Golden girl Lucy stuns county set (From Basingstoke Gazette)

Golden girl Lucy stuns county set

8:00am Sunday 15th January 2012 in General By John Boyman

BASINGSTOKE and Mid Hants athlete Lucy Wildash is celebrating after claiming a gold medal at the Hampshire Cross Country Championships.

Wildash won the under-13 girls race at the championships, which took place at Dibden on Saturday, leading from the start and moving away gradually to finish the 2,700m course in 9min 53sec, nine seconds clear of the chasing pack.

Another north Hampshire runner, Overton Harriers’ Liz Sandall-Ball, was also on the medal rostrum. She came first in the race for women aged over 60, finishing the 8,400m course in 43min 51sec.

Basingstoke’s John Hutchins was fifth in the senior men’s event, a feat matched by clubmate Charlotte Chalwin in the under-17 girls race. Gemma Wildash was the seventh under-15 girl home, while Jonty Davison was ninth in the boys under-15 event.

Other members of the Down Grange club took part in a Today’s Runner cross country event held at Lord Wandsworth College, helping Basingstoke to finish second in the overall standings.

Matt Shayler came fourth and Sam Bevan was ninth as the men’s team finished first, while the women, led home by eighth-placed Cheryl Foot, were third.

The indoor season is also getting under way and two Basingstoke and Mid Hants athletes travelled to Sheffield for the English Combined Events Championships.

Sam Sleap had an excellent day, recording personal bests in all seven events of the men’s heptathlon to claim a bronze medal in the under-23 category, while a lifetime best points tally of 5,124 saw him finish ninth overall. Clubmate Ben Hazell was just behind him in 11th with a points tally of 5,072.

Tanisha Clayton moved up to second in the under-20 British rankings for both the shot and 60m hurdles, launching the shot 11.57m and completing the hurdles course in 9.07sec at a meeting in Eton.