities.”

That is a statement made about Swansea in the late 1950’s.

It is an important statement because in the Clubs 50th year it would be amiss to merely churn out the facts and figures reflecting another year at the Club. 2012 is the time to reflect on where the Club has come from, why it has developed and where we would like it to go in the future.

Now is the time to thank the remarkable individuals who have shaped the Club, some with 50 years unstinting and outstanding volunteer work and to thank every athlete who has worn the green hoops on the track, road or country during that period.

Commencing in 1962 when young athletes and volunteers from Cockett Boys Club and Swansea A.C. formed Swansea Harriers, club training was on a grass surface at the far end of Ashleigh Road Playing Fields. By 1965/1966 a new cinder track at Sketty Lane was built and after battling to use the facilities the Club flourished, gaining entry to the British Athletics League for the 1971 season. The Club developed with fully functioning mens, women’s and junior teams and a membership around 300.

The 1980’s saw us move to a superb new facility at Morfa Stadium before the new millennium saw us move “back home” to the outstanding indoor and outdoor facility at the Sketty Lane Sports Complex. Since then we have seen a rapid increase in membership which has stabilised at around 500 athletes.

The person who made that statement in the 1950’s is unlikely to believe that the same town, now a City, had an athlete elected as Team Captain of the Great Britain & Northern Ireland Athletics Team for the London 2012 Olympic Games.

If that person came to Swansea in 2012 he would have seen Sean White travel to Greece as a youth ambassador to help collect the Olympic Flame, Ken Bennett ignite the bowl in Singleton Park, David Greene finish fourth in the Olympic 400m Hurdles Final, Dave Jessett officiate at the Olympic and Paralympic Games, Dr Mark Davies form part of the medical team to look after Olympic athletes, our Ladies Track & Field team successfully competing in the UK Womens League Premier Division, our Ladies Road Running team winning silver medals in the UK National 6 Stage Relays and UK 10km Championships and our Junior Track and Field athletes finishing as one of the top 10 Clubs in the UK.

The contrast between the late 1950’s and 2012 is stark.

It has been a wonderful period of over 50 years of athletics development in Swansea - and it hasn’t happened by accident. It is down to the hard work and drive of the Clubs volunteers in organising the Club, coaching the athletes, organising and officiating events and managing the teams who represent Swansea all over Britain, week in, week out, year after year.

At the forefront of that volunteer effort has been Barrie Owen and John Griffiths. Founder members of the Club in 1962, they continue to have a significant input into our achievements. Their commitment and drive is an inspiration to the Clubs surrounding core of volunteers who have put a monumental effort into ensuring we have got through a hugely significant year for the Club.

In 2012, not only has there been the small task of organising an athletics club with 500 members, but there has been the added pressure of the London Olympics. The Club has had extra tasks relating to ticket allocation, the attendance of TV crews on training nights, press releases, interviews, the arrival of the Olympic Torch and associated events in Swansea and of course a huge amount of queries from local athletes which has placed a resource burden on our coaching co-ordinator Andrew Jenkins.

Added to this has been the Clubs 50th Anniversary. A small sub-committee comprising Ann Owen, Sue Leyshon, Emma Griffiths, Sarah McCoubrey, Andrew Griffiths and Sue Griffiths have worked tirelessly throughout the year, organising events, raising funds and arranging the Clubs 50th Anniversary Dinner at the Marriott Hotel on October 28th where 250 guests will attend to celebrate 50 years of Swansea Harriers.

It truly has been a monumental year. The aftermath of the Club Dinner will be a period when our volunteers will need to take a break and recuperate, ready to come back fresh and ready to go again in 2013.

The hard work behind the scenes establishes the structure from which our athletes can produce the performances on the road, track and country. The selection of David Greene as Captain of GB & NI and his participation in the Olympics was a tremendous boost for David, the Club and Welsh Athletics in terms of profile. The interest of our Club members was raised significantly and hopefully this will have long term benefits in terms of athlete aspirations.

On the track, the team highlight at senior level has been the success of our ladies in retaining Premiership status in the UK Womens League which is due in no small part by the determination of Team Manager Sue Leyshon. At junior level the Harriers have had an excellent year culminating in second place in the UKYAL Auxiliary Final when 84 of our athletes made the long journey to Manchester Sport City. Track Secretary Jo Davis and our track and field team managers deserve enormous credit for the effort in turning out our

teams through the summer months, culminating in an excellent performance in Manchester.

Sporting success at elite level is normally due to the groundwork at grass roots level and it is pleasing that Junior Track & Field initiatives were successful. The Triangular Series between Swansea, Neath &Llanelli continues and the return of the Swansea Junior Games, organised by John Griffiths, was a success which is hoped to be repeated in 2013.

On the roads our ladies team, managed by George Edwards, gained silver medals in the National 6 Stage Relays at Sutton Park after comprehensively winning the Welsh Cross Country Championships and Road Relay Championships. Our men won the Welsh Cross Country Championships and finished second in the Welsh Road Relays.

The Club continued its development policy of sending athletes to the National Young Athletes Road Relays in Sutton Park and this was reflected at the Welsh Road Relays at Llandow where the Club dominated. At Under 17 level the boys and girls teams both won gold, while at Under 15 level the girls team won gold and the boys team silver.

These achievements are the tip of a very large iceberg. For those wanting a fuller record of our achievements in 2012 our website is an excellent source of the Clubs team and individual performances throughout the year and has borne some outstanding individual performances at senior and junior level particularly from David Greene, Caryl Jones, Miles Keller-Jenkins, Hannah Briers, Emily Cockrill and Toni Wells.

So what for 2013 and beyond? The only certainty is that it will be a period of change and new challenges.

The Welsh Junior League is already based on a regional structure and it is likely that the Senior League will adopt a similar approach next year. This is due to a number of reasons, one of which is that athletes seem less inclined to give up their free time to travel long distances to matches, preferring local matches.

At UK level the NYAL is ready for a major change as it becomes the Youth Development League. It will be a major change for the Club as we aim to field a team in our own right, rather than as a composite West Wales team. This League is already based on a regional structure and it will be no surprise if in the foreseeable future the senior UK Women and Mens British Leagues follow suit with crippling increases in transport costs being a primary reason.

Road running and cross country has seen remarkable change over the last decade with many club races disappearing due to “Health and Safety” and larger events run by local authorities or business organisations taking their place. This is likely to continue.

We have to adapt to that change in order to develop and seek new sources of revenue to fulfil the Clubs true potential. To achieve this we have to have key volunteers in place over a sustained period of time – our first 50 years has already shown us that!

Some of our key volunteers, Roy Adams (Official) and Wyn Jones (Treasurer) have decided that 2012 is when they finally “retire”. The Club would like to offer them thanks for many years service to the Club and athletics in our area.

Finally, as always, I would like to thank everyone who has helped the Club in our 50th Anniversary year.

Be it as an athlete, official, parent, coach, team manager, helper, organiser, announcer or committee member, the Club could not function without an intricate network of enthusiastic and committed volunteers and an enormous amount of work put in by everyone.

Kevin Corcoran

Secretary, Swansea Harriers 4th October 2012

Swansea Harriers Athletics ClubAnnual General Meeting on Thursday 4 October 2012

May I start by saying a very big thank you to all the team managers, officials, coaches, volunteers, committee members, club officers, parents and not forgetting the athletes for dedicating their time to help promote and maintain this club as one of the best in the country.

The outdoor track & field season started for many with the open meeting held at the home track. With over 200 entries, it was a good indicator that the athletes had trained hard during the winter season and I congratulate them wholeheartedly for their magnificent efforts.

British Athletics League – Division Three (Senior Men)The Senior Men’s team maintained their position in the league for another season finishing in sixth place overall. With just under 1200 miles travelled to the away fixtures held in Derby and Southampton, finishing sixth in the first three matches, the final fixture at home was a welcomed break from travelling and the team put in an excellent performance to finish 2nd on the day. Dewi Griffiths was awarded Athlete of the Match (2) for his fine performance in the 3000m. Individual winners Oladele Bamisaye (100m), Matthew Baker (110mH), Guy Smith (1500m), Tom O’Shea (Hammer) Ritchie Wells (Discus), Stephen Scarfi (Pole Vault) Emyr Jones (Pole Vault), Dewi Griffiths (1500m, 3000m & 5000m) and both Javelin throwers Rhys Williams & Jon Llewellyn comfortably won in the 3 matches they were available for. Final Scores and Match Points: Southampton AC (1362 / 30) Derby AC (1294 /

27) Trafford AC (1127.5 / 22) Victoria Park & Tower Hamlets (1125 / 17) Havering Mayesbrook (1076 / 17) Swansea Harriers (1081.5 / 16) Yeovil Olympiads (897.5 / 11) and Channel Islands (695.5 / 4)

UK Women’s Athletics League – Division One (Senior Women)The Senior Ladies team embraced the Premier Division with open arms and athletes should be commended for their outstanding performances. Competing against seven of the top clubs in the UK, their efforts have been well rewarded by finishing in fourth place overall, fixtures this year were held in Birmingham, Eton and the final match at home. Individual winners Megan Rogers (400m / 400mH) Caryl Granville (400mH) Andrea Whitcombe (3000m) Sian Davies (400mH) and League Record Breaking newcomer Caryl Jones (1500m / 2000m S/C and 3000m). Final Scores and Match Points: Birchfield Harriers (718.5 / 24) Windsor Slough and Eton Harriers (622 / 21) Blackheath & Bromley (503.5 / 14) Swansea Harriers (509 / 12) Edinburgh AC (490.5 / 11) City of Manchester (472 / 10) Woodford Green and Essex Ladies (483.5 / 9) and Enfield & Haringey AC (438 / 7)

BAL Golden Jubilee Cup Competition (Senior Men & Senior Women)With a double win at the semi finals held in Newport, the team travelled to Derby for the Cup final. Unfortunately due to many of the athletes being unavailable, those who did compete done extremely well to finish sixth (SM) and fourth (SW) respectively. Senior Men Final Scores: Crawley AC (81) Bolton Utd Harriers (77) Southampton AC (74) Shaftesbury Barnet (71) Newham & Essex Beagles (54) Swansea Harriers (40) Birchfield Harriers (20) and Thames Valley Harriers (0). Senior Women Final Scores: Crawley AC (118) Lincoln Wellington AC (73) Bingley Harriers (71) Swansea Harriers (63) Southampton AC (32).

Welsh Athletics Senior Athletics League – Division One (U17, U20 & Seniors)Continuing with the same timetable as last year, four athletes per age group per event were able to compete. With the first and final fixtures held in the north at Deeside & Colwyn Bay, a very small team travelled to both gaining valuable points. At the match in Cwmbran an even smaller team took part and managed to win on the day. With a match at home it was all hands on deck so to say and comfortably won with a 200 point margin. The format of this league may be restructured for the 2013 season. Final Scores and Match Points: Swansea Harriers (1955 /29) Colwyn Bay AC (1885 /26) Cardiff AC (759 /18) Wrexham AC (924 /14) Deeside AAC (895 /14) Carmarthen Harriers (690 /14) Newport Harriers (551 /12) and Barry & Vale Harriers (709 /12)

National Junior League, Midland Premier Division (West Wales Composite Team) (U20 / U17)This composite team is made up from all clubs in West Wales. A number of our U17 and U20 athletes regularly participated with some good results all round, helping them to finish in second place in the league and booking their place in the National Finals. On the day, they faced tough competition from the other finalists and went one better than last year to finish in seventh place. Matches took place in Yate, Swansea and Derby (the first match in Derby was abandoned due to the extreme weather conditions unfortunately, the bus had already travelled most of the way). This was the last season for this league as it is due to be restructured for 2013. Final Scores and Match Points: Birchfield Harriers (1628 /23) West Wales (1495 /21) Rugby & Northampton AC (1419 /17) Team Avon (1351.5 /17) Notts AC

(1195 /12) Cardiff AC (1038 /9) Derby AC (744.5 /6) and Cannock & Stafford AC (477 /3). National Final Scores: Shaftesbury Barnet H. (487) Birchfield Harriers (444) Blackheath & Bromley H&AC (435) Windsor, Slough, Eton, Hounslow (419.5) Team Edinburgh (416) Sale Harriers(Manchester) (407) West Wales (304) Gateshead Harriers & AC (277.5)

National Young Athletes League – Midland Premier South Division (U13, U15 & U17)With a slightly different format to last year, 3 matches were held in Yate, Abingdon and Cardiff, against the same five teams with the top two progressing through to the area final in Stoke on Trent. The athletes comfortably won all three matches. Special mention must go to Miles Keller Jenkins (U15B) who equalled the League Record in the High Jump with a massive leap of 1.97m. This also broke the 16 year Club Record and Welsh Record and puts him third on the all time list and number one in the UK this year. Hannah Brier (U15G) also broke a Welsh Record in the 200m in a time of 24.54 seconds (with legal wind time) With the athletes happily travelling to Stoke, some the night before due to the early timetable start, finishing fourth, with plenty of medal winners and personal bests, the team did enough to go through to the Auxiliary Final. An overnight stop was planned so athletes and parents made the long journey up to Manchester. With the team proudly wearing their commemorative t-shirts, the day was full of fun and athletes outdone themselves with many fine performances. When all the events had finished and the scores added up, we were piped at the post into 2nd place. This sadly was the last time this competition will run as it is due to be restructured for the 2013 season. Final League Scores and Match Points: Swansea Harriers (2631 /18) Cheltenham & County Harriers (2308.5 /14) Cardiff AAC (1997 /11) Yate & District AC (1793 /9) Radley AC (1684 /8) and Bristol & West AC (1344.5 /3). Area Final Scores: Rugby & Northampton (865) Birchfield Harriers (789) Notts AC (764) Swansea Harriers (742) Cardiff AAC (663) City of Stoke AC (641) Cheltenham & County Harriers (610) and Nene Valley (573). Auxiliary Final Scores: Tonbridge AC (735) Swansea Harriers (711) Croydon Harriers (710) Gateshead Harriers & AC (677.5) City of Lisburn AC (643) Giffnock North (627) Notts AC (612) and Leeds City AC (577.5)

Welsh Junior League – Louise Arthur Division One (U11, U13 & U15)This popular competition gives the junior athletes a fun day of athletics, with six athletes per event per age group, there is ample room to mix events. With just over five hundred points ahead of their nearest rivals, the club successfully won the boys section and the girls section and triumped as the overall winner. Matches took place in Carmarthen, Neath, Swansea and Brecon. League Records were broken by Hannah Brier (200m / 300m) and Miles Keller Jenkins (High Jump). Hannah’s 300m time puts her second on the all time list and number one in the UK this year. Final Scores were Swansea Harriers (2792) Pembrokeshire Harriers (2259) Carmarthen Harriers (1687) Neath Harriers AC (1382) and Bridgend AC (1120)

Gerald Codd Trophy Match (U11, U13 & U15)This annual competition held in Haverfordwest during the summer holidays saw junior athletes put in a very good performance to come in second to the winner hosts, Pembrokeshire Harriers. Final Scores: Pembrokeshire Harriers (873.5) Swansea Harriers (859.5) Carmarthen Harriers (587) Bridgend AC (372) Neath Harriers (252) Barry & Vale Harriers (213) and Amman Valley (12)

Welsh Junior League Cup Final (U11, U13 & U15)

The team had a brilliant result in Brecon to win just ahead of Pembrokeshire and Carmarthen making it a clean sweep for the West Wales clubs. Final Scores: Swansea Harriers (1102) Pembrokeshire Harriers (1043) Carmarthen Harriers (1022) Cardiff AC (903) Wrexham AC (679) Newport Harriers (577) Cwmbran Harriers (442) Colwyn Bay AC (384)

Inter Regional Triangular Match – Llanelli AC v Neath Harriers v Swansea Harriers (U11 & U13)This popular junior fixture is now in its third year and saw three fixtures being attended at each of the competing clubs. A selective timetable was used to cover at least one jump, run and throw for each age group. Swansea Harriers successfully won all three matches comfortably. Final Scores: Swansea Harriers (490.5) Neath Harriers (329.5) Llanelli AC (147)

West Wales ChampionshipsThis annual event held in Neath this year saw athletes from all over West Wales competing for the chance to be crowned champions of the region. GOLD MEDAL WINNERSElissa Ratti (800m) Emily Coles (HJ) Rachel Jones (Discus / Javelin) Hannah Brier (100m / 200m) Eira James (800m) Jamie O’Driscoll (70mH) Jessica Harry (HJ) Emily Cockrill (Shot / Discus) Lucy Hammett (300m) Lara Phillipart (1500m / 3000m) Erin Walters (HJ) Lucy Fligelstone (300mH) Caitlin Atkins (PV / Javelin) Ffion Walters (TJ) Carys Smith (Hammer) Emily Morris (400mH) Chelsea Christopher (TJ) Nina Prells (Discus / Hammer) Sian Huxtable (Shot) Donna Jones (100m / LJ) Anwen Rees (400mH) Claire Williams (Javelin) Llyr Gealy (200m) Samuel Martin (1500m) Michael Thompson (75mH) Jack Morris (HJ) Scott Hill (Discus) Ben Turner (300m) Rhys Harris (80mH) Miles Keller Jenkins (HJ) Joe Crosby (LJ) Scott Morgans (TJ) Rhys Davies (Discus) Jac Hopkins (1500m) Keiran Ingram (HJ) Nathan Phillips (400mH) Lewis Preece (PV) Rhys Gealy (Shot) Carwyn Evans (400m) Daniel Thomas (Javelin) Paul Bennett (100m / 200m) Steve Davies (3000m) Alex Jackson (LJ) David Jones (Hammer)SILVER MEDAL WINNERSYana Parry (200m) Amber Murphy (HJ) Rachel Jones (Shot) Delun Allcock (100m / 200m / LJ) Eira James (300m) Anna Barnes (PV) Emily Evans (Discus) Emily Cockrill (Javelin) Elise Davies (100m / 200m) Lucy Fligelstone (80mH) Erin Walters (LJ) Carys Smith (Discus) Elinor Jones (400m) Sophie Lane (LJ) Nina Prells (Shot) Sarah Evans (100m) Renate Prells (Hammer) Llyr Gealy (100m / HJ) Elliot Lawrence (800m) Tomos Slade (75mH) Scott Morgan (LJ) Steffan Tyrrell (200m) Ieuan Hosgood (Javelin) Luke Williams (300m) Ciaran Parkhouse (LJ) Samuel Jones (Hammer / Discus) Ashley Hopkins (800m) Josh Hollisey Mclean (PV) Keiran Ingram (Javelin) Carwyn Evans (800m) Daniel Thomas (Shot)BRONZE MEDAL WINNERSHolly Hurford (100m) Jessica Lewis (200m) Chloe Hopkins (800m / HJ) Tybie Newby Chugg (LJ) Jamie O’Driscoll (100m) Bethan Harris (1500m) Maryanne Eve (PV) Danielle Jones (Discus) Emily Evans (Hammer) Katie Wells (Javelin) Carys Smith (Javelin) Sian Huxtable (100m) Chelsea Christopher (LJ) Renate Prells (Shot / Discus) Jo Davis (Hammer / Javelin) Jacob Seal (200m) Morgan Gillingham (800m) Scott Morgan (75mH) Michael Thompson (HJ) Rhys Harris (200m) Ben Turner (100m) Callum Kamratov Jones (LJ / TJ) Samuel Jones (Shot) Nathan James (Javelin) Ashley Hopkins (Javelin)

Welsh Athletics Age Group Championships (U13 / U15 / U17 / U20 / Seniors / Masters)

These championships were held over a weekend in Cardiff covering all age groups from U13 to Masters. All athletes participating done extremely well and produced some fine results. GOLD MEDAL WINNERSMichael Thompson (75mH) Scott Hill (Shot) Miles Keller Jenkins (High Jump) Hannah Brier (100m / 200m) Eleri Slade (1k Walk) Jessica Harry (High Jump) Emily Cockrill (Javelin / Shot) Jonathan Tobin (1500m) Connor Davies (1500m S/C) Lewis Preece (Pole Vault) Catrin Jones (High Jump) Sian Swanson (Triple Jump) Nina Prells (Shot / Discus) Toni Wells (Hammer) Paul Bennett (400mH) Alaw Beynon Thomas (1500m) Caryl Jones (5000m) Caryl Granville (100mH / 400mH) Donna Jones (Long Jump) Claire Williams (Javelin) Hubert Daniels (100m / 200m) John Collins (3k Walk) Richard Ledger (Javelin) Renate Prells (Shot / Discus / Hammer / Javelin) Jo Davis (Javelin) James Ledger (Ambulant Long Jump)SILVER MEDAL WINNERSSamuel Martin (1500m) Scott Morgan (Long Jump) Scott Hill (Discus) Felicity Church (Long Jump) Megan Stratton Thomas (Discus) Jessica Merrick (75mH) Anna Barnes (Pole Vault) Josh Hollisey Mclean (Pole Vault) Rhys Gealy (Shot) Lara Philippart (1500m) Ffion Walters (Triple Jump) Carys Smith (Hammer) Stephen Scarfi (Pole Vault) Ritchie Wells (Hammer) Donna Jones (Triple Jump) BRONZE MEDAL WINNERSMark Tobin (High Jump) Emily Coles (High Jump) Rachel Jones (Shot / Javelin) Joe Crosby (80mH) Maryanne Eve (Pole Vault) Rhys Gealy (200m) Nathan Phillips (400mH) Lucy Hammett (300m) Erin Walters (High Jump) Cerys McCool (Pole Vault) Stephanie Nicholas (Discus) Bethan Radford (Javelin) Ben Jenkins (High Jump) Emily Dacey (Long Jump) Nina Prells (Hammer) Daniel Williams (High Jump) Catrin Stone (100mH) Anwen Rees (400mH)

Inter Regional ChampionshipsA number of U15 to senior athletes represented West Wales in this annual fixture held this year in Cardiff. The athletes done extremely well to finish in first place overall. Gold medal winners were Dewi Griffiths (1500m / 3000m) Jac Hopkins (1500m) Connor Davies (1500m s/c) Osian Griffiths (HJ) Josh Hollisey Mclean (PV) Caryl Granville (400m / 400mH) Carol Glover (1500m) Emily Morris (HJ) Claire Williams (Javelin) Olivia Gwynn (1500m) Lara Philippart (3000m) Catrin Jones (HJ) Caitlin Atkins (PV) Erin Walters (LJ) Jessica Merrick (75mH) Anna Barnes (PV)

SIAB U17 International With fifteen junior athletes selected to represent Wales at the British Schools U17 International at Ashford in Kent, it was for some their first International meeting. Congratulations to Hannah Brier (100m 3rd) Lucy Hammett (300m 8th) Olivia Gwynn (1500m 6th) Lara Philippart (3000m 5th) Lucy Fligelstone (300mH 8th) Erin Walters (Long Jump 3rd) Ffion Walters (Triple Jump 7th) Catrin Jones (High Jump 4th) Carys Smith (Hammer 7th) Jac Hopkins (3000m 4th) Connor Davies (1500m S/C 3rd) Osian Griffiths (High Jump 7th) Josh Hollisey Mclean (Pole Vault 6th) Lewis Preece (Pole Vault) Rhys Gealy (100m n/s 5th)

Celtic GamesIn the U16 age group the following athletes were selected to represent Wales in the Celtic Games held in Aberdeen, Scotland. Congratulations to Michael Wilson (100mH 2nd) Hannah Brier (100m 1st) Jac Hopkins (1500m 3rd) Miles Keller Jenkins (High Jump 1st) Stephanie Nicholas (Shot 2nd). In the U18 age group, congratulations must go to Lara Philippart

(3000m 2nd) Olivia Gwynn (1500m 4th) Jonathan Tobin (1500m 2nd) Stephen Scarfi (Pole Vault 2nd) Catrin Jones (High Jump 1st).

Welsh Schools Track & Field ChampionshipsThe Welsh Schools Track & Field Championships took place in Brecon. Athletes represented their school districts with the added incentives of further possible selection for international matches representing Wales. Athletes competing were Lewis Preece (Pole Vault 1st) Emily Morris (High Jump 4th / 400mH 2nd) Miles Keller Jenkins (Javelin 4th / High Jump 1st) Rhys Gealy (Shot 4th / 100m 3rd H2 5th F) Elise Davies (100m 6th / 200m 5th) Hannah Brier (100m 1st / 200m 1st) Delun Allcock (100m 7th / 200m 6th ) James Taylor (200m 8th) Anna Barnes (Pole Vault 2nd) Lucy Hammett (300m 2nd) Carwyn Evans (400m 6th) Alex Pavlou (400m 3rd H2 7th F) Bethan Radford (Javelin 3rd) Elinor Jones (200m 4th) Daniel Messer (Shot 4th / 400m 7th) Jemima Osborn (400m 4th) Luke Clements (800m 4th) David Fligelstone (800m 7th) Elysia Pearson (800m 2nd) Olivia Gwynn (800m 4th / 1500m 2nd) Lara Philippart (800m 7th / 3000m 1st) Ashley Hopkins (1500m 6th) Aran Rees (1500m 5th) Josh Hollisey Mclean (Pole Vault 2nd) Jessica Merrick (75mH 2nd) Katherine Morris (Long Jump 4th / 80mH 3rd) Michael Wilson (Long Jump 9th / 100mH 4th) Emily Dacey (Long Jump 1st / 100mH 1st) Jac Hopkins (3000m 1st) Shane Jones (110mH 3rd) Lucy Fligelstone (300mH 2nd) Connor Davies (1500m S/C 1st) Eleri Slade (1k Walk 2nd) Ben Jenkins (High Jump 3rd) Osian Griffiths (High Jump 1st) Nathan Phillips (400mH 3rd ) Catrin Jones (High Jump 1st) Erin Walters (Long Jump 1st / High Jump 2nd) Stephen Scarfi (Pole Vault 1st) Jessica Harry (High Jump 1st) Caitlin Atkins (Pole Vault 2nd) Cerys McCool (Hammer 4th / Pole Vault 4th) Kieron Martin (Long Jump 2nd) Osaze Aghedo (Triple Jump 1st / Long Jump 4th) Jack Straw (Triple Jump 6th) Ffion Walters (Triple Jump 2nd) Nina Prells (Hammer 2nd / Discus 1st / Shot 1st) Stephanie Nicholas (Shot 4th / Discus) Emily Cockrill (Shot 1st / Discus 2nd) Samuel Jones (Discus 4th / Hammer 6th) Jack Beynon (Hammer 6th) Carys Smith (Hammer 2nd) Katie Wells (Javelin 4th)

UK School GamesAs the Olympics were being held later on in the year, the UK School Games was moved to near the start of the season. Athletes were extremely lucky as the event was being held at the newly built Olympic Park in London. Seven athletes were selected to represent Wales. Congratulations to Olivia Gwynn (1500m 4th) Jonathan Tobin (3000m 4th) Rhys Gealy (100mH 8th) Connor Davies (1500m S/C 5th) Erin Walters (High Jump 8th) Lewis Preece (Pole Vault 5th) and James Ledger (Ambulant Long Jump 1st)

Welsh Schools and Welsh Athletics Combined Events ChampionshipsThe Welsh Athletics and Welsh Schools Combined Events Championships were again held in Newport. WA athletes taking part were Michael Thompson 5th Scott Morgan 6th Llyr Gealy 10th Tomos Slade 11th Ieuan Hosgood 12th Felicity Church 4th Megan Stratton Thomas 15th Caitlin Llewellyn 18th. Welsh Schools athletes taking part were Chloe Clarke 10th David Fligelstone 10th Rhys Harris 12th and Rhodri Williams. The only medal winner on the day was Elinor Jones who claimed a bronze.

Welsh Athletics Combined EventsThis competition has been incorporated into the AAA (UK) U17 Combined Events Championships held in Stoke. Katherine Morris finished a very credible 7th place overall and

as the highest placing Welsh athlete was awarded the Gold Medal and title of Welsh Champion 2012 with a score of 3908 points in the Heptathlon (80mH/LJ/HJ/Shot/Javelin/200m/800m).

England Athletics AAA Championships The top U15 and U17 athletes in the UK take part in this competition held in Bedford. As there is a very tough entry criteria for athletes to achieve qualification, it was promising to see so many athletes competing. Athletes gained valuable experience at this event and many came away with personal bests. Athletes taking part were Miles Keller Jenkins (High Jump 1st) Hannah Brier (100m 1st H1 2nd F/ 200m 1st H1 3rd F) Emily Cockrill (Shot 2nd / Discus 6th) Rhys Harris ( 80mH 6th H2) Erin Walters (LJ 6th) Jessica Merrick (75mH 4th H2) Lucy Hammett (300m 6th H3) Connor Davies (1500m s/c 7th) Lara Philippart (1500m 8th H1) Olivia Gwynn (1500m 4th H2 6th F) Jonathan Tobin (1500m 5th H1 10th F) Josh Hollisey Mclean (PV 15th) Lewis Preece (PV 8th) Jac Hopkins (3000m 2nd)

Aviva UK Trails & ChampionshipsAt the invitation only event, the weekend was full of action with the top UK athletes competing. Club athletes competing were Paul Bennett (400mH 4th H4) Caryl Granville (400mH 2nd H3 5th F) Sian Davies (400mH 5th H1) Chris Gowell (800m 5th H5 / 1500m 4th H2) Carol Glover (800m 8th H3) David Greene (400mH 1st H3 1st F) and Caryl Jones (10000m 2nd)

Swansea Golden Jubilee Junior GamesWith the welcome return of this popular event, it was a fun day for all. With a selected timetable for U11s to U17s Medals were awarded to the top three in each event.GOLD MEDAL WINNERSCatrin Jones (High Jump) Emily Cockrill (Shot) Erin Walters (Long Jump) Grace Thomas (Shot) Hannah Brier (100m) Holli Evans (75m) Jessica Merrick (200m / 75mH) Miles Keller-Jenkins (High Jump) Naomi Osborn (800m) Rhys Harris (80mH) Scott Hill (Shot) Scott Morgan (75mH / Long Jump) SILVER MEDAL WINNERSBen Petherbridge (75m / 800m) Brandon Davies (Shot) Brynmor Clements (Shot) Connor Davies (800m) Danielle Jones (High Jump) Eluned King (800m) Emily Cockrill (Javelin) Emily Coles (70mH / High Jump) Fern Parkhouse (Shot) Ffion Jenkins (800m) Hannah Davies (High Jump) Jac Evans (High Jump) Lloyd John (Javelin) Llyr Gealy (200m) Lucy Hammett (100m / 300m) Osaze Aghedo (Long Jump) Rachel Jones (Javelin / Shot) Rhys Gealy (100m / 200m / Shot) Scott Morgan (800m) Sophie Davies (200m / 800m) Stephanie Lines (Shot) Stephanie Nicholas (Discus / Shot) BRONZE MEDAL WINNERSMiles Keller-Jenkins (Javelin) Tomos Slade (75mH) Tybie Newby-Chugg (Long Jump) William Sharp (100m) Katie Wells (Javelin) Keiran Ingram (High Jump) Lucy Hammett (200m) Megan Stratton-Thomas (Javelin) Ajay Bater (Shot) Beth Thomas (800m) Brandon Davies (High Jump) Callam Dodd (Long Jump) Eira James (800m) Elissa Ratti (800m) Emily Cockrill (Discus) Emily Evans (Shot) Grace Thomas Long Jump Holli Evans (Shot) Joshua Tilley Long Jump Katherine Morris (Shot) Katie Roberts (Shot)

Club Records

A number of Club Records were broken during the 2012 track and field season. Congratulations must go to SM 400m Hurdles David Greene 47.84, U17M 1500m Steeplechase Connor Davies 4m20.56, U15G 100m Hannah Brier 12.04, 200m 24.54 and 300m 39.7, SW 100m Hurdles Caryl Granville 13.77, U17W Javelin Bethan Radford 34.40m, U15G Javelin Emily Cockrill 33.05m, U20W 2000m Steeplechase Katie Reynolds 7m41.28, U17W 1500m Steeplechase Elin Davies 5m31.8, SW 10,000m Caryl Jones 32m53.53, 5000m 15m37.3 and 2000m Steeplechase 6m39.35, U15B High Jump Miles Keller-Jenkins 1.97m., U20M 4 x 100m Relay Ross Bangura, Keiron Martin, Eliott Haddon & Carwyn Evans 46.19 and U20W Hammer Toni Wells 55.81m

Gold AwardsAlthough, not as many as last year, these athletes have again outdone themselves and produced some excellent performances to gain these awards. Michael Thompson (60mH / 75mH) Sam Martin (1500m) Scott Hill (Discus / Shot) Miles Keller-Jenkins (High Jump) Osaze Aghedeo (Triple Jump) Rhys Harris (80mH) Rachel Jones (Shot / Discus / Javelin) Emily Coles (High Jump / 70mH) Tybie Newby-Chugg (Long Jump) Felicity Church (Long Jump) Megan Stratton-Thomas (Discus / 1k Walk) Gabrielle Christmas (100m) Sophie Davies (70mH) Hannah Davies (High Jump) Lewis Preece (Pole Vault) Jonathan Tobin (1500m / 3000m) Connor Davies (1500m / 3000m / 1500m S/C) Jac Hopkins (1500m / 3000m) Michael Wilson (100mH) Hannah Brier (60m / 100m / 200m / 300m / Long Jump) Emily Cockrill (Shot / Discus / Javelin) Jessica Harry (High Jump) Jessica Merrick (75mH) Jamie O’Driscoll (75mH) Anna Barnes (Pole Vault) Katherine Morris (60mH / 80mH) Stephanie Nicholas (Discus / Shot) Catrin Jones (High Jump) Olivia Gwynn (1500m) Lucy Hammett (300m) Lara Phillippart (1500m / 3000m) Rhiannon Hails (80mH) Erin Walters (Long Jump) Lucy Fligelstone (300mH) Bethan Radford (Javelin)

Jo DavisTrack & Field Secretary (2012)

Swansea Harriers Athletics Club

Cross Country and Road Running Report 2011-2012With the Harriers ladies winning silver medals in both the National 6 Stage Road Relays and the UK 10km road race Championships, Caryl Jones gaining selection to represent Great Britain in the World Half Marathon Championships in Bulgaria in October and a crop of promising youngsters coming through our coaching set up, 2012 has been an interesting and exciting period for our runners

Road Running

Road Relays

The club’s stand out team achievement of 2011- 2012 in road running saw the Harriers ladies finish second in the UK National six-stage road relay at Sutton Park, Birmingham in April and medal for the third successive year. The team of Elysia Ridley, Alaw Beynon-Thomas, Caryl Jones, Holly Lawrence, Andrea Whitcombe and Elinor Kirk added another medal to the ladies collection in this event and continue their great recent history in the race which reads : 2010 – Silver, 2011 Bronze, 2012 – Silver. Such is our strength in depth at the moment that our ladies B team finished in 17th position. 2012 has seen our mens teams struggle with injury and illness but to our credit we still fielded a 12 Stage team with a solid performance to finish 31st.

At the Welsh Road Relays at Llandow in March the U13B team of Joseph Tobin, Oliver Jones, Mark Tobin and Elliot Lawrence got the event off to a great start for the Club by winning gold medals. Our juniors dominated the event and at Under 17 level the girls team won gold with the trio of Elin Davies, Naomi Osborn and Iona Evans. Elin had the fastest leg of the day. The boys also won gold with their trio being Carwyn Evans, Connor Davies and Jonathan Tobin.

At Under 15 level the girls team won gold with the team of Eve Kyrakides, Lara Phillipart, Lucy Fligelstone and Olivia Gwynn. Olivia ran the fastest leg of the day. The boys team won silver after being led off by Ashley John in his first ever race for the club followed by Jac Hopkins and Ashley Hopkins. Jac had the fastest leg of the day.

In the Senior Womens event both the A and B teams medalled. The A team quartet of Caryl Jones, Andrea Whitcombe, Holly Lawrence and Alaw Beynon-Thomas won gold while the B team of Ellie Kirk, Jemima Osborn, Elysia Pearson and Sian Kirk came home with the bronze. Caryl had the fastest leg of the day. In the Senior Mens race the team came home in silver medal position with the team comprising Ross McDonald, Marc Hobbs, Mark Morgan and Afan Humphries.

In June our mixed masters athletes took part in the Welsh Castles Relay from Caernarfon to Cardiff. The team finished second in the masters section and finished 21st place out of the 59 teams that entered. The main highlights were a fine 4th place for Sullivan Smith on stage 14 (Builth Wells to Drovers Arms) covering 10.8 miles in 1.03.19 after running a stage the previous evening for TATA Steel and Matthew Gurmin who won stage 17 (Beacons Reservoir to Cyfarthfa Castle).

Road Races

In the London Marathon in April the Clubs first runner home was David Kehoe in 2.35.05, followed by Owain Jones (2.42.09), Raul Reismann (3.01.40), Steve Davies (3.05.43) Rob Falconer (3.13.52), Stephen Richards (3.23.15), Simon Franks (3.56.56), Uku Kumari (4.03.56) and Sam Walsh (4.05.03). Joining the seniors and representing Welsh Schools over the last 3 miles of the main race route in the London Mini Marathon were Jac Hopkins, who had another very close finish to claim the bronze medal in the U15B. U17M - Connor Davies 58th and Jonathan Tobin 30th, U15G - Olivia Gwynn 17th and Lara Philippart 39th, U17W - Elin Davies 24th, U15G - Bethan Harris 77th.

May 2012 saw Caryl Jones take the silver medal at the UK 10km road race championships in London in a time of 33.08. Caryl helped the ladies team to another silver medal at UK level. Andrea Whitcombe was 8th in 34.11, Holly Lawrence 20th in 37.04 and Elysia Ridley 24th in 27.50. In the mens race Dewi Griffiths was 9th in 30.20 followed by Marc Hobbs (41st in 32.07) and Chris Thompson (76th in 33.26).

September was a busy period. At the Cardiff 10K, Dewi Griffiths had a fine run to finish 3rd in a personal best time of 30.06 while Caryl Jones ran 32.31 which took her to 3rd in the UK rankings, 20th on the UK all time list and 2nd on the Welsh all time list. Martin Rees set a World Best for a 59 year old with a time of 33.12.

The following week Caryl competed in the Great North Run at Newcastle and finished 8th female overall and 3rd British athlete in a time of 71.18. The result led to her being selected to represent the Great Britain and Northern Ireland team at the IAAF World Half Marathon Championships in Kavarna Bulgaria in October. The selection was reward for an outstanding season in which Caryl has set club records at 5000m (15.37.3), 10,000m (32.53.53), 2000m Steeple Chase (6.39.35) as well as winning the Olympic Trials 10,000m.

Finally, it was pleasing to see a good turnout of Harriers at the Swansea Bay 10K, 5K, 3k and 1K races. In the 10K Dewi was again our first athlete home in 6th (30.25) with masters Martin Rees 34th (33.41) and Andrea Whitcombe 6th lady (34.17). In the 5K junior race there was a fine wins for Jonathan Tobin (15.54) in the boys race and Lara Philippart (18.55) in the girls race. The 3K saw all 4 top places in the boys go to Swansea Harriers athletes with a fine debut win for Dylan Lambropoulos (11.11). Bethan Harris won the girls race in 12.05. In the 1K junior race girls race Eluned King ran to victory with Lily Murphy second.

Our athletes are constantly on the roads throughout the year and included in some of our successes were victories in the Lliswerry 8 (Dewi Griffiths), Llanelli Half Marathon and Marathon (Mark Roberts), Rhayader 20 Miles (David Kehoe) Atlantic College 10km (Alaw Beynon-Thomas), Cwmavon 10km (Dewi Griffiths and Caryl Jones), Brecon 10 Miles (Dewi Griffiths) Pembroke Half Marathon (Eamonn Kirk).

Cross Country

In February the Welsh Cross Country Championships were held at St Fagans Cardiff. The mens and womens teams were comprehensive winners in their respective events. The womens team comprised Caryl Jones, Andrea Whitcombe, Elysia Ridley and Alaw Beynon-Thomas while the mens team comprised Dewi Griffiths, Marc Hobbs, Sullivan Smith, Phil Matthews, Simon Jones and Guy Smith. There were medals for the U13 boys team who claimed silver; Oliver Jones, Elliott Lawrence, Sam Martin & Josh Green, and in the combined U17 & U20W team event there was silver for the quartet of Elin Davies, Iona Evans, Katie Reynolds & Jemima Osborn.

Individually there were gold medals for Caryl Jones (SW), Lara Phillipart (U15G), Jac Hopkins (U15B) and Dewi Griffiths (SM) while there were silver medals for Andrea Whitcombe (SW), Alaw Beynon-Thomas (U23W), Guy Smith (U23M) and bronze for Marc Hobbs (SM) and Katie Reynolds (U20W). Both men and women teams go forward to represent Wales in the European clubs' championships trial at Liverpool in November.

At the UK Inter Counties Cross Country Championships at Birmingham club athletes represented West Wales. The highlight of the day was a podium place for Jac Hopkins who finished third in the U15 Boys race. Some fine running saw an 8th place for Dewi Griffiths in the Senior Mens race and a 6th placing for Caryl Jones in the Senior Womens race. The race was incorporated into the final fixture of the McCain Cross Challenge series with Jac and Olivia Gwynn (U15G) finishing in 2nd place overall in their age group.

One of the most prestigious cross country races held in Wales is the Cardiff Cross Challenge held in January. In the senior mens race Dewi Griffiths was first Harrier home in 10th followed by Chris Gowell (22nd) Marc Hobbs (26th), Sam Joseph (57th) and Tom Guest (59th). Caryl Jones was a magnificent 2nd in the ladies race with Alaw Beynon-Thomas 24th and Carol Glover 27th. Jac Hopkins won the U15 Boys race, Connor Davies was 6th in the U17M, an 8th place for Elliott Lawrence in the U13B. Olivia Gwynn had another great run to finish 3rd in the U15G.

In the Gwent Cross Country League there was success for the junior teams with the U20M gain overall victory in the League and the U13B and U20W teams finishing second. Individually there were top 10 placings for U11B Nathan Jones 8th, U13B Oliver Jones 3rd, Eliott Lawrence 5th, Sam Martin 10th, U13G Bethan Harris 4th, and overall victories for U15G Lara Philipart and U20M Matthew Thomas. Also in the U20M Paul Tobin was 3rd and Sam Joseph 4th, with U20W Jemima Osborn 2nd, Katie Reynolds 6th and Mark Roberts 4th in the senior men.

In the masters GB&NI International at Glasgow in November Ifan Lloyd finished 7th in the V50-54 age group and David Rees finished 19th in the V35-39 age group. To round off the season Dewi Griffiths finished 46th place in the World University Cross Country

Championships at Lodz, Poland. Over the 9km course Dewi finished 3rd British student home against many world class athletes, a very fine performance. Also finishing the season well was U20 athlete Joshua Griffiths who was selected for the Great Britain & Northern Ireland team World Mountain Running Championships in Valle Camonica, Italy, finishing in 50th position.

Success requires an enormous amount of work behind the scenes from the Clubs team managers and coaches I would like to personally thank George Edwards, Sam Osborn, Kevin Tobin, John Griffiths, Tracy Tobin, John Evans, Andrew Jenkins, Gareth Jones, Lynn Martin, Clare Phillips and Rick Stratton-Thomas for carrying out these roles throughout the season and to all the parents who drive their children to events throughout the winter, often in adverse weather conditions.

Kevin Corcoran,

Swansea Harriers

Cross Country Secretary

4th October 2012

SWANSEA HARRIERS ATHLETICS CLUB

Coaching 2012We are very, very lucky to have the coaches we do in Swansea Harriers. I’d like to thank all the club coaches for all their dedication, continued help, teamwork and cooperation for another successful season in the club and for giving up so much of their free time to come and volunteer at the club on a regular basis, your support is really appreciated and much needed.

As in 2011 I would repeat that when the new university track opened the number of coaches increased rapidly in the club too, but now that honeymoon period is over and coaching resources have remained stable in the forties for the last 6 years. The club currently has 42 UK Athletics qualified coaches ranging from some volunteering on a casual

basis once every couple of weeks to some who are at the track 3 or 4 times every single week. The club needs to increase the number of active coaches towards 50 which is required to offer more effective coaching ratios due to the large number of members in the club.

With over 20 groups within the club set up helped by our 42 active coaches, the club can offer coaching in standalone established groups for competing club athletes in nearly all athletics disciplines. The coaching structure continues to evolve and there is much internal networking and informal mentoring between the coaches. We are very lucky to have some very experienced coaches with many years of knowledge that they pass onto the newer coaches, it is essential that the club does all it can to retain and reward all these coaches.

Again as in 2011 I would hope that some more of the newer coaches that have started in the last few years will have the confidence to go on and establish their own groups away from the junior introductory squads of which several of them are more than capable of doing. This is yet to happen in 2012 but the statement still stands.

With the huge interest and increase in numbers of participants since the Olympics it is essential that more parents come forward to volunteer as coaches in the club set up in an attempt to have as effective coaching ratios as possible.

2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012UKA Qualified & Active Coaches 39 44 47 45 43 42

Andrew Jenkins4th October 2012