The recent publication of the British Athletics 2021 Handbook, which reveals the Ranking lists, such as they are for 2020, and athletes who we have lost during the past year including former Sussex Javelin, and High jump champion and record holder.
John Kitching, Burgess Hill, was an Achilles (Cambridge University) athlete who competed in County championships in in the late 1950s. In 1958 he won both the high jump with a Sussex Record leap of 6ft.4in. (1.93m) and the javelin throw with another County record of 210ft.7in. (66.18m) the first time a Sussex athlete had topped the 200 foot mark.
In the same year he competed in the Commonwealth Games at Cardiff but did not clear the opening height of 1.93m. While at University in the USA in1960 he threw 74.56m (244f. 7i) which was then the second furthest throw by a British thrower on the All Time list. He also chalked up international victories in the javelin for GB against Belgium in 1960 and for England against Ireland in 1965.
He was born in December 1934 and was 86 when he died.
Anning Sparkling Outdoors
Amber Anning (Brighton & Hove) the Sussex 400m record holder moved out doors last weekend at the Louisiana ISU Alumni Gold meeting and laid down her credentials to being an athlete to watch on the run up for the UK team to the Tokyo Olympics later in the season.
Anning has already updated her Sussex record with an indoor clocking of 51.83i, which is the second faster clocking by a British athlete this year, and was quite pleased with her first outdoor run winning her event in 51.97s.
She needs to duck inside 51.35s to achieve the Olympic Standard and is determined to be the first Sussex runner to crack 51.00sec.