The British 400m hurdler created the Roger Armstrong Memorial Assembly, which noticed athletes battle the weather
For all of the teeming rain on the David Weir Leisure Centre on July 5, there was a way it will take much more than dangerous climate to dampen expectations on the inaugural Roger Armstrong Memorial Assembly.
The competitors, organised by British 400m hurdler Chris McAlister in reminiscence of his coach’s late husband, was performed out in situations which regularly bordered on appalling – however there was greater than sufficient high quality on the observe to dispel the notion that good climate is required for good ambiance.
The soundtrack definitely helped. The vary of Electro classics saved spectators energised, even when the 4.0 m/s winds made the lyrics of The Chemical Brothers’ ‘Galvanise’ barely much less intelligible.
The calibre of athletes helped too. The 400m hurdles pitted UK finalists Efe Okoro and Tyri Donovan towards each other within the males’s race, while Jessie Knight took to the start-line within the ladies’s occasion, only some hours after being named within the Staff GB squad for the Paris Olympics.
Organising the competitors was a brand new enterprise for McAlister, who turns 30 this 12 months and took on arranging the occasion after Roger Armstrong – the late husband of McAlister’s coach Marina – sadly handed away in February.
Sophia McCart, Elicia Lacey and Zoe Dolan (Daniel Rees)
McAlister’s endeavour to create the assembly has been outstanding, not least as a result of he juggled the dedication alongside his Olympic ambitions.
The assembly not solely mirrored Mr Armstrong’s alacrity and light-heartedness however the high quality of competitors on present, plus the slickness of proceedings, had been essential successes too.
The lads’s 400m hurdles featured the third and fourth placers from final weekend’s UK Championships remaining.
Donovan, who has already loved a stellar 2024, ran a wonderful 49.40 to beat off competitors from Okoro, who himself has returned from an injury-hit 2023 in extremely spectacular trend.
Knight additionally ran a season’s better of 55.47 to steal the present within the ladies’s race, ending forward of Hayley McLean.
Jessie Knight (Daniel Rees)
There have been equally races to permit growing membership athletes a chance to check themselves.
Private bests had been recorded by Sutton and District’s U20 800m runner Samuel Kalembo, who ran 2:04.73, and U17 club-mate Abidanab Panchanlingam, who clocked 2:06.68. U15 athlete India Kaur, in the meantime, lowered her greatest to 2:23.29.
Regardless of the quickly deteriorating situations, the athletes and officers – who had been saved busy lugging hurdles round all night – fought on.
Within the males’s 110m hurdles, Will Ritchie-Moulin continued to justify his transfer from the 400m hurdles with one other sub-14 second efficiency, crossing the road a snug winner in 13.93.
Will Ritchie-Moulin runs 13.93 to win 110m hurdles (Daniel Rees)
Tonbridge’s Elicia Lacey then ran 11.73 within the 80m hurdles as she continued her preparations for the English Faculties’ Championships later this month.
The competitors, which additionally noticed World Athletics’ CEO Jon Ridgeon and UKA statistician Ian Hodge within the crowd, concluded with a showpiece 100m.
Not content material together with his win within the 110m hurdles, Ritchie-Moulin returned to take victory in a brand new private better of 10.78, beating Joshua Weru and Tobias Hawkins who took joint-second in 10.80.
If the success of Friday’s occasion is something to go by, this is not going to be the final time the Roger Armstrong Memorial Assembly options in athletes’ calendars.
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