Chichester trio bid for national schools athletics honours

In the senior age group, Jamie Moore and Izzie Brown qualified individually by ending in the top five.

Jess Breach battled hard as part of the Sussex junior girls’ team who had to be content with third place. They were just edged out by strong Hampshire and Hertfordshire teams in their bid for a team place in the final.

Moore was one of two Sussex athletes to qualify in the senior boys’ event, finishing third behind runner-up Jono Ketley. While not challenging his best overall score, his 5,499 points were enough for the bronze and a place in the final with a speedy 4.46min in the 1,500m, the last event. As well as the pole vault where a 4m clearance netted 617 points, he also exceeded the 600 mark in the 100m, 400m and 1,500m.

Like Moore, Brown had one eye on the English schools championships at Gateshead this weekend and was content to have a steady series in the heptathlon in her first year in the under-20 age group.

After a solid high jump of 1.65m netted 795 points, a good 200m gave her the next best score of 659 to help to ensure fourth place and book her spot in the final as one of 13 Sussex athletes, a county record for these championships.

Breach was determined not to let the rest of the Sussex team down in the junior girls event but was hampered by a hamstring problem throughout her pentathlon and did well to notch 2,260 points for 16th overall but it was well below her true best set earlier this month at Abingdon.

With a combined score of 7,126, the Sussex trio were just unable to finish in the top two.

This weekend, Moore and Brown are joined by Ollie Smith as part of a 60-strong Sussex team in the English Schools championships at Gateshead.

PHIL BAKER