Gold Rush for Southampton's Athletes

Records tumbled as Southampton’s Athletes competed in the South England Student Sports Association (SESSA) Indoor Championships on Wednesday. 19 athletes made the journey, the most in the club’s history, and they returned with a superb haul of two gold medals, one silver and bronze.

The first gold was won by Alex Teuten in the men’s 3,000 metres, who was defending his crown having previously won it whilst studying at Imperial College London. He paced himself through the first few laps before racing away from a tiring field to win by the staggering margin of 150 metres. Also bringing home gold was Emily Bonnet whose position at the front of the field was never even threatened during the women’s 400 metres.

Sandwiched between the golds there were a number of remarkable performances from Southampton athletes. Jake Bradley set a new personal best with one shoelace untied in the 3,000 metres and Ewan Maynard and George Hilton comfortably won their heats. In the shape of  Jo Freeman, Nadia Papasidero, Jessica Johns and Lucy Mapp Southampton had four competitors in the women’s 3,000 metres who were incredibly evenly matched and raced each other all the way to the finish in an exciting race.

Club President John Wright, one of Southampton’s brightest medal hopes coming into the tournament, fought back from being boxed in with 200 metres to go in the 800m to finish second, agonisingly falling short of the tiring gold medallist.

The day was rounded off with a bronze medal and a PB from Malcolm Gledhill in the 60 metres, putting the icing on the cake of a superb day for Southampton. President John Wright’s view on the day was:

The squad we took to London really performed above and beyond all expectations, and the results just confirm how well our record number of athletes have been training. I believe this is just a taste of the possibilities for the coming season, as we are one of the strongest upcoming University teams. Preparation is already ongoing for the next two events, the BUCS Cross Country and BUCS Indoor Athletics Championships, both in February. Watch this space for more details soon!”

The Club’s sights are now firmly set on success in the BUCS Indoor Championships, held in February. To follow the fortunes of the club, or if you would simply like more information, John encourages you to find them on facebook at http://www.facebook.com/SotonUniAthletics or follow them on Twitter – @SotonUniAthXC.