In this half term review, Mr. Thorogood, the Head of High Performance Sport at Eltham College, takes us through the remarkable accomplishments of the athletics teams. Focusing on the Cambridge Cup and the inaugural national Track & Field cup, Mr. Thorogood highlights the outstanding performances of our student athletes. He also sheds light on the upcoming Girls and Boys Greenwich schools championships, showcasing the bright future of Eltham College athletics. Through dedication and success, these athletes embody the thriving athletic programme at the school.
Athletics half term review
This term has seen our athletics teams take to the track and field with great aplomb. The focus of competition has seen years 7 to 9 compete in the Greenwich district championships, the Cambridge Cup and the years 7 to 10 take on the prestigious national Track & Field cup for the very first time. Athletics continues to grow amongst the Eltham college sporting programme and with the addition of four designated athletics sessions through the week, on top of multiple students competing and training outside of school, the future of athletics looks strong.
The Cambridge Cup
The initial competition of the summer saw year 9 take to the excellent Sutcliffe Park arena to compete in the district cup. With some highly impressive athletes on show across the borough, Eltham stood strong claiming 4 x gold, 6 x silver and 3 x bronze. Performances of note came from Emily Cadman (200m gold), Christine Kadiri (100m Gold), Kyveli Nolan (Javelin gold), Horatio Hodge (High jump Silver), Tom Ravenscroft (300m Silver), Tilly Stafford (1500m Silver), Beatrice Barlow (800m Silver) and the 4 x 100m girls team (Silver). This resulted in top 4 overall finishes for the team in their final Cambridge cup.
The year 8’s performed well, without setting the podium alight with their presence as much as their year 9 counterparts. Lots of endeavour and some impressive performances, with the standard of opponent ensuring a tough day at the races, if you will. Individual displays of note saw Tessa Chapman win silver in the 100m and gold medals for Alex Johnson (200m), Matt Caceres-Camiloaga (800m) and Daniel Horgan (1500m), with the boys 4 x 100m team winning silver as well. The team will hope to fair a little stronger next year.
Finally, the effervescent year 7’s put on an outstanding show as they racked up an impressive 19 podium finishes. Bronze medals went to Onali Jayawardena (Shot & Discus), Ettienne Valeba (Javelin), Oscar Cadman (200m), Hattie Stafford (1500m), Aaron Crossan (1500m), Joe Lewis (800m) and the boys 4 x 100m team. Silver medals went to Vivienne-Leigh Peter (Hurdles & 200m), Leo Maros (High Jump), Dara Litvilis (200m), Nathan Crossan (1500m), Tessa Dacunha (800m) and Tom Forsdyke (200m). Impressive gold medals to Leo Maros (Hurdles), Monty Brown (800m) and a stunning performance in the 1500m by Dara Litvilis. Both the boys and girls finished in 2nd place, with both just one point off winning the trophy. The future looks exceptionally bright for Eltham College athletics.
National Track & Field Cup
In our inaugural appearance at the national track & field cup at Tooting Bec athletics arena, 50 students from years 7 to 10 made their mark on the competition as 8 impressive athletics squads, boasting over 400 competitors battled it out through the day in the gloom and rain. Given this was our first foray into this unknown event, top half finishes for all the teams were impressive with finishes of 4th for both the Junior and intermediate girls teams, 3rd for the Junior boys’ team and 2nd for the intermediate boy’s teams. Individual performances of note across the day were:
Christine Kadiri 100m Gold
Ethan Mudhay 100m Gold
Emily Cadman 200m Gold
Tom Ravenscroft 200m Gold
Dan Horgan 1500m Gold
Alex Johnson 200m Gold
Olly Buck 1500m Silver
Sam Holloway 800m Silver
Horatio Hodge 300m Silver
Tessa Chapman 100m Silver
Anthony Poulin 100m Silver
Monty Brown 800m Silver
Intermediate Boys 4 x 100m Silver
Junior Boys 4 x 100m Silver
Beatrice Barlow 1500m Bronze
Elsie Smith 200m Bronze
Horatio Hodge High Jump Bronze
Hunter Caldwell 300m Bronze
Darcy Irwin 800m Bronze
Junior Girls 4 x 100m Bronze
Intermediate Girls 4 x 100m Bronze
Key upcoming events:
27th June – Girls Greenwich schools Championships – Sutcliffe Park
4th July – Boys Greenwich schools Championships – Sutcliffe Park
London Schools Competition Selection for Greenwich Borough on Saturday 10th June -:
Ethan Mudhay – 100m
Tom Ravenscroft – 300m
Olly Buck – 3km
Sam Holloway – 800m
Emily Cadman – 100m, Long Jump &
Christine Kadiri – 100m & 4 x 100m
Dara Litvilis – 1500m
Karomen Izekor – 300m
Dan Horgan – 1500m
Alex Johnson – 200m & 4x100m
Matt Caceres-Camiloaga – 800m
Tessa DaCunha – 800m
Nathan Crossan – 1500m
Leo Maros – 75m Hurdles & High Jump
Monty Brown – 800m
With such impressive displays across our 4 major events so far, we look forward to the Greenwich schools’ championships later this term. Many congratulations to all our athletes who have represented the school so brilliantly over the last 6 weeks.
Mr Thorogood
Head of High Performance Sport
